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Bogart

Bogart Classics on DVD

Humphrey Bogart may be long gone, but his shadow looms over the movies as if he were still here. It isn’t hard to see why; his work includes such masterpieces as Casablanca, The Caine Mutiny, Treasure of the Sierra Madre, and many more.

Warner Home Video is releasing Bogie titles onto DVD in various forms - straightforward discs, deluxe two disc sets and boxed sets featuring multiple, multi-disc titles.

The latest boxed set we received included The Maltese Falcon, Casablanca, the Treasure of the Sierra Madre, To Have and Have Not and The Big Sleep. It's a terrific collection for those who haven't bought any of the titles in separate DVD release. Some of the titles are deluxe, two disc collector's editions while others are more straightforward single disc releases.

The Maltese Falcon on DVD

They say that film noir kicked off with this Bogart/John Huston classic about “the stuff that dreams are made of.”

Bogart is Sam Spade, hard boiled detective, a guy who obviously enjoys his life. It’s the role that made Bogie a star as he unravels the threads of deceit and adventure surrounding a fabled, lost statuette of (you guessed it) a jewel encrusted bird from the Mediterranean.

It all kicks off when a woman shows up at his and his partner’s office to hire them for what appears to be a straightforward shadowing job. But if that were all there was to it, we wouldn’t have much of a movie, and when you get right down to it this is one terrific piece of cinematic history so we're glad there was more to it.

So Spade embarks on a quest to find out who’s who and what’s what and why everyone seems to want everyone else dead. It’s a tale full of twists and turns and betrayals, with memorable performances and featuring a terrific screenplay and direction by Huston. If you have yet to see The Maltese Falcon, you’re in for a marvelous roller coaster ride.

And what a supporting cast! Mary Astor is at one moment sexy and vulnerable and the next a conniving wench you want to pick up and shake. Sidney Greenstreet kicks off his movie career with a marvelous portrayal of the honestly unscrupulous villain of the piece, with Peter Lorre and Elisha Cook Jr. both at their best as mousey weasels.

The DVD is excellent, usually. For the most part, the black and white full screen picture (not 16x9 TV compatible) is really good, with excellent sharpness and great contrast, though we noticed on more than one occasion that there were some scenes that were quite grainy and which could use a good restoration.

Audio is Dolby Digital mono and, not surprisingly, it’s only about as good as one would expect from 1940’s-vintage mono analog recording.

This movie really cries out for a two disc treatment such as you get with Casablanca and Treasure of the Sierra Madre. Still, there’s some interesting stuff here, including “Becoming Attractions,” which is a look at Bogie’s Warner Brothers career through his movie trailers. There’s also a text essay about mystery movies and a couple of theatrical trailers.

The Maltese Falcon, from Warner Home Video
100 min. full frame (1.33:1, not 16x9 TV compatible), Dolby Digital mono
Starring Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Gladys George, Peter Lorre, Barton MacLane, Lee Patrick, Sydney Greenstreet
Written and directed by John Huston

Casablanca, the Special Edition, on DVD

Arguably the greatest movie ever made, Casablanca has finally been given its due on DVD.

Casablanca, which has had such a profound effect on society that many of its phrases and situations are now in everyday use, is probably the perfect movie - if you ignore its cheesy special effects.

And now Warner Brothers has released this classic in a deluxe two disc version with remastered audio and video.

Probably the closest we’ll ever see to a truly perfect movie, Casablanca is timeless. It’s a tale of lost love, love regained, honor and duty; it has a terrific sense of humor and it’s a movie that despite being in black and white and “narrow screen” (4x3 full frame) with mono sound works as well today as it did in 1942. Maybe better.

Humphrey Bogart stars as cynical night club owner Rick Blaine, whose Café Americain in Casablanca, in unoccupied French Morocco, seems to be the hub of just about all activity in the city. Ingrid Bergman shines as Ilsa, the lover who dumped Rick in Paris on the eve of the Nazi occupation, giving him the cynicism he wears on his sleeve instead of his heart. Paul Henreid is Victor Laslow, brave and charismatic leader of the underground resistance to the Nazis - and as we find out he’s also bound to Ilsa. Claude Rains has the most fun, and the best lines, as Louis Renaud, a poor corrupt public official with a sense of humor and an eye for young women.

Then there’s the rest of the main cast, including Sydney Greenstreet as a crime boss and owner of a competing night club, Peter Lorre as an oily, weasely small time hood with delusions of grandeur, and Conrad Veidt as the nasty Nazi Colonel who’s there to ensure that Laslow doesn’t spread his brand of hate (which to free people is a message of hope) beyond Casablanca. Each of these actors is perfectly cast and turns in a memorable performance.

We defy you to watch this movie and not be moved. From the scenes between Rick and Ilsa, and Laslow, to the incredibly powerful moment when the loyal free French citizens of Casablanca drown out the Nazis’ song in Rick’s café, there’s something here to inspire, to make you tear up, to make you laugh, to make you think. A true masterpiece in every way, from Michael Curtiz’ direction to the performances, the cinematography, and of course Max Steiner’s magnificent score.

As they say, if you watch only one movie - make it this one.

The original DVD release was good, and included some good extras, but this new one really takes the cake. First of all, they’ve given the film a new, digital remastering and the result is a black and white image that’s extremely sharp and contrasty, video that does Casablanca justice. It isn’t widescreen, so owners of 16x9 TV’s will have to stretch/zoom it to fit their screens, but that’s better than cropping it artificially for today’s aspect ratio.

Audio is a tad low, but the overall quality is fine considering its old, analog source.

Then there are the extras.

Disc one includes an introduction by Lauren Bacall, Bogart’s widow, as well as two commentaries, one by film critic and rabidly brain dead liberal Roger Ebert - who, to be fair, knows his movie stuff - and one by author-historian Rudy Behlmer. You also get the original and reissue theatrical trailers.

Disc two has plenty more, and most of it has real red meat for Casablanca fans. Somehow, they managed to find some 10 minutes of deleted scenes and outtakes (though they’re not the real meat), and a short featurette "The Children Remember": memories from Stephen Bogart and Ingrid Bergman's daughter Pia Lindstrom.

Our favorite stuff was a pair of Bacall-hosted documentaries, "You Must Remember This" and "Bacall on Bogart," both of which are fascinating looks at the film (in the first case) and the life and times of Humphrey Bogart (in the second case).

And get this: they’ve even included the premier episode from a 1955 Casablanca TV series, the Warner Brothers Looney Tunes homage "Carrotblanca" (which isn’t bad, but which really misses Mel Blanc!), and some audio features: "Screen Guild Players Radio Production" with the three stars, plus rare scoring session outtakes.

There’s more, too, including a gallery of the production’s history with photos, press materials, studio correspondence, memorabilia, etc. And there’s a DVD-ROM section as well.

It’s a complete package that does justice to one of the, if not the, greatest American (dare we say from any country?) films ever made.

Casablanca, from Warner Home Video
102 min. full frame (4x3, not 16x9 TV compatible), Dolby Digital mono
Starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid
Produced by Hal B. Wallis
Written by Julius P. and Philip G. Epstein and Howard Koch, directed by Michael Curtiz

To Have and Have Not

This isn’t just a ripping yarn, it’s the movie that cast Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall together - in work and then in life. It’s here that they fell in love, and you can see why when you see the film.

It’s 1940 on the French Caribbean island colony of Martinique, not long after France's surrender to Nazi Germany. Bogart is cynical fishing boat owner Harry Morgan, who is drawn reluctantly into the war when he agrees to help the French Resistance. Hoagy Carmichael, at the piano, plays the “Sam” character and as with the rest of the film he’s quite enjoyable in a "Sam lite" role.

The story may appear a bit too close to Casablanca at times (Casablanca lite), but if you’re going to be inspired by (or, more unkindly, rip off) another flick Casablanca isn’t a bad place to start! But most memorable about To Have and Have Not is Bogart and Bacall, their passion smoldering right off the screen.

So don’t worry so much about the story (though, to be fair, it's pretty good); it’s the performances and the atmosphere that really make this a worthwhile flick to see.

The DVD is very good. The image is presented in its original full frame 1.33:1 aspect ratio (not 16x9 TV compatible), and fine details are clear and the gray scale is outstanding. Audio is Dolby Digital mono, but it sounds fine, clean and well balanced.

Extras include a featurette that, although short, manages to cover a lot of the film's production. There's also a Warner Brothers classic Merrie Melodies cartoon (“Bacall to Arms,” which spoofs this movie) and the film's original theatrical trailer. And as a bonus, you get Bogie and Bacall headlining a 1946 Lux Radio Theater production.

To Have and Have Not, from Warner Home Video
100 min. full frame (1.33:1, not 16x9 TV compatible), Dolby Digital mono
Starring Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Walter Brennan
Produced by Jack L. Warner
Written by Jules Furthman and William Faulkner, directed by Howard Hawks.

The Big Sleep on DVD

Howard Hawks' The Big Sleep was adapted from the Raymond Chandler novel and features Bogart as legendary private investigator Philip Marlowe.

He’s hired by a disabled general to get to the bottom of a blackmail scheme involving one of his worthless daughters, a gig that turns out to be merely the beginning of nearly two hours of cinematic intrigue.

The movie reunites Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, and is full of dynamite dialogue and memorable characters. The banter between Bogart and Bacall almost reaches the level they shared in “To Have and To Have Not,” and there’s a wonderfully suggestive scene between Bogie and Dorothy Malone in a bookstore that sparkles with 1940’s sexuality.

Other memorable scenes include one in and around a casino in which Bogart rescues Bacall from a mugging, or so he thinks. He’s being played for a sucker all through the movie, but of course there are no flies on Marlowe…

The Big Sleep features another strong supporting cast, including Martha Vickers as Bacall's mentally unstable bimbo of a sister, John Ridgely, Peggy Knudsen, Charles Waldren and Elisha Cook, Jr., the latter of whom isn't a weasel this time around.

The screenplay is full of wonderful lines, intriguing and believable characters, imminent danger and even a few laughs.

Bogie’s Marlowe is different from Sam Spade; Spade was more interested in himself, while Marlowe marches to a higher purpose. Spade was no dummy, but he was down to earth, while Marlowe appears more cerebral.

Though not as good as Falcon, The Big Sleep is still highly entertaining and a worthwhile outing in the home theater.

The DVD is especially interesting in that it gives you two versions of the film, on opposite sides of the disc. Side A is the theatrical version most people know and love, while Side B is a recently discovered earlier version featuring a more linear plot. They’re both worth seeing.

One of the extras gives you interesting insight into the differences between the two versions, featuring UCLA’s Robert Gitt.

The DVD itself is very good. The black and white, full frame (not 16x9 TV compatible) picture is crisp and clean and features good contrast. Owners of widescreen TV’s will want to stretch/zoom the picture to help avoid burn in. This adds a little distortion to the picture, of course.

The audio, Dolby Digital mono, is fine considering its age.

Other extras include production notes and the theatrical trailer.

The Big Sleep, from Warner Home Video
114/116 min. full frame (1.33:1, not 16x9 TV compatible), Dolby Digital mono
Starring Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Martha Vickers, Dorothy Malone
A Howard Hawks Production
Written by William Faulkner, Leigh Brackett & Jules Furthman, directed by Howard Hawks

Last, but certainly not least, in this boxed set is John Huston’s The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, a masterpiece from the legendary director.

Not surprisingly, this film stars Humphrey Bogart - though you won’t like him. He’s small time loser Fred C. Dobbs, down on his luck in Mexico, wandering from low paying job to begging, to low paying job.

He hooks up with fellow down and outer Bob Curtin (Tim Holt) and they hitch their wandering star to an old gold prospector (Walter Huston) who’s up for one more kick at the can.

It starts out as a grand adventure, with the two wet behind the ears prospectors being hard pressed to keep up with the crusty old veteran, but it’s also an excellent character study of what makes a man a man - and how the lust for gold can drive some people around the bend.

They do strike a vein of gold, and their futures are set, but at that point the movie turns more from an adventure to a human study, and becomes much darker. You want to reach into the screen and slap Bogart as his character grows increasingly paranoid and violent, afraid his partners want to steal his gold. He really is a hateful dude!

Huston's character has seen it all before, so isn't surpised at the turn of events, but Holt unhappily gets caught in the middle.

In the end, it turns out that there is a type of justice - or perhaps karma or God is at work.

Oscars went to John and Walter Huston, both of whom deserved them. This is, indeed, an American classic that’s still powerful today.

The DVD looks great. The black and white picture is in full frame, of course, so it isn’t 16x9 TV compatible, but it’s sharp and clean. Audio is okay.

Extras include a terrific “Night at the Movies” feature we first saw on the Warner Legends boxed set. This is a Leonard Maltin-hosted "night out" that tries to recreate the movie theater experience from when the film was new. It brings together a trailer, newsreel, comedy short, cartoon and the main feature into a complete show. Disc one also contains a bunch of trailers.

The second disc includes a fascinating, full length look at the life and career of John Huston, hosted by Robert Mitchum. There’s also “Discovering the Treasure: The Story of The Treasure of the Sierra Madre,” a new documentary narrated by writer/director John Milius and featuring a host of commentators.

The classic cartoon this time is “8 Ball Bunny,” which features an homage to the film as an animated Bogart/Dobbs comes in periodically trying to bum money. There’s also a photo gallery and some audio programming.

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, from Warner Home Entertainment
126 min. full frame (1.33:1, not 16x9 TV compatible), Dolby Digital mono
Starring Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, Tim Holt, Bruce Bennett
Produced by Henry Blanke
Written and directed by John Huston 

 

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