To avid readers of Raymond Chandler novels Philip
Marlowe is well known as the linchpin of his private detective stories. In this 1978 film
adaptation of "The Big Sleep" Robert Mitchum plays the role of Marlowe who is
called in to assist a wealthy American, General Sternwood (James Stewart), living in
England who is being blackmailed over nude photos taken of one of his daughters, Camilla
(Candy Clark).
During his investigation, Marlowe keeps getting caught up
by the disappearance of the other daughter’s husband, Rusty Ryan. Everyone he meets,
including the two daughters, assumes he has been hired to look for Rusty. Which of course
piques his interest and adds to the twists of this story. The two daughters certainly have
a colourful life and Marlowe gets drawn into the world of seedy nightclubs, run by a
gangster called Eddie Mars (Oliver Reed) who has an association with Camila’s sister
Charlotte (Sarah Miles)
As with all good PI movies, Marlowe self narrates part of
the story as he proceeds which lets the viewer into his thoughts and current plans. While
the storyline couldn’t be called action-packed there are lots of murders, all of
which happen in the vicinity of Marlowe.
It should also be noted that this novel was originally made
into a film in 1945 starring Humphrey Bogart. In this current version (1978) the setting
has been changed to London but the storyline is still consistent with the book but at
times the acting, particularly that presented for the younger daughter, is just a little
over the top.
|
So how does this DVD Scrub Up?
This DVD is presented in widescreen anamorphic format and despite the age
of the film it is presented quite well. There is a low level of grain evident throughout
the transfer and some images are not as sharp as they could be, but then it is an old
movie. There are relatively muted and dullish colours used, consistent with the story
being set in England. There are no major artefacts to cause any problems and skin tones
are realistic. The detail level is of sufficient quality and the colour contrasts are OK.
Overall the video transfer is of an acceptable quality and while there are some flecks on
the film there are not as many as one may expect for a film of this age.
This is a single layer disk so there is no layer change to
be concerned with.
|
The audio track is presented as Dolby Digital monologue track and
so there is no use of the surround sound speakers. Since this is predominantly a dialogue
driven story the audio is serviceable but sounds a little flat compared to a decent
surround track. The audio synch is consistent throughout the movie and most importantly
for a PI story the dialogue is sharp and clear.
The music soundtrack is quite inconspicuous but there is
the typical use of suspenseful music to warn us when someone is up to no good.
|
|
|
