Laura
Long on my list of film noir to watch has been Otto Preminger’s “Laura.” With a film like this, I try to go in as cold as possible. Of course some things had been heard about- namely, the music- beforehand, but thankfully, the film’s narrative itself remained a mystery, beyond knowing it originated from a novel by Vera Caspary. As with “Rebecca,” a woman’s death haunts over every moment of “Laura.” What happens when she comes back to life, though?
The film begins with a murder to be solved. Detective Mark McPherson (Dana Andrews) is at the home of Waldo Lydecker (Clifton Webb), questioning him about the nature of his relationship with Laura Hunt (Gene Tierney), the murdered woman. He was her mentor after a rather awkward introduction, but Laura wanted more. Nonetheless, Waldo helps her in her career. Next up with Shelby Carpenter (Vincent Price), Laura’s fiance, who is kept at arm’s length by Laura’s aunt, Ann Treadwell (Judith Anderson). Also questioned is Bessie, Laura’s housekeeper. As he investigates further into her life, McPherson becomes obsessed with her. Like Jimmy Stewart later in “Vertigo,” a detective falling in love with a dead woman is perilous territory…until one night, Laura walks into her room. Now, another mystery carries our thoughts.
In looking at various film noir over the decades, it’s interesting to see how different the major studios approached the genre vs. independent filmmakers. This isn’t the world of “Detour” or “Scarlett Street”; “Laura” is an elegant romantic mystery in the vein of “Double Indemnity” and “The Maltese Falcon.” This is a film about well off individuals caught in criminal activity, not down on their luck working class chumps. McPherson is looking at high class individuals for a crime any of them have the means, and moral compass, to cover up. When Laura re-enters the picture, McPherson is immediately drawn to her. Is that a mistake, though? Did she murder the victim as a way to disappear? Up until it’s all laid out at the end, anything is possible.
This is my first experience with Preminger, and I’m immediately locked into his craft and talents with directing actors. As Laura, Tierney is radiant, but also keeps us unsure as to whether we can trust her- did her rise in stature turn her into someone different than who she was when she first met Lydecker? That uncertainty is critical to the film’s success, as is seeing the effect she has on all of the men in the film- we wouldn’t be surprised either way by whether they had anything to do with her “death.” Joseph LaShelle’s cinematography makes a strong case as to why film noir should always be in black-and-white, and David Raksin’s famous score lives up to its stature. “Laura” contains within it the aspects of noir that often resonate strongest, but reconfigures them in a way that distinguishes itself from its genre. The best ones often do that, and it’s easy to see why “Laura” is regarded as such.
