Starring: George Sanders, Hurd Hatfield, Donna Reed, Angela Lansbury, Peter Lawford, Lowell Gilmore
Director: Albert Lewin
Rated: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Warner Archive Collection
DVD Release Date: November 11, 2014
Run Time: 110 minutes
Film: 4 out of 5 stars
Blu-ray: 4 out of 5 stars
Extras: 3 out of 5 stars
Based on the classic by Oscar Wilde, “The Picture of Dorian Gray” is a nice blend of horror/drama with a pinch of supernatural. The film is just a year sort of its 70th anniversary and it still holds up today. Albert Lewin writes and directs with Angela Lansbury and Donna Reed star. I think this is Warner Archive Collection’s best release to date!
Official Premise: George Sanders commands the screen as the acerbic, cynical Lord Henry Wotton whose errant musings unwittingly plunge a soul into a leprotic existence of amoral degradation. Hurd Harfield plays the eponymous Gray whose unchanging, placid beauty is enabled by his cursed portrait that embodies his age and decay.
The 1080p HD presentation is nothing short of pristine. It really showcases Cinematographer Harry Stradling, Sr. use of shadow very well with this black and white film. He went on to also win the Oscar for this cinematography for this picture. The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono works perfect for the film. It is clear and sharp and sounds amazing with the score by Herbert Stothart.
The special features are decent as well (even thought they were taken from Warner’s 2008 DVD release). There is a commentary track with Angela Lansbury and Film Historian Steve Haberman, which is very informative and entertaining. Also included is the Oscar-winning short”Stairway to Light”, the Tom and Jerry cartoon, “Quiet Please!”, which also won the Oscar for Best Short Subject, Cartoons, for 1945 and a Theatrical Trailer rounds out the extras.