Often called
"Hitchcock champagne," TO CATCH A THIEF ($27) is
wonderful, albeit lighthearted, romantic thriller from the master of
suspense. Perhaps it is because of the film's playful nature that I like
to count TO CATCH A THIEF amongst my personal favorite Alfred
Hitchcock movies. But then again, it could be that TO CATCH A THIEF
is a perfect fusion of star power, sophisticated comedy, glamour and
suspense. For my money, Cary Grant has always been the definitive
Hitchcock leading man, and in the case of TO CATCH A THIEF, there
is no better actor for the material. Grant possessed the charm,
athleticism and comedic timing required to portray a former jewel thief
falsely accused of resuming his past profession.
After a series of high
profile jewel robberies on the French Riviera, the police and the press
assume that John Robie (Grant) AKA The Cat is on the prowl once again.
After protesting his innocence to his former associates from the French
Resistance, Robie finds that even they believe his guilt. Amazingly, the
only person even remotely willing to believe in Robie‘s innocence is a
Lloyds of London insurance investigator named H. H. Hughson (John
Williams), who is desperate to recover the jewelry and his company's
money. Of course, even this most unlikely of allies is wary of Robie,
especially when the former jewel thief asks for a list of insurance
company clients with the most desirable gems. Eventually Hughson accedes
to Robie’s request, but only after he realizes that it takes a thief
to catch a thief. Picking the most likely target from the insurance
company list, Robie immediately cozies up to rich American widow Jessie
Stevens (Jessie Royce Landis) and her beautiful daughter Francie (Grace
Kelly).
As I stated above, Cary
Grant was a perfect fit to the role of former cat burglar John Robie, but
Hitchcock also cast the rest of the film’s leading roles equally well.
Grace Kelly was probably the definitive icy Hitchcock blonde, whose cold
exterior could barely contain the burning fire of passion that threatened
to melt through the surface. There is a definite sexual dynamic between
Grant and Kelly- something that Hitchcock was able to exploit, while
remaining well within the censorship limitations of the 1950s. I don’t
think I can sing the praises of character actress Jessie Royce Landis
highly enough; she brought a marvelous droll wit and pitch perfect comic
timing in TO CATCH A THIEF (something that she repeated in
Hitchcock’s NORTH BY NORTHWEST). Landis’ scenes are amongst the
film’s many highlights, all of which she manages to steal away from
stars of the caliber of Grant and Kelly. As for John Williams, he was
another great character actor of the old school, whose "stiff upper
lip" enhanced the film’s sophisticated comedy.
Paramount Home
Entertainment has made TO CATCH A THIEF available on DVD in a
1.85:1 wide screen presentation that features the anamorphic enhancement
for 16:9 displays. Up front I have to say that this is the absolute best
that TO CATCH A THIEF has ever looked in the home venue, although
the presentation isn’t perfect. TO CATCH A THIEF most likely
requires some form of restoration to the original VistaVision negatives,
which would ultimately yield a higher caliber presentation that what one
can accomplish with standard 35mm elements. Still, Paramount has done an
admirable job by producing a transfer that squeezes every last bit of
juice from the given film elements.
The image is usually quite
crisp and very well defined, but this does bring out the imperfections in
the elements themselves. There are a few bits of debris, as well as a
number of vertical and horizontal scratches, which are indicative
VistaVision films that have been converted to standard 35mm. Of course,
the increased resolution of this new transfer eliminates the problem of
John Robie’s striped shirt, which created a nightmare of video artifacts
on previous video and broadcast versions of the film. Colors come very
close to capturing the vibrancy of an IB Technicolor print, and are
generally pleasing. Check out the flower market and costume ball sequences
for examples of how good the colors can look. Unfortunately, skin tones
don’t always look completely natural- in certain sequences Cary Grant
looks as though her were trying to take away George Hamilton’s title of
most sun tanned man to ever walk the planet. Color stability is usually
very good, although there are occasions when certain intense hues can
appear a bit fuzzy. Black are deep and inky, white appear clean and
contrast is pretty darn good. Dual layer authoring keeps digital
compression artifacts well hidden.
TO CATCH A THIEF is
offered on DVD with a nice sounding Dolby Digital monaural soundtrack. The
track sounds as though it was digitally cleaned to remove the most
annoying traces of background hiss and surface noise. Of course, this fix
can’t do anything about the limited fidelity of these recordings, which
are closing in on the half-century mark. Lyn Murray’s engaging score
probably suffers the most; it sounds rather thin, without any true top or
bottom ends to the music. Dialogue is always intelligible and the actors’
voices retain a great deal of character, although dubbed bits of dialogue
are fairly obvious. A French language track is also encoded onto the DVD,
as are English subtitles.
Full motion video,
animation and sound serve to enhance the DVD’s interactive menus.
Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene selection and set
up features, as well as some very nice supplemental materials. Several
interesting and informative featurettes have been produced for this DVD
release. Of course, producing any form of supplements for a film of this
vintage does present some difficulties, since all the major cast members
and director have passed on. Standing in for the master of suspense in
these newly produced programs are Hitchcock’s daughter Pat and his
granddaughter Mary Stone, who impart their memories of the celebrated
director and the cinematic icons that starred in TO CATCH A THIEF.
Writing and Casting
is a nine-minute program that looks at the inception of the project.
Clocking in at roughly seventeen minutes is The Making Of To Catch A
Thief, which looks at the actual production of the movie and
features interviews with surviving crewmembers and film historians. Alfred
Hitchcock and To Catch A Thief: An Appreciation is another
seven-minute program that provides further reflection on the movie. Also
include on the DVD is Edith Head- The Paramount Years, a
fourteen minute program that looks at the career of the famous costume
designer, who was responsible for the beautiful gowns and other garments
worn by Grace Kelly in the film. A photo gallery and theatrical trailer
close out the supplements.
Like champagne, TO CATCH
A THIEF is an effervescent movie that truly sparkles thanks to the
Hitchcock touch and a superb cast. Paramount has done a fine job with the
DVD; producing the best looking presentation of the film that I’ve ever
seen, as well as including some enjoyable supplements. If you are a
Hitchcock fan, a Cary Grant fan, or a Grace Kelly fan, you will want to
add TO CATCH A THIEF to you DVD collection.
Often called
"Hitchcock champagne," TO CATCH A THIEF ($27) is
wonderful, albeit lighthearted, romantic thriller from the master of
suspense. Perhaps it is because of the film's playful nature that I like
to count TO CATCH A THIEF amongst my personal favorite Alfred
Hitchcock movies. But then again, it could be that TO CATCH A THIEF
is a perfect fusion of star power, sophisticated comedy, glamour and
suspense. For my money, Cary Grant has always been the definitive
Hitchcock leading man, and in the case of TO CATCH A THIEF, there
is no better actor for the material. Grant possessed the charm,
athleticism and comedic timing required to portray a former jewel thief
falsely accused of resuming his past profession.
After a series of high
profile jewel robberies on the French Riviera, the police and the press
assume that John Robie (Grant) AKA The Cat is on the prowl once again.
After protesting his innocence to his former associates from the French
Resistance, Robie finds that even they believe his guilt. Amazingly, the
only person even remotely willing to believe in Robie‘s innocence is a
Lloyds of London insurance investigator named H. H. Hughson (John
Williams), who is desperate to recover the jewelry and his company's
money. Of course, even this most unlikely of allies is wary of Robie,
especially when the former jewel thief asks for a list of insurance
company clients with the most desirable gems. Eventually Hughson accedes
to Robie’s request, but only after he realizes that it takes a thief
to catch a thief. Picking the most likely target from the insurance
company list, Robie immediately cozies up to rich American widow Jessie
Stevens (Jessie Royce Landis) and her beautiful daughter Francie (Grace
Kelly).
As I stated above, Cary
Grant was a perfect fit to the role of former cat burglar John Robie, but
Hitchcock also cast the rest of the film’s leading roles equally well.
Grace Kelly was probably the definitive icy Hitchcock blonde, whose cold
exterior could barely contain the burning fire of passion that threatened
to melt through the surface. There is a definite sexual dynamic between
Grant and Kelly- something that Hitchcock was able to exploit, while
remaining well within the censorship limitations of the 1950s. I don’t
think I can sing the praises of character actress Jessie Royce Landis
highly enough; she brought a marvelous droll wit and pitch perfect comic
timing in TO CATCH A THIEF (something that she repeated in
Hitchcock’s NORTH BY NORTHWEST). Landis’ scenes are amongst the
film’s many highlights, all of which she manages to steal away from
stars of the caliber of Grant and Kelly. As for John Williams, he was
another great character actor of the old school, whose "stiff upper
lip" enhanced the film’s sophisticated comedy.
Paramount Home
Entertainment has made TO CATCH A THIEF available on DVD in a
1.85:1 wide screen presentation that features the anamorphic enhancement
for 16:9 displays. Up front I have to say that this is the absolute best
that TO CATCH A THIEF has ever looked in the home venue, although
the presentation isn’t perfect. TO CATCH A THIEF most likely
requires some form of restoration to the original VistaVision negatives,
which would ultimately yield a higher caliber presentation that what one
can accomplish with standard 35mm elements. Still, Paramount has done an
admirable job by producing a transfer that squeezes every last bit of
juice from the given film elements.
The image is usually quite
crisp and very well defined, but this does bring out the imperfections in
the elements themselves. There are a few bits of debris, as well as a
number of vertical and horizontal scratches, which are indicative
VistaVision films that have been converted to standard 35mm. Of course,
the increased resolution of this new transfer eliminates the problem of
John Robie’s striped shirt, which created a nightmare of video artifacts
on previous video and broadcast versions of the film. Colors come very
close to capturing the vibrancy of an IB Technicolor print, and are
generally pleasing. Check out the flower market and costume ball sequences
for examples of how good the colors can look. Unfortunately, skin tones
don’t always look completely natural- in certain sequences Cary Grant
looks as though her were trying to take away George Hamilton’s title of
most sun tanned man to ever walk the planet. Color stability is usually
very good, although there are occasions when certain intense hues can
appear a bit fuzzy. Black are deep and inky, white appear clean and
contrast is pretty darn good. Dual layer authoring keeps digital
compression artifacts well hidden.
TO CATCH A THIEF is
offered on DVD with a nice sounding Dolby Digital monaural soundtrack. The
track sounds as though it was digitally cleaned to remove the most
annoying traces of background hiss and surface noise. Of course, this fix
can’t do anything about the limited fidelity of these recordings, which
are closing in on the half-century mark. Lyn Murray’s engaging score
probably suffers the most; it sounds rather thin, without any true top or
bottom ends to the music. Dialogue is always intelligible and the actors’
voices retain a great deal of character, although dubbed bits of dialogue
are fairly obvious. A French language track is also encoded onto the DVD,
as are English subtitles.
Full motion video,
animation and sound serve to enhance the DVD’s interactive menus.
Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene selection and set
up features, as well as some very nice supplemental materials. Several
interesting and informative featurettes have been produced for this DVD
release. Of course, producing any form of supplements for a film of this
vintage does present some difficulties, since all the major cast members
and director have passed on. Standing in for the master of suspense in
these newly produced programs are Hitchcock’s daughter Pat and his
granddaughter Mary Stone, who impart their memories of the celebrated
director and the cinematic icons that starred in TO CATCH A THIEF.
Writing and Casting
is a nine-minute program that looks at the inception of the project.
Clocking in at roughly seventeen minutes is The Making Of To Catch A
Thief, which looks at the actual production of the movie and
features interviews with surviving crewmembers and film historians. Alfred
Hitchcock and To Catch A Thief: An Appreciation is another
seven-minute program that provides further reflection on the movie. Also
include on the DVD is Edith Head- The Paramount Years, a
fourteen minute program that looks at the career of the famous costume
designer, who was responsible for the beautiful gowns and other garments
worn by Grace Kelly in the film. A photo gallery and theatrical trailer
close out the supplements.
Like champagne, TO CATCH
A THIEF is an effervescent movie that truly sparkles thanks to the
Hitchcock touch and a superb cast. Paramount has done a fine job with the
DVD; producing the best looking presentation of the film that I’ve ever
seen, as well as including some enjoyable supplements. If you are a
Hitchcock fan, a Cary Grant fan, or a Grace Kelly fan, you will want to
add TO CATCH A THIEF to you DVD collection.
