Laura (1944)

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Laura (1944) – O. Preminger

Classic noir romance from Otto Preminger that finds police detective Mark McPherson (Dana Andrews) doing his best to solve the murder of Laura Hunt (Gene Tierney) with a long list of suspects including her gigolo-like fiancé (Vincent Price, yes, Vincent Price), his wannabe sugar momma (Judith Anderson), and the bitchy older writer/radio personality (Clifton Webb) who first introduced Laura to society and may feel romantically toward her.  Webb narrates a long flashback sequence where we learn about Laura’s recent life up until the murder.  McPherson’s involvement in the case seems to verge on obsession (and he actually makes a bid for a large portrait of Laura from her estate).  By the end, we do find all the suspects gathered in one room so the detective can make the pinch – but everything is not as it seems (and the rules of the B mystery movie don’t really apply).  Director Otto Preminger handles everything beautifully but this is a certain type of noir, the kind that is a little less dark (despite the central murder), the kind that let’s viewers off the hook rather than implies a wider human darkness.  Later, Preminger would take Andrews further into the darkness and Fritz Lang would also use the actor to portray some flawed characters in some of his late noirs.  Andrews makes more of an impact in these later films.  Here, Gene Tierney and Clifton Webb dominate (and they would be re-paired in The Razor’s Edge two years later); she isn’t quite the femme fatale (she seems nicer) and he is perfect to provide the narration but isn’t the actual hero – in other words, noir conventions/cliches are eschewed here or weren’t yet set.  Adding to the sense of mystery and allure, Laura’s musical theme was a big hit at the time (though not as memorable as The Third Man’s zither).  It goes without saying that this is required viewing for noir aficionados.