Spotlight

Spotlight Date: 17-July-05
Spoiler Rating: Medium

Laura (1944)

"Laura" is a classic movie that defined a career (Gene Tierney's), spawned a hit song ("Laura"), and is consistently cited as an exemplar of its genre (mystery/noir). Directed by Otto Preminger, the film follows a hard-boiled police detective (Dana Andrews) as he investigates the brutal murder of a woman in the springtime of life (Tierney). Moving back and forth between Laura's fiancé (Vincent Price), aunt (Judith Anderson), and mentor (Clifton Webb), he tries to piece together the emotions and misunderstandings that led to the death of a person who was apparently admired by all. In so doing, he forms a crush on the dearly departed that expands his interest in the case beyond the merely professional.

Movies like "Laura" all have the same feel (if they're done right, anyway), so a true classic needs something to distinguish itself from the crowd. In this case I would cite a trenchant script and, most of all, Andrews' perfectly pitched sang-froid. (Let others focus on the Oscar-winning cinematography and Tierney's celebrated beauty.) His Detective McPherson is a cool cucumber indeed, yet his potential for passion and devotion are visible beneath the surface. "If only Laura had fallen for someone like him!" he makes you exclaim, and this sentiment gives the story a special zest.

Another fascination of the film (albeit one that might have gone unnoticed at its release) is its conspicuous promotion of the middle class. All of McPherson's suspects are well-to-do socialites who epitomize the stereotypical narcissism of the rich: the fiancé is a feckless playboy, the aunt a grasping shrew, and the mentor a jaded snob who spits venom in the form a newspaper column. (When asked to describe the extent of his compassion, he responds "I should be sincerely sorry to see my neighbors' children devoured by wolves.") They form a pointed contrast to Laura's maid (Dorothy Adams), an uncultured, slavishly adoring menial of the type that often appears in old books and movies and hopefully has been eradicated from the earth. (Immediately after suffering a major shock, she is ordered by her betters to make breakfast as a way of returning to the comfort of her subservient state.) Together, these extremes of society accentuate the inherent superiority of the professional McPherson, whose composure and efficiency are reflected in flashbacks of Laura's rise to prominence at the office and about town. "If everyone was like those two, this tragedy would never have happened!" you might also find yourself exclaiming, and it's kind of an odd sensation. I'm not sure the middle class really does have a lock on decent living; but the doubtfulness of this message doesn't overshadow "Laura"'s larger appeal.

Copyright © 2005 The Jujube (M. I. Kim). All rights reserved.