Otto Preminger’s 1947 Technicolor opus, Forever Amber, which was subjected to censorship cuts and then three decades later, destruction of the Fox Technicolor library, arrives via Twilight Time, and gives us an inkling — and not much more — of the original beauty of the production.
One can only watch the work of Leon Shamroy, and wonder what might have been. To place things in perspective, over eighty productions were destroyed.
Magnificently mounted by Fox, it’s the tale of a young girl making her way through the court of seventeenth century England.
Linda Darnell is in the lead, with a superb supporting cast — Cornel Wilde, Richard Greene, George Sanders, Jessica Tandy and Fox stalwart, Anne Revere.
Strangely, Miss Darnell, who in this film, survived the London fire, lost her life in 1965 due to a house fire in Illinois.
While audio seems fine, imagery is much like many other Fox Technicolor productions, with decent color (albeit contrasty and dupey) in daylight, falling to quite unacceptable where elements are thinly exposed.
Bottom line. It is what it is, and without spending far more than might be worthwhile, will not get any better.
As a film, it’s a superb entertainment, with a great score by David Raksin, offered isolated by Twilight Time.
Image – 2.5
Audio – 4.5
Pass / Fail – Pass
Upgrade from DVD – Yes, with limitations acknowledged
Recommended
RAH
Robert has been known in the film industry for his unmatched skill and passion in film preservation. Growing up around photography, his first home theater experience began at age ten with 16mm. Years later he was running 35 and 70mm at home.
His restoration projects have breathed new life into classic films like Lawrence of Arabia, Vertigo, My Fair Lady, Spartacus, and The Godfather series. Beyond his restoration work, he has also shared his expertise through publications, contributing to the academic discourse on film restoration. The Academy Film Archive houses the Robert A. Harris Collection, a testament to his significant contributions to film preservation.
Post Disclaimer
Some of our content may contain marketing links, which means we will receive a commission for purchases made via those links. In our editorial content, these affiliate links appear automatically, and our editorial teams are not influenced by our affiliate partnerships. We work with several providers (currently Skimlinks and Amazon) to manage our affiliate relationships. You can find out more about their services by visiting their sites.
Similar threads