Film noir is often associated with the "mean streets" of American cities and its characters are often drawn from the criminal underworld or the impoverished underclass. "Laura", unusually, is set against the background of New York's high society. As the film opens, Mark McPherson, an NYPD detective, is investigating the murder of Laura Hunt, a beautiful young advertising executive, killed with a shotgun just inside the doorway of her apartment. There appear to be two main suspects, Laura's playboy fiancé Shelby Carpenter and her friend the writer and newspaper columnist Waldo Lydecker. Her relationships with both men seem to have been very strange ones. Shelby likes to pose as a wealthy Southern gentleman, but in fact has little money of his own. He is effectively a "kept man", being kept by Laura's socialite aunt Ann Treadwell, who nevertheless has no objection to Shelby's engagement to her niece.
It is never really made clear whether Waldo, Laura's mentor and a middle-aged bachelor old enough to be her father, is a purely platonic friend or a disappointed suitor for her affections. As played by Clifton Webb, he comes across as highly effeminate, with a suggestion that he might be gay. In 1944, however, any direct mention of homosexuality would have been a violation of the Production Code, and even a strong hint in that direction might have attracted the unwelcome attention of the Hays Office. The film-makers, therefore, seem to have avoided being too explicit about the exact nature of the Waldo/Laura relationship, leaving open the possibility that he might harbour romantic feelings for her.
It was, incidentally, the characterisation of Waldo which was responsible for the rift between the producer Otto Preminger and his original director Rouben Mamoulian. Mamoulian had wanted Laird Cregar in the role, but was overruled, and loathed what he saw as Webb's effeminate interpretation of the role. Eventually Preminger persuaded studio head Darryl F. Zanuck to sack Mamoulian and to allow Preminger to direct the film himself.
Roger Ebert wrote of the film that "Film noir is known for its convoluted plots and arbitrary twists, but even in a genre that gave us "The Maltese Falcon", this takes some kind of prize". Ebert was doubtless thinking about the film's Big Twist which comes about halfway through. Up until then we have been thinking that this is a standard whodunit, that the title character will only appear in flashback and that it will end with the identification and arrest of Laura's killer. That, however, is not how matters play out. It is suddenly revealed that Laura is alive and well and that the dead body found in her flat was, in fact, that of another woman. McPherson now not only has to solve a murder but also has to prevent one, as he is convinced that the killer will return to murder the real Laura.
Dana Andrews makes a rather uncharismatic hero as McPherson, and a young Vincent Price is equally unmemorable as Shelby. Gene Tierney, however, is perfect in the title role. It is perhaps not Tierney's most technically demanding part, but someone of her beauty and charisma was needed to explain why Laura has such a hold over all the male characters- not just Shelby and Waldo, but also McPherson, who seems to be in love with Laura even when he believes her to be dead. The best performance comes from Webb- at this stage in his career better known as a Broadway actor than a cinema one- as Waldo, a camp, snobbish, dandyish and ultimately sinister intellectual, described by one critic as "walking through every scene as if afraid to step in something".
Despite its convoluted plot, at times almost incomprehensible and often rather silly, "Laura" has acquired the reputation of being something of a classic. Like some other films noirs, such as Howard Hawks's "The Big Sleep", it is a film one watches less for its storyline than for its general atmosphere, which in this case is one combining luxury with cruelty and sophistication with depravity, an atmosphere heightened by Webb's suavely poisonous acting and David Raksin's fine jazz-based score. 7/10
It is never really made clear whether Waldo, Laura's mentor and a middle-aged bachelor old enough to be her father, is a purely platonic friend or a disappointed suitor for her affections. As played by Clifton Webb, he comes across as highly effeminate, with a suggestion that he might be gay. In 1944, however, any direct mention of homosexuality would have been a violation of the Production Code, and even a strong hint in that direction might have attracted the unwelcome attention of the Hays Office. The film-makers, therefore, seem to have avoided being too explicit about the exact nature of the Waldo/Laura relationship, leaving open the possibility that he might harbour romantic feelings for her.
It was, incidentally, the characterisation of Waldo which was responsible for the rift between the producer Otto Preminger and his original director Rouben Mamoulian. Mamoulian had wanted Laird Cregar in the role, but was overruled, and loathed what he saw as Webb's effeminate interpretation of the role. Eventually Preminger persuaded studio head Darryl F. Zanuck to sack Mamoulian and to allow Preminger to direct the film himself.
Roger Ebert wrote of the film that "Film noir is known for its convoluted plots and arbitrary twists, but even in a genre that gave us "The Maltese Falcon", this takes some kind of prize". Ebert was doubtless thinking about the film's Big Twist which comes about halfway through. Up until then we have been thinking that this is a standard whodunit, that the title character will only appear in flashback and that it will end with the identification and arrest of Laura's killer. That, however, is not how matters play out. It is suddenly revealed that Laura is alive and well and that the dead body found in her flat was, in fact, that of another woman. McPherson now not only has to solve a murder but also has to prevent one, as he is convinced that the killer will return to murder the real Laura.
Dana Andrews makes a rather uncharismatic hero as McPherson, and a young Vincent Price is equally unmemorable as Shelby. Gene Tierney, however, is perfect in the title role. It is perhaps not Tierney's most technically demanding part, but someone of her beauty and charisma was needed to explain why Laura has such a hold over all the male characters- not just Shelby and Waldo, but also McPherson, who seems to be in love with Laura even when he believes her to be dead. The best performance comes from Webb- at this stage in his career better known as a Broadway actor than a cinema one- as Waldo, a camp, snobbish, dandyish and ultimately sinister intellectual, described by one critic as "walking through every scene as if afraid to step in something".
Despite its convoluted plot, at times almost incomprehensible and often rather silly, "Laura" has acquired the reputation of being something of a classic. Like some other films noirs, such as Howard Hawks's "The Big Sleep", it is a film one watches less for its storyline than for its general atmosphere, which in this case is one combining luxury with cruelty and sophistication with depravity, an atmosphere heightened by Webb's suavely poisonous acting and David Raksin's fine jazz-based score. 7/10