Back in the summer of 1946 writer/director/actor Orson Welles (Citizen Kane) was self-financing the stage production Around the World but ran out of money. To get the costumes for the show, he asked Columbia Pictures president Harry Cohn to give him $55,000, and in exchange, Welles would write, direct, and produce a film for Cohn for no further cost. That movie, starring Welles and his wife at the time, Rita Hayworth (Gilda), was The Lady From Shanghai. While the film wasn't a huge success at the box office, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has released it on 4K.
Michael O'Hara (Welles) was an Irish sailor who saw Mrs. Elsa Bannister (Hayworth) taking a carriage ride through Central Park. When her carriage was overtaken, O'Hara came to her rescue and the two had an immediate connection. She asked her husband, famous attorney Arthur Bannister (Everett Sloane; Citizen Kane), to hire O'Hara as part of the crew as they sailed from New York to San Francisco by way of The Panama Canal. Initially reluctant, O'Hara eventually agreed...a decision he would regret as time went on. Not only did he act on his impulse to kiss Elsa but he found himself set up for a murder he did not commit.
The plot of The Lady From Shanghai is that of a typical whodunit with a twist or two thrown in. The concept isn't bad but the execution is haphazard and not cohesive enough to make it an Oscar-worthy film. Supposedly, Welles had a different storyline but reshoots and re-edits done by the studio made the movie choppy at best. With a run time of 87 minutes, this is one story that would have benefited from being longer. There are a few plot holes and overall the movie seems rushed.
Welles and Hayworth carried the movie beautifully and had terrific chemistry (I would hope so since they were married at the time). To a certain extent, It isn't easy to understand why Elsa married Arthur with the obvious exception of his wealth. Sloane did a good job as well and the supporting cast is decent, for the most part. Glenn Anders (Nothing but the Truth) was a standout amongst the actors as he portrayed Arthur's business partner, George Grisby, as slightly off his rocker.
The film was restored from the original camera negative and presented in 4K resolution with Dolby Vision, and it has honestly never looked better. When comparing the picture quality from a previously released Blu-ray, the 4K offers much sharper and well-defined details and cleaner picture quality without all the scratches, etc. that can be seen on the Blu-ray version. The shadings and tones of this release are much more dynamic.
While the video shines, the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 is merely 'ok'. The dialog is clean and the effects are decent. There is only so much that one could expect from a movie that is almost 80 years old but it does a nice job with the transfer. The packaging is eye-catching but still somewhat average. The combo pack only comes with the following extras: Commentary with Peter Bogdanovich, A Conversation with Peter Bogdanovich, and Theatrical Trailer.
Although The Lady From Shanghai premiered to less than stellar reviews, it has grown into a classic and was selected for inclusion into the National Film Registry by The Library of Congress. The plot can be a little confusing and the movie definitely could have been longer but Sony has done a terrific job with the original 4K transfer and classic movie fans will be pleased with how the movie looks and sounds.
This one is a keeper.
Grade: B
