Gilda (The Criterion Collection) [DVD]

One of the most beautiful films in the Noir genre. They chose well when casting Glenn Ford opposite Rita Hayworth. The camera loves them both and though Ford plays the tough guy, he is told how beautiful he is. Johnny (Glenn Ford) and Gilda (Rita Hayworth) are two sides of a triangle with (George McCready) as Ballen being the third member in what has to be one of the best Love/Hate, heavily open to interpretation triangles to ever hit the big screen. There is a great plot with all the requisite film noir boxes checked. If you have never seen Gilda, and like film noir that's superbly shot in B&W, with a script that is both ambiguous and at times forensic in dealing with crime and morality, and obsessive desire.

FORMAT: DVD UPC: 0-43396-28999-4 RELEASED: 2000-11-07TITLE: Gilda (1946) • NR • 1:50:11 Rita Hayworth, Glenn Ford, George Macready, Joseph Calleia Charles Vidor (Director) The movie in which Rita Hayworth set the vast majority of male hearts aflutter in 1946 — and that also cemented the public's perception of her as an international sex symbol. And, this movie is also the most likely reason that her personal relationships with men and her marriages were all troubled and, ultimately, all failed — guys couldn't separate Rita Hayworth, the real-life woman, from "Gilda", the character she played in the movie. Now, setting aside all of the off-screen Rita Hayworth baggage: this is still a VERY good movie. It is a well-written, well-directed, well-acted (by everyone involved) example of a pitch-perfect psychological drama at its best — that also has a goodly number of film noir attributes. Most of the important noir staples are here: the loner "tough guy", with a dark past (Johnny Farrell [Glenn Ford]); the beautiful damsel-in-distress/femme-fatal, with an even darker dark past (Gilda [Rita Hayworth]); the menacing criminal figure, who threatens them both (Ballin Mundson [George Macready]); the collection of shady (but, colorful) characters (Maurice Obregon [Joseph Calleia], Uncle Pio [Steven Geray], Casey [Joe Sawyer], etc.); and, (probably the MOST important film noir staple of them ALL) the fact that NOTHING and NO ONE is as they seem. Take all of this and couple it with the neurotic love/hate relationship — and the palpable sexual tension — of the two main characters (Gilda and Johnny Farrell), and you have yourself a very good film, ladies and gentlemen! Highly recommended. See the other reviews for more detail and/or other opinions regarding the plot of the movie.VIDEO: 1.33:1 • B&W • 480p • MPEG-2 (5.3 Mbps) Within the confines of the DVD format, this film exhibits good, to — on some occasions — very good, picture quality. Also, sharpness and detail (for a DVD) are usually good (with the textures and patterns of most hair-styles, clothing and furnishings being readily discernible) — but, the movie did (in a limited number of scenes) present an image that was slightly soft. In addition, artifacts such as black specks and white dots (while no where near excessive) are visible in a few scenes. Lastly, contrast, gray scale and shadow-detail (while pretty good overall [for a DVD]) were downright "murky" in some scenes. Overall, this movie's presentation on DVD has mostly good, to sometimes very good, picture quality — and, should satisfy all but the pickiest of viewersAUDIO: Dolby Digital 2.0 (Dual-Mono, 48 KHz, 192 Kbps) The sound quality for this film's transfer fairs better than its picture quality, because there are no loud bumps nor objectionably high levels of hiss. Also, dialog is very clear and all voices are easily understood. However, dynamic range is very limited, and there is not much bottom-end nor any top-end to speak of (which makes the musical score, the nightclub numbers and the Foley work all sound a little 'thin', and somewhat less than realistic). Otherwise, considering the age of the source elements and the fact that this is a monophonic, dialog-driven movie from the mid 1940s, its audio presentation has more than acceptable sound quality.EXTRAS: Documentary: "Rita Hayworth: The Columbia Lady" Vintage Advertising Talent Files Trailers None of the extras were reviewed.

In discussions about classic cinema "Gilda" is a movie that deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Casablanca (Two-Disc Special Edition). "Gilda" has a darker plot and the characters are not as noble, but story, cast, costumes, and music combine to create screen magic. Think of "Gilda" as a riveting Anti-Casablanca.Johnny Farrell (Glenn Ford) is an American drifter who has somehow landed in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He needs cash to survive and takes his chances using loaded dice to gamble with sailors. Quitting while he is ahead, Johnny leaves the dice game with a big bankroll and is accosted in the port by a gunman. To his surprise, the holdup is thwarted by a passerby, Ballin Mundson (George Macready). One thing leads to another and eventually Johnny becomes Mundson's devoted right hand man and the manager of his very lucrative casino business. After taking an extended overseas business trip, Mundson returns to Buenos Aires with a bride - Gilda (Rita Hayworth). Mundson introduces Johnny and Gilda, hoping these two important people in his life will like each other. He doesn't realize that Gilda and Johnny have known each other in the past, and both have been trying to escape their painful shared history together. Sparks fly between them as Gilda does everything in her power to torment Johnny, and Johnny is equally determined to make Gilda feel cheap and insignificant. After sixty years, the tension between Hayworth and Ford is still palpable.Rita Hayworth was at the height of her beauty and touted as the sexiest woman alive when "Gilda" was made in 1946. Even today she still scorches the screen as she tosses her hair and performs a clothed strip tease to the torchy song, "Put the Blame on Mame."This print of "Gilda" has been restored by UCLA with funding from Sony Pictures. The black and white video has been cleaned up beautifully. There are still some white spots that flash from time to time but overall this version looks very good. The sound track is clear with no dead spots or unexpected drops in volume.Rita Hayworth was a beautiful dancer, but she did not do her own singing. In "Gilda" she is lip syncing to the voice of Anita Ellis. The notable songs, "Put the Blame on Mame" and "Amado Mio" are available on both the Gilda soundtrack album or Anita Ellis Out in Front.The DVD includes a display of vintage advertising for "Gilda" as well as theatrical trailers. A section called "talent files" offers printed biography and filmography information about director, Charles Vidor, Rita Hayworth, Glenn Ford, and George Macready. The most prominent bonus is a featurette about the career of Rita Hayworth at Colombia Studios. Interesting to see how Rita looked before the studio changed her hairline with electrolysis, and turned her into a redhead. For those who may not be familiar with her background, Rita was the daughter and granddaughter of professional dancers who had been trained since early childhood to become a talented dancer.This is a classic film noir where everything works. Highly recommended.

Good story with good actors.

Director Charles Vigor appears to have appreciated the potential Hayworth had to express her sensuality, so under his Direction he set scene after scene where she flirts with the Cinematographer's Camera, her Cabaret audience and with we the viewers. Gilda and Johnny { Glen Ford} both unattached, had been in a previous relationship. Ballin Mundson { George Macready} appoints Johnny as Manager of his illegal Gambling Casino, unaware that he had been involved with Gilda .Deep down ,Johnny carries an emotion of hatred toward Gilda, which pervades his every move, but inwardly his love for her is so powerful it tears at his insides. IMAGINE THEN when Ballin turns-up having Married Gilda! Say no more. I have a Basket which reads Watch Again.Another which reads Watch Again AND AGAIN. One of my special Archive Titles. I love It Brian Stevens

Rita singing put the blame on name is still the sexiest number ever filmed!!

Great movie with great actors and actresses it's recommended.

Imagen exelenteAudio en español latino e inglésSe reprodujo sin problema en cualquier dvdJoya de pelicula

Perfecto

Un classico senza tempo del cinema americano che non può mancare nella videoteca di un cinefilo. Trama un po' ingarbugliata ma ciò che conta sono gli attori miti degli anni 50 soprattutto Rita Hayworth bomba sexi dell epoca (in realtà era piccolina e non statutaria come sempre fatta passare..).. Magnifico il doppiaggio di grandi voci italiane Vittoria Febbi Pino Colizzi ed Emilio Cigoli... Loro sono il film per me. STREPITOSI. DVD in ordine. Audio bene, immagine ok.

Sans doute l'un des plus grands films de tous les temps !Tout est dit, tout y est : drame, amour, haine, vengeance, pardon . . . dans une façon inégalée de traiter les images !Un vrai régal !

good old classic !!