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She
R1 - America - Legend Films Review written by and copyright: Stevie McCleary and Noor Razzak (14th April 2008). |
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The Film
 "She" (1935) is easy to qualify to an audience of today. Firstly take a helping hand of "King Kong" (the original 1933 version, not the remakes with Jack Black or Jessica Lange screaming above the World Trade Center here thank you) and slowly mix in a sizeable quantity of "Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981) and some "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" (1984) for flavouring. The movie you have in front of you is "She". Created by the same people responsible for that "King Kong", and helping to influence adventure films all the way up to and including the aforementioned adventures of one Indiana Jones, "She" is good old fashioned entertainment and features old school cool like so few do today. Sure, it’s dated over the last 80 years and comes off as rather cheesy at times, but all throughout you can see the parts that helped usher in every globe trotting adventure flick after it. We start off with the image of a grandfather clock, ticking away, an ominous portent of man’s one true nemesis: time. We are introduced to a man at the end of his days, along with his professor friend Holly (Nigel Bruce). He is awaiting the arrival of his nephew, Leo Vincey (Randolph Scott), so he can charge him with a special quest. Upon Leo’s arrival it is discovered that he is the spitting image of his ancestor from 500 years earlier. This spurns on his uncle to tell him that his ancestor once found a secret civilization in the North Pole…and at that location he discovered an unknown element (which the uncle of today can prove is unknown, yet existing) that could create a radioactive ‘flame of life’; immortality, you see. It seems you can’t artificially recreate it (which the uncle can prove, about this element he’s never seen before…I love old movie logic!) though and wants to send Leo with Holly to find it. The uncle then passes on, showing that he may have waited a bit too late to start sending people on this journey. Leo takes up the task (who can turn down such a wacky idea!) and they head off to the Arctic. They come across a miserable old codger who blackmails them into making him a partner in their enterprise. He also has a daughter, Tanya (Helen Mack, cue soft focus), whom he bosses around a lot. She’s cute as a button too, I have a total crush. After some brief discourse over women’s rights, they all head off into the unknown…of course, the miserable old sod needs to punch a native and almost start an avalanche along the way. That’s right, he’s that guy. Oh, and did I say almost start an avalanche? Soon after some great special effects for the time period, our intrepid explorers are trapped with only one way to go. Naturally they soon run into crazy savages and Egyptians-like servants wearing cow patterned dresses. Yep, they’ve discovered a whole new land that nobody knew about before. Bless the 1930’s. It’s full of beautiful gardens and blue skies. Makes sense. I might vacation there next winter. Things take a turn for the “Uh oh” though, when "She" (Helen Gahagan or “Queen Hash-A-Mo-Tep of Kor”…yeah, “She” is faster) appears. The queen of this land, She has ruled over them for centuries (which raises a lot of questions) all the while waiting for the return of her beloved. Remember how Leo was the spitting image of his ancestor? This means bad news for Tanya’s designs on Leo, as She is the jealous and sadistic type, driven to cold rage after so much loneliness. So will Leo choose mortal love? Or will the allure of ruling forever as the right hand of She overwhelm him? Is he really the reincarnation of his ancestor? Finally, answers to where most soap operas get all their story lines. Based on the novel by H. Rider Haggard (set in Africa, which makes a lot more sense), "She" is a fun old tale. This DVD features a colourized version which is pretty well done, and the effects hold up well. In fact they’re better than some movies I’ve seen recently. And once you get on board with the 1930's style of acting and filmmaking, there is much fun to be had with "She", a slightly puzzling ending notwithstanding. There are quite a few choice quotes, good acting, and fascinating choreography -there is a climatic ceremony sequence that is stunning and strange at the same time. I definitely recommend "She" if you like movies of this time period and genre.
Video
Presented in the film's original theatrical full screen ratio of 1.33:1 this transfer is presented in two versions, a colorized and the original black and white. Being a film from the 1930's don't expect the best looking transfer, softness is a issue at times, excessive grain, specs, dirt and track lines which run through the frame. Now in saying this the transfer actually looks better than I expected, the dirt and damage isn't overwhelming which can be the case with many public domain titles that are issued by any number of small boutique distributors wanting to make a small return on cheap DVD releases. Legend Films does not fall into that category thankfully. They have taken the time, effort and money to restore this film for fans. Now the color version is for those that simply can't stand to watch a black and white film, again I'm not a fan of the colorized version as they still don't look natural enough and I'm doubt they ever will. The black and white version retains contrast well, the greyscales appeal balanced which is welcomed.
Audio
A single English Dolby Digital 2.0 mono track is included, this track is a restored and remastered version of the original soundtrack, so the dialogue is nicely cleaned up and distortion free, the music comes alive and occasionally overwhelms the action on screen but this typical of films from this era. The music is simply wonderful and I'm glad it's presented here in its original form. While the track lacks range and depth its a very good mono track for this classic film. This film does not include any optional subtitles.
Extras
Legend Films has released this film along with an audio commentary, an interview, a featurette, a deleted scenes reel, a bio and filmography, the film's theatrical trailer and a series of bonus trailers. Below is a closer look at these supplements. First up is a feature-length audio commentary by Ray Harryhausen and author/film historian Mark Cotta Vaz. This track can be listened to on both the color version and the black and white. In this track Vaz interviews Harryhausen as well as provides some information. Vaz wrote the book "Living Dangerously: The Adventures of Marion C. Cooper" so he has a wealth of knowledge regarding the producer and his films which he brings to this track. Harryhausen comments on the colorization process, story elements, motifs, the criticism for the film and the influence both "King Kong" and "She" had on Harryhausen among other things. Vaz comments on the differences between the novel and the film, and Harryhausen also talks about the effects of the period and so forth. Overall it's an informative and good natured track to listen to. Next up is an interview with Ray Harryhausen that runs for 12 minutes 35 seconds. Here he talks about the colorization of classic films, how unusual the film was at the time of release and speculates why it wasn't such a big hit as well as reflects upon it's initial release, comments on the score, dance sequence and cultural influences in the production design. Next up is "About the Colorization process with Ray" featurette that runs for 8 minutes 58 seconds, here we get a closer look at who the film was chosen for colorization, Harryhausen's involvement as well as the level of detail and respect the Legend Films team have for these film when colorizing them. There's also a deleted scenes reel that runs for 7 minutes 55 seconds, here Tanyah sneaks through the palace to check on Leo only to be confronted by She, meanwhile Professor Holly talks with she's disciple as Tanya returns with some news. This footage is not in the best shape and is in black and white. Also featured on the disc is Ray Harryhausen text bio and filmography which features 5 pages of information on his career and the film's he;s worked on over the years. Following that is the film's theatrical trailer this is a colorized version of the original trailer and runs for 1 minute 27 seconds. Rounding out the extras is a collection of the usual bonus trailers for other Legend Films releases that include: - "Things to Come" which runs for 1 minute 39 seconds. - "Night of the Living Dead" which runs for 1 minute 9 seconds. - "Carnival of Souls" which runs for 2 minutes 28 seconds. - "House on Haunted Hill" which runs for 1 minute 41 seconds. - "Plan 9 From Outer Space" which runs for 1 minute 41 seconds.
Overall
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