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Fallen Idol (The) AKA Lost Illusion (The)
R1 - America - Criterion Collection Review written by and copyright: Noor Razzak (17th November 2006). |
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The Film
 "The Fallen Idol" directed by Carol Reed is the first of three thrilling masterpieces of suspense that would include "The Third Man" (1949) and "Our Man in Havana" (1959). British born Reed was bred from performer's stock, his father an accomplished stage actor he would follow suit. He would later find himself behind the camera and responsible for some of the most memorable suspense films in the British canon. "The Fallen Idol" is adapted from the Graham Greene short story "The Basement Room", the film version has made several changes, one of the difference is that in the story Phillipe visits the butler Baines in his basement room to hear his wondrous stories of Africa. In the film Baines is given more interesting surroundings to tell his stories and is not confined to a single basement room. A major difference is that in the original story Baines actually was guilty of killing his wife, in the film he is not. Despite this the basics of the themes remain faithful to the original story. Told through the perspective of a young boy, Phillipe (Bobby Henrey), the son of a diplomat to the United Kingdom. While his parents are away on holiday, the butler, Baines (Ralph Richardson) is in charge of looking after Phillipe. The boy idolizes the butler and is the source of much amusement from his wild stories of hunting trips to Africa. One day Phillipe sneaks out of the house and follows Baines through town, where he meets with a young woman, Julie (Michèle Morgan). The woman as it turns out is Baines' mistress, but when Phillipe catches the two he is told she is his niece and that he should keep this a secret from Mrs. Baines (Sonia Dresdel), a person Phillipe is terrified of. Mrs. Baines eventually catches wind of her husband's infidelities, when an argument erupts that leaves Mrs. Baines dead and at the bottom of a long stair case, an accident on her part, but is partially witnessed by young Phillipe and thinks that Baines actually killed her what results is an amusing and suspenseful game of lies and liers between Baines, Julie, Phillipe and the investigating police. "The Fallen Idol" is a perfect film to teach children about the effects of lying, part moralistic tale and part suspense film director Reed mixes the two with a touch of black comedy and the result is a thoroughly memorable and enjoyable film experience. The cast aide in delivering the films message with such precision, especially the energetic young Henrey who is perfectly obnoxious in this fine turn that's not too far from Henrey's actual personality, Reed directed (or perhaps in this case manipulated) a naturalistic performance that stands out as one of the best child performances committed to film. He plays off well along side his supporting cast with the brilliant Richardson in the butler role as he innocently plots his story to avoid suspicion and to protect his lover from anything involving his wife's accidental death, while at the same time convincing Phillipe and the police that he didn't actually kill her. Reed and Greene also comment on voyeurism and the problems it causes aside from the obvious, this is a theme that runs through the film usually taking the form of Phillipe peeping through the windows or top of the stairs voyeuristically peering into the adult world, a world which he doesn't not yet understand. "The Fallen Idol" is somewhat of a lost masterpiece and is often left behind in the shadows of other great Reed films but is certainly an important film that stands on its own, it's a tremendous British classic that has been finally given a decent release from one of the best DVD houses around.
Video
Presented in the film's original theatrical ratio of 1.33:1 this black and white transfer which has been 'picture boxed' to overcome 'over scan' on commercially made tube television sets. This transfer is a very good presentation of the film making this the most definitive edition for fans. Criterion has restored the image to a near pristine polish, some minor print flaws are still inherent such as lines and speckles during the opening credits and some very minor instances of dirt popping up but this a rare occurrence. The blacks are nice and deep and provides a nice contrast with the whites with grey tones appearing a bit flat. Overall I was pleased with this transfer considering the film's age.
Audio
The Criterion Collection presents the film with its original English Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono soundtrack. Although the dialogue was clear and distortion free I did find it hard to hear what the characters were saying some of the time, this had more to do with accents than the audio mix, but otherwise the dialogue and music were rendered well and represent the film's original mix which will please purists. Optional subtitles are also included in English for the hearing impaired.
Extras
The Criterion Collection have included a documentary, an illustrated filmography, the original press book plus a booklet with liner notes. Below is a closer look at these supplements. First up we have "A Sense of Carol Reed" a new 2006 documentary which runs for 24 minutes and covers the career of Reed from his early films to his classic later films, the interviewees talk about his devotion to each film project, this love of working with kids as well as the making of this film and others. This is an insightful piece that provides some background on one of Britain's finest filmmakers. Next is an Illustrated Carol Reed filmography which includes 79 pages listing the films he's directed along with posters for these films. Following that is the original press book which includes 54 pages looking inside the book made available to the press during the initial theatrical release. Rounding out the extras is a 28-page booklet that features liner notes including the following essays that shed light on the film, it's director, the acting and the significance and importance of the film: - "Through a Child's Eye, Darkly" an essay by Geoffrey O'Brien - "From Story to Screen" an essay by David Lodge - "An Enchanted Moment" an essay by Nicholas Wapshoot
Overall
This is another brilliant release from The Criterion Collection, offering the most definitive edition of this film on the market. For fans this is a no-brainer, newcomers to this film are urged to see it as it's one of Reed's finest films.
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