The Movie
Cary Grant stars as Robey, a notorious cat burglar long since retired and paroled after his brave service during World War II. But when a series of recent thefts follow his classic modus operandi, he becomes the prime suspect, with few people willing to believe his assertion of innocence. Rather than face a lengthy jail term, he takes it on the lam with his own plan To Catch a Thief in the act, the real crook that is, and thereby return to his serene, law-abiding life in the French countryside.
Thanks to a partnership with an insurance investigator hoping to recoup some of the losses that have been piling up, he has a list of rich tourists who have brought their jewelry with them on vacation, ideal bait for the copy-cat. One such target is a sassy American widow traveling with her daughter (Grace Kelly, never lovelier) and the danger and intrigue soon lead to romance.
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, To Catch a Thief is witty, suspenseful and pretty to look at, with a memorable pairing of screen icons on location in the south of France. The innuendo flies fast and furious too, much to the chagrin of censors of the era, but fairly charming by today's standards.
The Picture
Nowhere does the disc packaging specify a new high-definition video remaster, so I was expecting a high-bitrate presentation of just some old DVD transfer, but the look of this Blu-ray was a pleasant surprise. To Catch a Thief was shot in VistaVision, a higher-quality 35mm process yielding a sharper image at a 1.85:1, aspect ratio, here modified slightly to an HDTV-friendly 16:9.
Despite some mild grain, detail is outstanding, right down to wrinkles, pores, freckles and birthmarks. In one scene, the sparkle off the glasses set upon a lunch table is simply gorgeous. Depending upon your TV and its settings, you might have some flickering issues as the camera pans briskly across the buildings of a French village, but in general the location photography is richly nuanced and quite inviting. I noted some slight edge enhancement, and the blacks can be a bit harsh but I've seen more egregious examples of both. Perhaps the biggest problem here is the fine-horizontal-striped sweaters that Robey is partial to throughout Act I, which are prone to some unfortunate aliasing.
The Sound
The default track is a high-resolution Dolby TrueHD 2.0 stereo, a curious affair full of re-recorded dialogue at times awkwardly balanced with the music. But in general it is clear enough, and a sufficiently enjoyable accompaniment to the HD movie. Purists might be pleased to know that the vintage mono is here as well, also in a Dolby TrueHD 2.0 dual-mono configuration.
The Extras
There's nothing new or exclusive here, but much has been ported from previous releases on DVD. Hitchcock film historian Dr. Drew Casper provides a deep, well-rounded audio commentary, and is also central to the 23-minute segment about a special event at USC in 2008, featuring family members of the great director.
From here it is a bevy of additional short subjects--ranging from six to 17 minutes--about specific aspects of the movie, plus a general "making of," as well as Hollywood trends and personalities that left their mark on the film. All of these video extras are in standard definition.
An Interactive Travelogue allows us to click through to movie clips narrated with interesting facts about the authentic French locations. The original trailer is presented in HD, and four still galleries are supplied for our viewing pleasure.
Final Thoughts
With a smattering of classic extras, two interesting audio options and really remarkably strong video, this new disc makes Hitchcock's Thief well worth catching,
Product Details
Where to Buy:
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| Video | |
| Audio | |
| Movie | |
| Extras |
