Customer Reviews

Blanche Fury [VHS]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I saw this film for the first time yesterday. I think it quite a subtle film and in its way a near masterpiece. After viewing it I took the trouble of hunting down some contemporary reviews. These where not very flattering and only confirmed me in my contempt for the professional critic. All the performances are outstanding and the film as a whole is impressively crafted. Stewart Granger handles what is a difficult part with a great deal of credit, depicting with conviction the character of a man so driven that he will in the end murder. Because the film is subtle the characterization are not always drawn out explicitly. For example Blanche herself (played by Valerie Hobson) is a sort of Lady Macbeth character although this is implied rather than thrust at the viewer.

Like building Great Cathedrals I think the craft of making films like this has been lost; we simply no longer have the intellectual architecture needed to create in this way anymore. So I would heartily recommend this film to anybody. I also must mention the excellence of the cinematic framing of the shots which must have taken a great deal of effort at the time.

A dark movie about a man's need for revenge, which eventually ends up completely destroying a Victorian family, entwining the fate of Blanche, the poor relation who wants money and security. Absolutely stellar performances by Valerie Hobson and Stewart Granger. A fabulous scene in the very beginning has Valerie Hobson as Blanche Fury, finally telling off a spoiled rich woman to whom she is a paid companion; it's just classic. "For years I've served women like you; spoiled, silly... Don't interrupt, that's what you are!" Her voice is like a whiplash! And when she falls into an affair with Philip Thorn (Stewart Granger's character)... well, Hobson really lights up. You can't take your eyes off the screen when she and Granger are together. Great performances, quality 1940's British filmmaking; a movie that deserves to be better known.

I first saw this movie about 25 years ago and never forgot it. Valerie Hobson and Stewart Granger are terrific; the whole production is beautifully done.

The DVD-R version from Retro Flix doesn't have any frills (no menus, no extras), just the movie. The picture and sound quality are very good. Thanks to Retro Flix for making this movie available on DVD!

Blanche-played by Valerie Hobson- is a free spirited and independent woman ,qualities that serve her ill in her role as servant and general factotum to spoiled and selfish rich women .Her life changes when she is taken back intop the bosom of a previously estranged branch of the family and engagaed as governess to the daughter of the Fury family at palatial Clare Hall in Staffordshire .The head of the family is Simon Fury -playd with appropriate brusqueness and authority by Walter Fitzgerald,and there is a grown up son (Michael Gough)who is clearly attracted to Blanche .Brooding away in the background is the estate manager Philip Thorn (Stewart Granger)who is persuaded that he has a legitimate claim on Clare Hall ,through his late mother ,and whose determination to possess Clare Hall by any means possible has grown to become a dangerous obsession .He and Blanche become lovers even after her marriage to the eldest Fury son .It is a marriage that brings about murder ,adultery and violence .there is a sub plot about the depredations of gypsies and their violence towards Simon who is determined to drive then from the district.

This is full bodied and full blooded period melodrama with elements of Jane Eyre and a later British movie The Gypsy and The Gentleman .It benefits from firm direction from Marc Allegret who brings a sense of style and passion to proceedings .Add the immaculate lensing of two Oscar winning cinematographers Geoffrey Unsworth and Guy Green ,togerther with vivid sets and lush outdoor locations and this is a heady brew .Granger is a commanding presence .Valerie Hobson was never better and matches him stride for stride .Sound suport from Gough and Maurice Denham (as a policeman)adds lustre to the acting

This is a brooding tale of lust and obsession lavishly staged and done with great skill all round and one I recommend to lovers of British period drama

This movie is an excellent bit of gothic British cinema - a gothic romance in the truest sense, greater doom than Cathy & Heathcliff. Some really well turned out performances by an excellent cast, gorgeous costuming and excellent settings. Snow! Real snow, even - meaning that part of the filming happened during an actual winter (I'm really impressed). A bit melodramatic but quite worth watching.