Plot Summary 

A detective investigates the murder of young woman and begins to fall in love with the victim.  Suddenly, the investigation is turned upside down. 

Review 

Detective Mark McPherson (Dana Andrews) is investigating the murder of Laura Hunt (Gene Tierney), a beautiful young ad executive.  During his investigation, he meets several people connected to Laura, any of whom might be the murderer.  Waldo Lydecker (Clifton Webb) was a writer and Laura’s mentor.  He used his connections to further his career and those same connections and sharp pen to destroy any other man she became too close to.  Shelby Carpenter (Vincent Price) was Laura’s on again, off again fiancée.  When not with Laura, he spent a little too much time with Laura’s aunt, Ann Treadwell (Judith Anderson) and ad model Diane Redfern.  Redfern is someone whose name keeps popping up, but also someone we never seem to meet. 

As McPherson’s investigation progresses, he becomes increasingly obsessed with Laura. He is drawn to the beautiful young women whose portrait hangs in her apartment and wonders why anyone would murder a woman whom everyone seems to love. After two days of interviews, he has several suspects but is not much closer to figuring out who committed the crime. Everyone has a motive but professes their love for Laura. Thinking about the case, he falls asleep in her apartment and the case takes an unforeseen turn. 

Laura is a classic mystery with a stellar cast and outstanding performances. Dana Andrews had appeared in several outstanding films prior to Laura but this film was the one that first brought attention to him and led to the role for which he is best known in The Best Years of Our Lives (1946). We usually think of Vincent Price as the evil genius of horror films but, in this early role, he shows another side of his acting skills while playing a southern gigolo. Laura is still the best-known role of Gene Tierney’s career although she was later nominated for an Oscar for Leave Her to Heaven (1945). She is irresistible to every man in the film and to all of us watching. 

The most memorable performance is that of Clifton Webb. After appearing in several silent films, Webb had spent most of the preceding twenty years on Broadway but returned to Hollywood for Laura. His performance ensured that he stayed busy with films for the rest of his life. Webb’s performance is full of witty lines as he tells us how he met Laura and introduced her to everyone that mattered. We learn how he used his columns to protect Laura, and we see him using those same skills to constantly point McPherson in the direction of Shelby Carpenter. 

Despite many difficulties, director Otto Preminger had a lot to do with the final production of Laura. He clashed with author Vera Caspary over the story to focus much of the picture on the character of Waldo Lydecker.  He had to battle with studio head Darryl F. Zanuck and original director Rouben Mamoulian over casting and direction.  In the end, he got most of what he wanted, and Laura became the result of his vision. 

Laura is considered one of the finest examples of Film Noir. It has a clever plot, features a detective and an irresistible woman – all Noir staples. However, Gene Tierney is not your typical femme fatale in this film. She never manipulates the male characters in the film, although they fall all over themselves to make her happy. You also expect a more sinister feeling from at least some of the characters in a Noir film. The characters in Laura feel a bit less dangerous. You are not sure any of them are capable of murder although they all have a motive. 

Laura was released to positive reviews in 1944. It went on to win an Oscar for Best Cinematography, Black and White and earn four other nominations. Webb was nominated for Best Supporting Actor and Preminger for Best Director and the film earned more nominations for Best Screenplay and Best Art Direction, Black and White. The film’s popularity has endured and enjoys a 100% reviewer and a 91% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. 

Why You Should Watch It 

Laura is a classic mystery film with witty dialogue and an interesting plot twist. It is a nice example of early 1940s Noir and features a great cast.

Things to Watch For 

When Laura first approaches Waldo Lydecker and tries to get him to endorse a pen, he quips “I don’t write with a pen. I write with a goose quill dipped in venom.” 

Did You Know? 

Vincent Price considered Laura to be the best film he ever made. 

Clifton Webb, Dana Andrews, and Gene Tierney were all second or third choices for their respective roles.  Webb was a stage musical performer who had never appeared in a talking film.  Andrews received the role originally planned for John Hodiak. Tierney landed her role after both Jennifer Jones and Heddy Lamar turned it down. 

The score for Laura became so popular that Johnny Mercer was commissioned to write lyrics for it.  It has been recorded dozens of times by Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, and many others.

Rating (19) 

Overall (5) A great cast, clever dialog and an interesting plot twist make this one of the best examples of early film noir. 

Star Power (5) The film stars Dana Andrews, Gene Tierney, Clifton Webb, and Vincent Price.  A great cast that went on to make more great films. 

Movie History (4) Gene Tierney’s most famous role. 

Innovation (5) An early and exceptionally good example of film noir.