Laura Movie Review

Laura (1944)

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Written by: Vera Caspary (novel), Jay Dratler and Samuel Hoffenstein and Elizabeth Reinhardt (screen play), Ring Lardner, Jr. (uncredited)
Directed by: Otto Preminger
Starring: Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews, Clifton Webb
Rated: --[PG]
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Plot
A police detective falls in love with the murdered woman he is investigating.

Verdict
It's a tangled web of who may have murdered Laura and who loves her. It's amazing for it's time, but feels less fresh after seventy years. Despite the age, it's still enjoyable with great performances all around.
Watch it.

Review
It's film noir with a detective investigating the murder of  the charming Laura. Newspaper writer Waldo is smitten with her. While she uses him to further her advertising career, he takes her to dinner parties. He's friend zoned hard, and he gets jealous when Laura falls for her aunt's guy on the side.

Larua - A movie aged well.

The detective becomes to close to the case, but this aspect isn't fully explored. The cop has the power to mold the outcome of the investigation. This may be touched upon by his lack of procedure with the case, but in the 40's they may not have had standards. Either way he has a conflict of interests.

This may be the earliest case of a shotgun blast to the face making identification difficult. A Chekhov's gun trope aids the detective in determining the suspect. It's a great movie in the context of 1944. While it doesn't seem as innovative now, a solid cast, including Vincent Price before he was relegated to horror movie roles, makes this enjoyable regardless.