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458 The Lady Is Willing
Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2024 10:05 am
by MichaelB
THE LADY IS WILLING
(Mitchell Leisen, 1942)
Release date: 23 September 2024
Limited Edition Blu-ray (World premiere)
Pre-order
here
Hollywood legends Marlene Dietrich (
Blonde Venus) and Fred MacMurray (
Pushover) collide in the screwball comedy classic
The Lady Is Willing.
Eccentric Broadway star Liza Madden (Dietrich) longs to become a mother but has no need for a husband. When she stumbles across an abandoned baby, she resolves to adopt it, entering into a marriage of convenience with child-hating, rabbit-obsessed divorcé Dr McBain (MacMurray).
Directed by Mitchell Leisen (
Remember the Night) and scripted by James Edward Grant (
Bullfighter and the Lady),
The Lady Is Willing also includes memorable supporting turns from Stanley Ridges (
An Act of Murder), Aline MacMahon (
One Way Passage), and Arline Judge (
An American Tragedy).
INDICATOR LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES
• High Definition remaster
• Original mono audio
• Audio commentary with film historian Adrian Martin (2024)
• Richard Dyer on ‘The Lady Is Willing’ (2024): the academic and author discusses the film and Marlene Dietrich’s work as a comedy performer
• Lux Radio Theatre: ‘The Lady Is Willing’ (1943): radio play adaptation of the film’s screenplay, starring Kay Francis and George Brent
• Image gallery: promotional and publicity material
• New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Limited edition exclusive booklet with a new essay by Iris Veysey, an archival interview with Marlene Dietrich, an archival profile of director Mitchell Leisen, an overview of contemporary critical responses, and film credits
• World premiere on Blu-ray
• Limited edition of 3,000 copies for the UK
All extras subject to change
#PHILE458B
BBFC cert: U
REGION B
EAN: 5060697924039
Re: 458 The Lady is Willing
Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2024 1:57 pm
by domino harvey
I am admittedly not as wild about Leisen as some, but this is a pretty dire movie, though Indicator's brief plot summary makes it sound a lot funnier than it is!
Re: 458 The Lady is Willing
Posted: Sat Aug 31, 2024 4:20 am
by Godot
Did the commentary change? Peter Tonguette was listed above, but both
Powerhouse site and Amazon now list
Adrian Martin. That's a "buy" signal for me.
Re: 458 The Lady Is Willing
Posted: Sat Aug 31, 2024 6:09 am
by MichaelB
Clearly a misprint originally. Peter Tonguette did You'll Never Get Rich, while Adrian Martin was always down for The Lady is Willing (and did a great job).
Re: 458 The Lady is Willing
Posted: Sun Sep 01, 2024 8:59 pm
by therewillbeblus
domino harvey wrote: Thu Jun 20, 2024 1:57 pm
I am admittedly not as wild about Leisen as some, but this is a pretty dire movie
Yes, this was abysmal. There's some promise in MacMurray playing a pediatrician who detests children, but this -like most of its ideas- aren't actually utilized, and the film continuously pivots itself away from screwball opportunities into trite dramatics. I know Leisen is all about trying to balance these tones, but this one is a failure. Genuinely curious what Adrian Martin has to rave about
Re: 458 The Lady is Willing
Posted: Mon Sep 02, 2024 11:22 am
by MichaelB
therewillbeblus wrote: Sun Sep 01, 2024 8:59 pmGenuinely curious what Adrian Martin has to rave about.
Plenty! It's a very enthusiastic commentary, and he has a lot to say.
To quote him directly, about a minute in:
Now, this is a very unusual film in many ways. I'm not going to try to fool you by saying that it's one of the very greatest Mitchell Leisen films. It's not. But it's a good film. It's a very enjoyable film. It's a film with many intriguing details and layers that we'll work through. And it's fascinating as a Hollywood film, as a Hollywood entertainment film of 1942, in so many ways. And it's fascinating as a Mitchell Leisen film. So this is a film that, in a way, using the parlance of the 1980s, 1990s film industry, is a kind of a high concept movie.
Re: 458 The Lady Is Willing
Posted: Tue Sep 17, 2024 9:14 am
by MichaelB
Final specs:
Re: 458 The Lady Is Willing
Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2024 5:31 am
by Furstemberg
Mr Dyer’s fingernails were very distracting
Re: 458 The Lady Is Willing
Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2024 9:08 am
by Jonathan S
Furstemberg wrote: Fri Sep 20, 2024 5:31 am
Mr Dyer’s fingernails were very distracting
In what respect? Long, chewed, pointed, painted? (I'm curious partly because he was my tutor 40+ years ago...)
Re: 458 The Lady Is Willing
Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2024 4:58 pm
by Furstemberg
Each a different length, all too long. Enjoyed his enthusiasm for this one, though.
Re: 458 The Lady Is Willing
Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 4:16 pm
by MichaelB
Re: 458 The Lady Is Willing
Posted: Sat Oct 12, 2024 3:43 pm
by patreig
Re: 458 The Lady Is Willing
Posted: Sat Oct 12, 2024 6:46 pm
by tenia
Yeah, it's what you get with an older preexisting HD master. I've seen worse, but it's clearly not a recent remaster.