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Fuck Paramount. They are releasing another version of To Catch a Thief on May 8 instead of any other classic film from their library, like Ace in the Hole. At least they are not calling it "A leg or a breast Edition".

I mistakenly purchased this DVD never having seen it before. This must be Hitchcock's worst film, by far. I think it was just an excuse for a holiday down to the South of France.

However, Grace Kelly is so beautiful it doesnt matter how bad the film is.

marty wrote:I mistakenly purchased this DVD never having seen it before. This must be Hitchcock's worst film, by far. I think it was just an excuse for a holiday down to the South of France.

I concur. I bought it in a dump bin at WalMart for $5. Grace Kelly might be nice to look at but whatever tanning solution Grant is wearing is appalling.

Yes, sadly one of Hitch's worst. I own just about every Hitch film on DVD, but not this one. And some "special edition" isn't going to change my mind. Grace Kelly ... I don't know. She's no Ingrid Bergman.

I enjoy this film only insofar as it features Cary Grant. Otherwise, it's one of Hitchcock's least suspensful, least romantic, and least interesting films, but I always enjoy watching Cary do his thing.

I agree with the general consensus though, this film did not need a "special edition."

My gut tells me this is nothing more than Paramount repackaging the current edition which already has a decent amount of featurettes and the film's trailer.

You guys are crazy! I love this film -- no, it's not suspenseful or romantic, etc. but I think it's really charming, and quite funny. I can think of at least 15 Hitchcock films that I like less... but then my favorite Hitch has always been The Trouble With Harry, so my opinion may not be considered valid.

I really like the film, as well. I don't think it's one of Hitchcock's best films, but I think it's a nice departure for him. Also, pairing it with John Woo's Once A Thief really highlights the similarities between Cary Grant and Chow Yun-Fat.

Has this been restored? Because the last release looked wretched!

Anamorphic Widescreen Presentation, digitally restored
English DD2.0 Stereo
Commentary by Peter Bogdanovich and Laurent Bouzereau
Theatrical Trailer
Writing and Casting ‘To Catch A Thief'
Alfred Hitchcock and ‘To Catch A Thief': An Appreciation
Edith Head: The Paramount Years

thats it.....

'To Catch a Thief' may not be in the absolutely top tier of Hitchcock, but it's still an absolutely brilliant film. Some thoughts I wrote recently on my blog-thing:

==

A tourist vision of France, "movie France," because 'To Catch a Thief' (1955) is what it looks like when Alfred Hitchcock goes on vacation. After all, shooting in Europe, you get to "write off" your expenses.

If this is taking a break, then once upon a time Monsieur Hulot really did tear the cosmos in two.

One page of the account-book reads: John Robie (Cary Grant): "former cat burglar of Paris before the war" > The New York Herald Tribune = Art ("And I'm Dead") Buchwald <= Gina Lollobrigida.

"Parles anglais!" (barks the dubbed Charles Vanel) —

Danielle (Brigitte Auber) works for her father. Her rival, "Frances" (aren't they all! / Grace Kelly) works for her mother, as a sexual proxy. She screams to Cary Grant (shortly after the fireworks burst in one of Hitch's best scenes) — "You stole mother's jewels!" For Grant, Kelly's sex is a mystery (see the shadow-cowl'd face while the ice around her neck glistens); he is the Celibate, the Thief who steals the jewels for no effective gain, generative or psychosexual. He is "apart," alone. He takes to the roofs (so adeptly), he squats in the chimney-crannies, this American who moved to France, who became a thief, who became a Resistance fighter (for the sake of his own freedom, consequently, as much as the country's), who became a vintner and a flower-harvester... all while playing the bon français with such sartorial panache.

"Slap!" — To watch the funeral scene is to peer into the core of the 'To Catch a Thief'-mechanism: a Hitch-wound* biography of the man who went by "Cary Grant."

* 'Rear Window' (1954) — See A.H. at the mantle in the composer's apartment.

I, too, enjoy the uncommonly bright, relatively lightweight TO CATCH A THIEF. It's the Hitchcock equivalent of a beachside paperback. Hardly the director's best work, but a perfectly enjoyable confection.

manicsounds wrote:Anamorphic Widescreen Presentation, digitally restored
English DD2.0 Stereo
Commentary by Peter Bogdanovich and Laurent Bouzereau
Theatrical Trailer
Writing and Casting ‘To Catch A Thief'
Alfred Hitchcock and ‘To Catch A Thief': An Appreciation
Edith Head: The Paramount Years

Hmm...not much new, but I thought the extras on the first release were pretty good.....for Paramount. I'm waiting to see how the print looks. The last release was a disgrace. It was so wretched looking. It had no business being released on DVD like that. Let's hope that "Digitally Restored" means it will be up to snuff this time.

A capture from the new, rather sublime, R4 edition.

That's pretty good. So this new R1 should be using this transfer right?

Joe Buck wrote:Has this been restored? Because the last release looked wretched!

I know! Worst 5 dollars I ever dropped!

manicsounds wrote:Commentary by Peter Bogdanovich

Oh, good Lord...

Glad to see some good, honest hate for this crummy excuse for a romance.

denti alligator wrote: Grace Kelly ... I don't know. She's no Ingrid Bergman.

Well put, sir.

A classic example of how a woman can be gorgeous and yet generate zero erotic appeal.

DVD Movie Guide:

...the visuals for the 2007 DVD presented a radically improved transfer. The 2002 disc suffered from many problems, with prominent edge enhancement and lots of source flaws standing as the most significant. The 2007 transfer looked considerably better. Honestly, it was a night and day difference, as the new disc made the old one seem unwatchable.

Polybius wrote:

denti alligator wrote: Grace Kelly ... I don't know. She's no Ingrid Bergman.

Well put, sir.

A classic example of how a woman can be gorgeous and yet generate zero erotic appeal.

I dunno, she's generating fine from where I sit. I'd trade Ingrid and a '57 Mickey Mantle for her.

The PAL-edition looks much better than the NTSC-edition:

NTSC (dvdbeaver)
PAL* (VLC)
(not exact frame)

*R2 -- probably the same transfer as the R4 devlinnn has posted captures from