laura
High Contrast Cinema's 'Femme Fatale' season continues with an enduring classic from 1944, directed by Otto Preminger.
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In Laura, a police detective is drawn into Manhattan high society to investigate the murder of a stunning ad exec, and the more he learns about her, the more obsessed he becomes; his focus dwelling on the portrait that hangs in her apartment. As his obsession grows, it becomes clear that there may be more to the case than it first seemed.
Starring Gene Tierney and Dana Andrews, with support from Clifton Webb and Vincent Price, Laura features one of film noir's greatest femmes fatales, proving they don't always need to be present to cast their spell.
Gene Tierney
Dana Andrews
Otto Preminger
Gene Tierney
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Gene Eliza Tierney, born in New York on November 19th 1920, was a celebrated American film and stage actress, renowned for her beauty and captivating performances. She began her career on Broadway before signing a contract with Columbia Pictures in 1939 and then 20th Century Fox in 1940.
Tierney's breakthrough came with her role in Laura (1944), and she was nominated for an Academy Award for her performance in Leave Her to Heaven (1945).
She starred in numerous hits, including The Razor's Edge (1946), and The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947) but despite her professional triumphs, she faced personal struggles with depression and mental health, which impacted her career during the 1950s.
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She withdrew from the spotlight in 1957 but returned to both film and TV sporadically during the 1960s. Her final performance was in the TV miniseries Scruples in 1980.
Tierney passed away on 6th November 1991 at the age of 70.
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Dana Andrews
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Carver Dana Andrews was born on January 1, 1909, near Collins, Mississippi, to a Baptist minister and his wife. He was the third of thirteen children and grew up in Huntsville, Texas. Andrews initially pursued a career in music but later shifted his focus to acting after moving to Los Angeles in 1931. He studied at the Pasadena Playhouse after signing a contract with Samuel Goldwyn, and made his film debut in 1940 opposite Caeser Romero in Lucky Cisco Kid.
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Andrews gained widespread recognition for his role as the obsessed police detective Mark McPherson in the film noir classic Laura (1944) and his performance as World War II veteran Fred Derry in The Best Years of Our Lives (1946). These roles established him as a leading man in Hollywood during the 1940s. Throughout his career, he worked with renowned directors such as Otto Preminger, Fritz Lang, and William Wyler.
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Despite his early success, Andrews struggled with alcoholism, which affected his career in later years. He eventually overcame his addiction and became an advocate for the National Council on Alcoholism, speaking publicly about the issue.
Andrews continued acting in less prestigious roles until the 1980s and passed away on December 17, 1992, in Los Alamitos, California.
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Otto Preminger
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Otto Preminger, born on December 5, 1905, in Wischnitz, Austria-Hungary (now Vyzhnytsia, Ukraine), was an influential film director, producer, and actor. He began his career in theater, gaining prominence in Vienna before emigrating to the United States in the mid-1930s. Preminger became a U.S. citizen in 1943 and directed over 35 feature films during his five-decade career.
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Preminger is best known for his work in film noir and for pushing the boundaries of Hollywood censorship. His notable films include Laura (1944), The Man with the Golden Arm (1955), and Anatomy of a Murder (1959), with some tackling controversial topics considered taboo at the time.
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While he was known for a liberal social outlook Preminger was notorious for his temperamental and perfectionist attitude on set, earning nicknames like "Otto the Ogre" and "Otto the Terrible".
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His final film was the Graham Greene adaptation The Human Factor (1979). He passed away on April 23, 1986, in New York City, aged 80, and is remembered as a pioneering and provocative filmmaker.