Barbara Stanwyck Signature Collection DVD Review (2007)

11/14/2007 Posted by Admin

"Barbara Stanwyck Signature Collection"

What would Walter think?

A Barbara Stanwyck signature collection without "Double Indemnity" is an oversight, to say the least, but also missing here is "Stella Dallas," "Sorry, Wrong Number," "Union Pacific," "The Lady Eve" and "Christmas in Connecticut," to name a few.

What we get instead are two true signature Stanwyck films--1935's "Annie Oakley" and 1954's "Executive Suite"--and four lesser-known movies.

The latter include the 1949 murder mystery "East Side, West Side," with Ava Gardner and James Mason; the 1946 gossip melodrama "My Reputation," with George Brent; 1950's "To Please a Lady," in which Stanwyck takes to the Indy 500, of all events, with Clark Gable; and the 1953 movie "Jeopardy," a kidnapping thriller that hums with a B-movie vibe.

It's a good set--not a great one--but what it does do well is that it captures the breadth of Stanwyck's many onscreen personas, which ranged from the ferocious to the downright terrorized and demure.

Grade: B