Today is another classic: the Hungarian rooted George Cukor's Gaslight is a typical Hollywood-like psycho-drama, involving the beautiful Ingrid Bergman (won Oscar for this role) and the brilliant Charles Boyer.
Unbreakable cause and effect chain, psychologically motivated cinematography, meaningful all-out details, lurid innocence versus lurid wickedness. That's Hollywood's classic era from the '40s. The time of the real cinematic experience, when the canvas was somehow "bigger" than now...
Before I would start my recent nostalgic cry:).. just briefly about the story: Paula is leaving her house in London. The Thornton Square 9 is a damned place: she lost there her aunt in a never solved murder case. The heart-broken girl finds a new feeling in Italy: "Soemthing that has never happened to me before." Her love towards Gregory Anton (Boyer is so deeply rotten that you will like him) turns into a quick wedding, and the couple is moving back to the deserted house. Of course it was Anton's decision who has something unfinished business there...
I knew the wedding must be a torture, but this one definitely the finest among those mistakes.
"Will you light the gas please?"
With pleasure, but despite of that: You won't see almost anything, but you will definitely feel all the terror what Anton is using against Paula, who is slowly and systematically being driven out of her mind by her husband.
But don't afraid: Even if we are in London, Hollywood plays with the dramatic strings and sends a handsome and even more curious policeman to solve the desperate situation (Joseph Cotten might be familiar from the CitizenKane's journalist role). One more trifle: The camera's panning from the fighting couple to him who is unexpectedly standing in the door of the room is a filmhistorical shot!
Don't miss this cinematic masterpiece. CLASSIC, with all capitals.
9/10
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