"Double Indemnity" was at long last released on DVD ... the film we see Margaret watching clips of in "Ransom". In fact, it was that very scene that put me on the hunt for that evasive title.

It's been out-of-print for years, and available only through the secondary market at obscene prices, but common 'cents' prevailed. I waited it out and a fresh copy finally arrived today for less than $25 to prove "what a little perseverence can do".

I won't review it -- let's just say I was glued to the set for about an hour and fifty minutes. It came in a nice 2-disc set too and includes the 1973 remake of "Double Indemnity" (directed by Jack Smight -- Dead Weight) starring Richard Crenna as Walter, and Samantha Eggar (Sky High) as Phyllis, (with John Fiedler from Blueprint). I don't buy a title for its bonus features, but it was a nice touch anyway.

I intend to view that one tomorrow -- going in with an open mind of course, but I'm pleased to have seen the enchanting original first. Stanwyck was a beautiful woman ... even under eye lashes that looked like they weighed about 2 pounds each.

Interestingly, they shot a scene by the Hollywood Bowl (Etude), it was a Universal/ Digital Deluxe production (Columbo DVD), and like every other title I've purchased, the print is so clear, you feel like you're shooting the scene yourself.

I got a kick out of the prewar grocery store and the 10 cent cans of Hershey's Syrup sitting on the top shelf. Its label was instantly recognizable, even back then, only twice the size and not filled with the kind of brown liquid we know they are today!

Well I saw the remake tonight, and it was awful by comparison. The runtime was 33 minutes shorter, so lots of details where left out, even though they followed the script to the letter.

They didn't spend much time choosing the right actors for the roles, but I figured they'd at least modernize the dialog to suit them. I mean, Eggar was pathetic belting out Stanwyck lines, and I kept thinking of the leading man as "Colonel Trautman", so I couldn't take Richard Crenna seriously anyway.

That's why it played more like the made-for-TV result of a studio with nothing better to do, but the kicker for me was that the plot begins in the same location used as the Dexter home in "Double Shock", the Brenner home in "Identity Crisis", the Surian legation in "A Case of Immunity", and I'm sure dozens of other Universal productions.

The second thing I noticed was that the furniture and decor we see in Brenner's living room was also used in the remake -- including the mural on the wall. Now is that a Columbo fan or what? I kept expecting Nelson to walk in, but that was 2 years before they even shot "Identity Crisis" there.

Neat stuff in deed ...

Is this the movie that stars Fred MacMurray? If its the movie I'm thinking of, then you might want to check out "Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid" with Steve Martin.

Yeah ... the original that is, and I've seen every Martin film up to "Roxanne", before he too became just another pathetic Hollywood bootlicker.