Laura (1944) is a classic film noir that critic Pauline Kael calls "Everybody's favorite murder mystery." Featuring a superb ensemble cast—Gene Tierney as the mysteriously disappeared Laura; Dana Andrews as investigating detective Mark McPherson who falls in love with Laura's portrait; Clifton Webb as the cynical radio personality Waldo Lydecker, who regards the beautiful Laura as both his creation and his property; Vincent Price as Laura's shallow, Southern playboy suitor Shelby Carpenter, and Judith Anderson as Laura's rich spinster aunt and Shelby's would-be lover—Laura is stylishly and superbly directed by Otto Preminger. Nominated for five Academy Awards, Laura won for Best Cinematography. The haunting score by David Raskins would become one of the most famous movie themes ever written. Moderately successful when it was released in 1944, Laura has become a cult favorite and a staple of the classic movie cable channels.

Further Reading:

Kael, Pauline. 5001 Nights at the Movies. New York, Henry Holt, 1991.

Silver, Alain, and Elizabeth Ward. Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style. Woodstock, New York, The Overlook Press, 1979.