Spellbound (DVD, 2002, Criterion Collection)

I hadn't seen Spellbound in awhile, but recently had read "Exquisite Corpse: Surrealism and the Black Dahlia Murder" which rekindled my interest in Salvador Dali, and the discovery of the author of the Spellbound screenplay, Ben Hecht. I think one of the elements that struck me in the Corpse book, was the web of inspirations that led up to films like Spellbound, and how connected some of the players were at the time.

I opted for the Criterion version to really capture the Dali dream sequences properly, but I had forgotten how much I enjoyed Hitchcock's superb eye in this film. Gregory Peck's scene when he is sleepwalking with a razor blade is so vivid and well constructed that it reminded me why this movie has always been so powerful for me. And the old german doctor was a fantastic balance of humor against the drama.

This Criterion edition also includes hours of extra materials, especially around the Dali artwork commissioned for the film, the backstory surrounding it, and many archival photos, as well as some material on the theremin which created such great atmospheric music.

I like this film on so many levels, but I encourage you to explore it if you enjoy Hitchcock, surrealism, or one of my favorite applications of theremin music.

An excellent ebay seller and has an excellent collection of Criterion movies for a very reasonable price. I really recommend them.

I really liked this film. I bought it because I had loved the music from the film score for many years, and was finally curious enough to see the events that the music described. It was a great story, although I agreed with other reviewers that the psychoanalysis seemed a little silly and incomprehensible to those without a background in psychology. However, the acting was superb, and the music was gorgeous. The extra features in this edition were valuable and insightful as well, and I highly recommend this product.

I bought it for the Dali sequence. It said that there was a special feature about it. Turned out that it was a written essay!. Why didn't they just include a booklet? The many pictures were interesting but took forever to load. Really a disappointment! Somebody needs to do this right-

This purchase is the reason why I love eBay. This was an out of print movie by the greatest company and the value is always rising. To get a sealed copy for such an minimal cost made my day.