'The Shadow' was but a mere shadow in a summer's string of hits. Though mostly overlooked by audiences, this is easily one of the best action movies of 1994 and, in my opinion, one of the best of it's genre in years. The director, Russell Mulcahy, brings his usual flair to the film but special recognition is also due production designer Joseph Nemec III, costume designer Bob Ringwood and director of photography Stephen Burum for creating this visually sumtuous treat.
Alec Baldwin is perfectly cast as Lamont Cranston, a wealthy playboy with a mysterious mental ability to 'cloud men's minds'. Cranston creates an alter-ego known as The Shadow and, aided by a network of loyal agents, uses his power to combat crime. The story pits Cranston against Shiwan Khan, played by John Lone, the last descendent of Genghis Khan. Khan's plan is to achieve the goal sought by his ancestor, that being conquest of the world, using a 'new' weapon, the atomic bomb. The film also boasts a solid supporting cast including Penelope Ann Miller, Peter Boyle, Ian McKellen, Jonathan Winters (in a semi-serious role) and Tim Curry.
MCA has released 'The Shadow' on laser disc with an outstanding letterboxed transfer. Perhaps indicating an ambivalence toward this film, MCA elected not to utilize the THX quality control program for this disc, though I scarcely see where it could have made a difference (except maybe the price). The film's palate of rich, vivid color has been reproduced nearly flawlessly, with only a hint of noise in the more saturated reds and oranges. Much of the action takes place at night and Stephen Burum's terrific 'noirish' lighting survives the electronic transfer with excellent contrast and shadow detail as well as the almost complete absence of grain, even in the darkest scenes. The image has been matted to a ratio of about 1.85:1 and it is here that my only possible complaint lies. The framing, as evidenced by the windowboxed opening credits and a number of scenes in the film, appears to be shifted slightly to the left. Though not serious enough to cause distraction, one has to wonder how this could have gotten by.
The audio on this disc is as much a treat as the video. The soundtrack is very dynamic and contains a number of nifty directional effects (check out The Shadow's disembodied voice on the bridge near the beginning). Dialog sounds natural and Jerry Goldsmith's orchestral score has great clarity and depth. A solid low end provides plenty of punch for the subwoofer crowd.
'The Shadow' runs 108 minutes and the disc is copiously chapter encoded with 49 markers. The side break is well placed and less disruptive than most. Unfortunately, MCA elected to skip the trailer as well. List price is $34.98.
If you are a fan of action/adventure films and missed 'The Shadow' the first time, I advise you not to make the same mistake twice.
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