Under Capricorn

Although generally considered one of Alfred Hitchcock's lesser efforts, Under Capricorn (1949) is an interesting take on the gothic melodrama, featuring an understated style that belies the technical mastery behind the direction. Set in colonial Australia, the film stars Joseph Cotten as the brooding Sam Flusky, a former convict who has risen from Irish working-class origins to power and wealth in the British colony, and Ingrid Bergman as his emotionally fragile high society wife Henrietta, who has become a recluse in their grand manor, shunned by the "proper" British society that rules Australia. Michael Wilding plays the black sheep nephew of the governor (Cecil Parker), becoming a business partner and friend to Sam and constant companion to Henrietta, who he falls in love with while attempting to give her the confidence to re-enter society. Shot in Technicolor by the great Jack Cardiff in England, this film reworks elements of Gaslight and Hitchcock's own Rebecca (with Margaret Leighton in the Mrs. Danvers role here as the housekeeper who poisons Sam's mind) in a melodrama that deals with class, sacrifice, and jealousy. Hitchcock's masterful long takes provide an impressive showcase for Bergman in an intimate monologue and an intense scene of psychological horror, but his style is more subtle than showy and his script lacks the showpieces and nuance of his best films. Still, this was a passion project and remains an interesting film from the master filmmaker, and Bergman and Cotten deliver fine performances. Newly remastered from a 4K restoration, extras include audio commentary by film historian Kat Ellinger, an archival audio interview with Hitchcock conducted by François Truffaut), and an interview with filmmaker and critic Claude Chabrol on Hitchcock. Recommended. (S. Axmaker)