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Released by: Warner Archive
Released on: 9/14/2010
Director: Byron Haskin
Cast: George Hamilton, Suzanne Pleshette, Richard Carlson, Yvonne Decarlo, Earl Holliman, Gary Merrill, Ken Murray, Barbara Nichols, Arthur O'Connell, Nehemiah Persoff, Aldo Ray, Michael Rennie
Year: 1967
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The Movie:
Directed by Byron Haskin, based on the novel by author Frank M. Robinson and produced by the legendary George Pal, The Power is set 'tomorrow' according to the film's opening. Set on Earth, the film stars George Hamilton and Suzanne Pleshette and it tells the story of a group of research scientists who are killed off one at a time by someone with unusually strong telekinetic powers. As the body count rises, the surviving members of the research team try to figure out which one among them is the killer (and who, in turn, yields 'the power!') before it's too late.
A Hitchcockian suspense picture dressed up like a science fiction thriller, The Power is a film that probably should be better known than it really is. There's a whole lot of really solid suspense in this film as it builds upon its 'whodunnit' premise and while the sets aren't all that convincing by modern standards (this is fairly dated in terms of design work and wardrobe and sometimes shows its modest budget - are they really going to use record players in the future?), the story remains an interesting one.
George Hamilton makes for a good lead and has enough charisma here to carry the film, while supporting efforts from Michael Rennie, Richard Carlson and even Aldo Ray add to the fun. The female cast isn't given a whole lot to do and as sexually appealing as co-star Suzanne Pleshette is, she doesn't make for a convincing super scientist even if we're told repeatedly that she is. Yvonne DeCarlo also appears in the film and has a decent sized supporting role.
This isn't a science fiction film that features space travel or aliens or monsters or rocket ships, but rather, one that deals with science and the good and bad that can come of it when we as a race tinker with things that we don't wholly understand. If you go into this one expecting spectacle of any sort you're going to walk away completely disappointed in that regard but there's enough smarts behind the storyline that it works. The killer is unseen throughout the film, adding to the mystery of the storyline while the many and obvious nods to Hitchcock's films will keep fans of his work intrigued in picking out all the little homages that Byron Haskin has worked into the film (and there are quite a few of them).
Shot with a nice eye for detail and making the most out of the mod color scheme that the various sets provide (look for some fun sixties artifacts like beaded curtains and 'computers' with gigantic lighted buttons on them), The Power is always visually appealing. It's a bright, bold looking film and the finale is really well shot and expertly edited. The picture also makes good use of a score by Miklos Rosza that ties in the beating of the human heart really well into the end scene. All in all, it's a pretty memorable movie and one which, puzzlingly enough, doesn't really seem to be all that well regarded.
Video/Audio/Extras:
The Power is presented in its original 2.35.1 anamorphic widescreen aspect ratio demonstrating very nice color in a decent progressive scan transfer. There's some mild print damage but given the film's age that's understandable. The contrast levels look good, detail is stronger than you'd probably expect, and while there's a little bit of shimmer, this is otherwise a decent looking effort. The film has not been given any sort of restoration according to the Warner Archives website, but at least the elements used for this transfer appear to have been in pretty nice shape and this is definitely one of the better looking WB Archive releases this reviewer has seen so far.
The English language Dolby Digital Mono track is obviously limited in range but the dialogue is easy to understand and the levels are properly balanced. There aren't any recurring problems with hiss to complain and generally the movie sounds alright.
There's a static menu and some chapter stops, but aside from that, this is an entirely barebones affair.
The Final Word:
It would have been nice to at least include a trailer, but that didn't happen. The transfer is okay, though not mind meltingly great, and the audio perfectly acceptable, but the barebones nature of this release is discouraging. But what about the movie itself? It's a good bit of fun, if not nearly as intelligent as it pretends to be in sports. Hamilton makes for a good lead here and there's enough going on that you can't help but enjoy yourself.