Based on the tragic best-selling authorship of a 13 year old Jewish exile hiding with her family from Nazi persecution in the attic of a Holland spice factory, director George Stevens’ The Diary of Anne Frank (1959) remains one of the most poignantly wrought melodramas of all time. Not an overwhelming financial success at the time of its release, the film nevertheless received its much deserved share of critical praise. But it's reputation and popularity with audiences has only grown since, living up to Stevens' own claim of "we'll know what kind of film this is in twenty years."Stevens, who had witnessed first hand the German desecration of humanity within the concentration camps as a field unit cameraman in 1947, was deeply affected by the experience. Upon returning to America, the director primarily known for his frothy comedies and bombastic adventures acquired a more serious patina from which to craft his cinematic legacy.
In late 1955, Stevens met Anne’s father, Otto Frank to discuss the possibility of bringing their story to the big screen. Although Otto was a congenial gentleman through and through his association with the motion picture ended after preliminary discussions and principle casting had been completed. After interviewing hundreds of hopefuls for the lead, Stevens decided to cast Millie Perkins; a New York model with virtually no acting experience. Perkins proved an inspired choice – her naivety unaccustomed to the Hollywood lifestyle and providing fresh vitality so fundamental to the part.
To help craft his intimate epic, Stevens turned to noted screenwriters Francis Goodrich and Albert Hackett, who had already written a successful stage version based on Anne Frank’s diaries. Reluctantly, Stevens also agreed to shoot the film in Cinemascope – Fox’s patented widescreen process; though he did win the argument to shoot the film in B&W rather than color. And although, the 2:35:1 aspect ratio was not without its challenges, Stevens managed to make the anamorphic process appear smaller and more intimate than it usually was.
The film opens in Amsterdam shortly after the war breaks out. Anne’s prudent father, Otto (Joseph Schildkraut) has arranged with spice factory manager Kraler (Douglas Spencer) and Miep (Dody Heath) to take his family underground to avoid being sent to a concentration camp.The Franks are joined by another family; the Van Daans - Petronella (Shelly Winters) Hans (Lou Jacobi) and their son Peter (Richard Beymer).
Over the next two years, both families will share the utterly cramped, hidden attic of the spice factory – concealed by a hidden book shelf. At first, the families congregate, mostly in hushed silence, but under the most congenial of circumstances. However, as time wears on – patience wears thin.At night, the Franks and the Van Daans move about the rest of the complex freely until one evening, when a wayward thief attempting to break into the building, threatens to expose their secret hideaway.
Through it all, Anne (Millie Perkins) endures her hardships, danger and loneliness without bitterness and always with the inspired hope for a better tomorrow. Despite her current predicament, she genuinely believes in the goodness of people.
The Diary of Anne Frank is a visceral and emotionally stirring production that not only manages to capture the essence of the period, but rightfully preserves the memory of Anne Frank – a girl aged well beyond her years, who had the clairvoyance to put to paper one of the most intimately moving, heartbreaking and utterly genuine accounts ever written about World War II.
Fox Home Video’s Blu-Ray reincarnation for the film’s 50th Anniversary offers a more refined B&W anamorphic transfer than the ‘Studio Series’ standard DVD released just a few years ago. And yet, this latest preservation is hardly without its flaws. The image in general seems to sporadically suffer from ‘breathing’, the sides of the Cinemascope image in constant flux in contrast levels. Certain scenes have an extremely heavy patina of film grain while fine details are occasionally lost in an image that seems slightly overly contrasted. Edge enhancement is rare, but present. The audio is represented in 5.1 Tru HD and 4.0 Dolby Digital with minimal sonic difference between the two tracks.
Where this new disc bests the original offer is in its extra features. In addition to the original 90 minute documentary on the real Anne Frank, we get a mountain of extras that cover the film and George Stevens career from every conceivable angle. George Stevens Jr., Diane Baker and Millie Perkins lend new thoughts and there are some period featurettes that immeasurably flesh out the historical record. There’s also an engaging and informative commentary track from Stevens Jr. and Perkins and the film’s original theatrical trailer. Bottom line: recommended!
FILM RATING (out of 5 - 5 being the best)
4.5
VIDEO/AUDIO
3
EXTRAS
5+
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