GILDA
100 years of Columbia Pictures with Charles Vidor’s Gilda
Columbia Pictures, legendary production company founded by brothers Harry and Jack Cohn and Joe Brandt in 1924, celebrates its centenary this year. After the many tributes to Warner Pictures in 2023, it’s now time for another Hollywood giant to step into the spotlight in 2024. And what better way to do it than with Gilda by Charles Vidor?
It comes as no surprise that Cannes Classics has chosen to honour the studio’s flagship film. Gilda, hailed by many as the pinnacle of film noir, catapulted the studio’s star, Rita Hayworth, to the status of global bombshell, so much so that the image of her in the famous black dress even adorned atomic missiles tested in the aftermath of the Second World War.
“There never was a woman like Gilda!”
The film’s most iconic scene is undoubtedly musical number Put the Blame on Mame. Cleverly circumventing the dreaded Hays Code, Gilda’s gradual baring of her arms, suggestive of a full striptease, made for a truly erotic and unforgettable scene.
Presented in Competition at the 1946 Festival de Cannes, it remains the flagship film of Columbia Pictures, a studio renowned for many cinematic gems, including, to name but a few: The Lady from Shanghai, Sur les Quais (On the Waterfront), and Lawrence of Arabia.
A Sony Pictures Entertainment presentation. Restoration from the original 35mm nitrate negative and a 35mm internegative nitrate. 4K scanning and digital image restoration by Cineric, Inc. Audio restoration by John Polito at Audio Mechanics from the soundtrack of the original 35mm nitrate negative. Colour correction, conformation, additional image restoration, DCP creation by Motion Picture Imaging and colorist Sheri Eisenberg. Restoration supervised by Grover Crisp.
In the presence of Tom Rothman, Chairman and CEO, Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group.
