5.0 out of 5 stars Driscoll's BEST performance. What a shame Hughes didn't like kids, because this is a classic!

M.M. · June 26, 2023

(function() { P.when('cr-A', 'ready').execute(function(A) { if(typeof A.toggleExpanderAriaLabel === 'function') { A.toggleExpanderAriaLabel('review_text_read_more', 'Read more of this review', 'Read less of this review'); } }); })(); .review-text-read-more-expander:focus-visible { outline: 2px solid #2162a1; outline-offset: 2px; border-radius: 5px; } Poor Bobby Driscoll got short shrifted, by his parents and yes, even by Disney. The Disney Corp. loaned Driscoll to RKO to make a film about a boy who decides to sleep on the fire escape because it's so hot inside. The upstairs level had a cooler breeze so he goes up there to sleep. (No A/C back then) a scuffle wakes him up and peeking through a small crack at the bottom of a shade, he witnesses the murder of a man.Problem: The lad has a reputation of making up stories (boy who cried wolf) and nobody believes him but when word of his claims reaches the "friendly" couple upstairs, a new plot develops, and Tommy's life is in real danger. I won't go on to spoil any more for those who decide to watch it, but believe me as drama detective stories go, this was terrific. It garnered Driscoll an Academy Award for best Juvenile performance making him the youngest to be nominated, and WIN that wonderful award. I wish I could say that Driscoll's life went on to be as magnificent as his performance here, but the underhanded way in which Hughes and DISNEY treated this superb actor -- while yet a child -- was nothing short of despicable, and to say the least set him on a downward spiral ending in his death at an early age, and being "unknown" when the body was found, he was buried on Hart's Island among tens of thousands of unmarked graves that were used for indigents. A tragic end to the career of Disney's FIRST ever human Academy Award winner. If you enjoyed "Rear Window" -- you'll love this one. Lots of suspense and drama.

5.0 out of 5 stars The Window

C. · March 16, 2025

This a really good movie

4.0 out of 5 stars Produced by RKO...courtesy of Disney. (Blu-ray by Warner)

A.C. · September 23, 2023

Little Thriller with Bobby Driscoll, the young star actor, here being released by Disney for this filming at another studio (this is indicated in the credits). In a theme known from the boy who cried wolf.The film is good, but quite short, not exceeding 74 minutes. On a blu-ray, there would have been room forsome extra informations on this production. Not even a trailer for this thriller.But it makes sense quite often in this collection.

5.0 out of 5 stars You Should Be "Window" Shopping for This Blu Ray

J.A.C. · August 6, 2022

This unprepossessing little gem of a suspense feature is one of the most thrilling without the name of Alfred Hitchcock attached to it. Ted Tetzlaff, an Oscar-winning former cinematographer (whose last effort in that field was Hitchcock’s "Notorious") further distinguished himself with what would be his only major directorial effort, an adaptation of a Cornell Woolrich story about an imaginative boy who cries wolf once too often, finding no one will believe him when he witnesses his neighbors committing a murder. 10-year-old Bobby Driscoll, a Walt Disney contract player, is marvelous in the lead, and he would become one of only twelve individuals to ever be awarded a special "juvenile" Oscar for his work here.The 2021 Warner Archive blu ray release boasts extraordinary picture quality. Trust me when I say you will be amazed by how good it looks, not only considering the film's age but the fact that it wasn't a big-budgeted feature in the first place. "The Window" was crafted with loads of love and so was this blu ray.

5.0 out of 5 stars Review

J.R. · August 31, 2024

Enjoyed movie!

5.0 out of 5 stars Film Noir Classic

H. · January 22, 2024

If you like Film Noir and you somehow missed this, watch it right away! It really is a classic in the genre, but not one you hear about a lot.

5.0 out of 5 stars It's a true classic horror film.

N. · February 21, 2021

As a young girl ,I had seen this movie in 1950 when I was 10 years old and am 80 years old now and still remembered it. Paul Stewart and Bobby Driscoll were terrific in it. It was petrifying to view as a young child since the mystery and drama, suspense and tention were horrific. No need for bombs exploding , special effects or gore here, just classic fear created the horror for a young boy who witnesses something he shouldn't have seen.

5.0 out of 5 stars Brought back long-ago memories!

c. · August 5, 2021

This was sorta on my "bucket list." I was 9 yrs. old back in 1949, when my 13-yr. old brother and I walked down to our neighborhood theater to see this. I never forgot it, and lately was obsessed with seeing it again. I'm so glad I had that chance. Just like I remembered, or most of it at least. And it STILL was scary and a real thriller!

Superbly remastered version of classic film noir from the late 1940's. Highly Recommended!

M.D.R. · October 31, 2012

(function() { P.when('cr-A', 'ready').execute(function(A) { if(typeof A.toggleExpanderAriaLabel === 'function') { A.toggleExpanderAriaLabel('review_text_read_more', 'Read more of this review', 'Read less of this review'); } }); })(); .review-text-read-more-expander:focus-visible { outline: 2px solid #2162a1; outline-offset: 2px; border-radius: 5px; } THE FILM:"The boy cried `Wolf' 'Wolf' several times and each time the people came to help him, they found that there wasn't any `Wolf'..."Aesop's Fables.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------This truly is an outstanding film. In 1947, ten years old Bobby Driscoll was loaned out to RKO Radio Pictures by Walt Disney to star in one of the very best RKO Film Noir crime thrillers ever made...a masterpiece of suspense, packed with gripping plot twists! Directed by Ted Tetzlaff and based on Cornell Woolrich's crime classic `The Boy Who Cried Murder', the film tells of little Tommy Woodry (Bobby Driscoll), a bright kid with a vivid imagination...a bit too vivid, in fact, for he is always telling tall tales to such an extent that no one believes anything he says any more. Then, one night, he witnesses a brutal murder committed by his seemingly normal neighbours, the Kellerson's. When Tommy tells his parents, they think it is just his over-active imagination. When he tells the police, they don't believe him either. Only the Kellerson's believe Tommy and now they're coming to get him, too, before someone does start to believe him!Eccentric millionaire Howard Hughes had recently taken over RKO at the time the film had been made and he refused to release it, saying it was unworthy of release and that Bobby Driscoll was not much of an actor. So the film lay on the shelf for two years until, in 1949, people at RKO, on the pretext that, well, the money had already been spent on the film, so why not give it a try, persuaded Hughes to release it. Proving that Hughes didn't know a good picture or a good actor when he saw one, "The Window" was an immediate Box Office hit, bringing in many times its production costs, and won both the BAFTA Best Film of 1949 Award in 1950 and the Edgar Allan Poe Best Picture Award the same year, while Bobby Driscoll received a special Oscar at the March, 1950, Academy Awards as the outstanding juvenile actor of 1949 for his superb performance in it. If the tragically ill-fated Bobby Driscoll has a film for people to remember him by, then this is it.THE ODEON ENTERTAINMENT GROUP DVD:A superb transfer of this classic film, with excellent picture and sound quality. Produced in a limited edition of only 2,000 copies, each copy is numbered and the number of mine was 0853, which means they're half gone already, so get it while you can. A special 16 page glossy booklet is included, entitled "The Making of The Window", full of stills and background information and biographical information on the stars of the film and the people who made it. There is also a stills gallery on the disc as a special feature. Odeon have done this film proud. Go for it today before all the DVD's are sold!

Un bel thriller d'epoca

E. · July 26, 2015

Un bel thriller d'epoca, tutto giocato ad altezza bambino, con alcune scene di ottimo impatto visivo e di tensione, malgrado si parli di un film che non fa alcun ricorso a particolari effetti. Da riscoprire. E' in inglese senza sottotitoli,ma secondo me si capisce abbastanza

Das unheimliche Fenster

N. · March 7, 2017

»Wer einmal lügt, dem glaubt man nicht, und wenn er auch die Wahrheit spricht.« — Der kleine Tommy Woodry (Driscoll) ist ein aufgewecktes New Yorker Kind mit einer lebhaften Phantasie. Den Nachbarskindern in der Lower East Side hat er schon den einen oder anderen Bären aufgebunden. Seinen Eltern Ed (Kennedy) und Mary (Hale) haben Tommys Räuberpistolen schon einigen Ärger eingebracht. In einer heißen Sommernacht kann Tommy nicht einschlafen und bittet seine Mutter, ihn auf der Feuertreppe schlafen zu lassen. Dort beobachtet er zufällig, wie die Nachbarn von oben, die Kellersons (Stewart und Roman), einen Mann ermorden. Als er am nächsten Tag zur Polizei geht, um das Verbrechen zu melden, schenkt ihm dort niemand Glauben. Auch seine Eltern vermuten, dass ihr Junge sich nur wieder wichtig machen will und reagieren verärgert. Die Mörder allerdings werden hellhörig und glauben sehr wohl, dass Tommy etwas gesehen hat. Als der Junge abends von seinen Eltern allein in der Wohnung gelassen wird, schreiten die Kellersons zur Tat, um den vorlauten Zeugen aus dem Weg zu räumen…Die Vorlage zu diesem heute noch haarsträubend spannenden Thriller stammte aus der Feder Cornell Woolrichs, der auch die Kurzgeschichte »It Had to Be Murder« verfasst hatte, aus der später Rear Window wurde. Drehbuchautor Mel Dinelli (The Spiral Staircase, House by the River) adaptierte die Story und peppte sie filmgerecht auf. Der ehemalige Kameramann Ted Tetzlaff wurde von RKO als Regisseur verpflichtet. Der mit Produktionskosten von 200.000 US-Dollar ausgesprochen kostengünstige Film wurde sein größter Regie-Erfolg — ein Kassenknüller, der durchweg gute Kritiken erhielt und sogar ins Rennen um den Oscar ging (Frederic Knudtson für den Besten Schnitt). Die Kameraarbeit ist exquisit und fährt einige herrlich nostalgische New York-Postkartenmotive hoch.Der Film steht und fällt jedoch mit Bobby Driscoll, dem damals erfolgreichsten Kinderstar der Welt. Der stand eigentlich exklusiv bei Walt Disney unter Vertrag, wo er einen Hit nach dem anderen drehte. Für »The Window« lieh Disney sein Zugpferd an RKO aus. Für seine erstaunliche Leistung erhielt der damals 12jährige Junge 1950 einen Juvenile Award, den bis 1960 unregelmäßig vergebenen Kinder-Oscar. Genützt hat ihm das nichts: Nachdem er 1953 von Disney fallengelassen wurde — Grund: der Teenager Driscoll hatte Akne bekommen —, ging es mit dem einstigen Kinderstar rapide bergab in den Drogensumpf. Als im März 1968 in einem leerstehenden New Yorker Apartment seine Leiche von zwei spielenden Kindern gefunden wurde, wusste niemand mehr, wer er war. Er wurde als Bettler anonym begraben. Erst zwei Jahre später, als sein Vater im Sterben lag, bemühte sich das Disney-Studio gemeinsam mit Driscolls Mutter darum, herauszufinden, was mit Bobby geschehen war. Zum Zeitpunkt seines Todes war er 31 Jahre alt gewesen: »Man trug mich auf einem Satinkissen umher, um mich dann in den Müll zu werfen.« (Driscoll über Hollywood)

GREAT FILM, NO QUESTION

S.S. · June 3, 2014

I was delighted to find this on Bolo as it's a film I first saw as a very young child.I love 'film noir' and this is one of the best - chilling without any violence, gripping and atmospheric. It's the story of a young boy who witnesses a murder but his parents won't believe his story.I did read the leaflet which came with the DVD and was saddened to note that the wonderful child actor who plays the lead role, Bobby Driscoll died tragically young at 31 due to the horrors of Hollywood life, which makes the film even more meaningful somehow.

Four Stars

j.C. · December 4, 2017

arrived on time and as described, I hav'nt play the dvd yet so can't comment on the quality.