This is an excellent example of the kind of period piece that MGM did better than any other studio. I saw the film when it first came out, and the other night viewed it for only the second time since then. Oddly enough, what stuck with me most during the long interval between first release and videotape was not the changing portrait, but Angela Lansbury singing the sentimental Victorian ballad Bye-Bye, Little Yellow Bird, as well as her heart=wrenching performance, which I believe was her screen debut. MGM gave her only one more opportunity to shine as a contract player, in another period piece, Gaslight. Who could have guessed her future success on stage and television? The first half of the film has continued to engross me, probably because much of the dialogue came directly from Oscar Wilde, and was delivered in exactly the right tone by George Sanders. In my opinion, the tension was built up admirably, beginning with Dorian's prayer to preserve his youthful beauty, until we saw the changed portrait for the first time. After that, the suspense was gone, and what was left was a conventional period piece, with Sanders virtually absent, Donna Reed totally miscast as a British aristocratic,(no one could have guessed her future, either) and Peter Lawford looking as though he wondered what he was doing there in a role not at all developed. I would rate the first half at 10, the second at 7, so I compromised on 8.It's worth seeing.
Review of The Picture of Dorian Gray
