Shock Directed by Alfred L. Werker Written by Eugene Ling and Martin Berkeley; story by Albert DeMond 1946/USA Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
First viewing/Netflix rental
[box] Lt. Paul Stewart: Well, if you give Janet this insulin, how certain can you be it’ll help her?[/box]
This is really pretty bad but this noirish shocker might appeal for its interesting premise and Vincent Price’s hammy but fun performance.
Janet Stewart (Anabel Shaw) arrives at a San Francisco hotel for a reunion with her released POW husband, whom she had long thought dead. She is overcome with anxiety when it is early in the morning and he has not yet arrived. Then she overhears a loud argument between the couple in the room next door and sees the man beat his wife to death with a candlestick. By the time her husband finally arrives the next day, poor Janet is catatonic with shock.
Lt. Stewart calls the house doctor, who refers him to a noted psychiatrist resident in the hotel. This is the smooth-talking Dr. Richard Cross (Price). Dr. Cross rapidly assesses the situation and recommends that Janet be taken immediately to his country sanitorium for peace, quiet and treatment. It develops that the good doctor and his sexy nurse Elaine Jordan (Lynn Bari) have ample reason to ensure Janet does not recover too quickly … or ever.
Anabel Shaw’s is not the only over-the-top performance in a film that milks each situation for maximum melodrama. That does not prevent the movie from having a certain fascination for lovers of B cinema and/or Vincent Price.
The Beast with Five Fingers Directed by Robert Florey Written by Curt Siodmak from a story by William Fryer Harvey 1946/USA Warner Bros.
First viewing/Amazon Instant
[box] Conrad Ryler: I know, Julie, you’re afraid. He’s holding you with his pain and helplessness. He draws his energy from your life. He’ll never let you go.[/box]
This noir-tinged horror flick is a whole lot of creepy fun. The best part is watching Peter Lorre go mad.
The setting is Italy at the turn of the last century. Francis Ingram (Victor Francen) is a half-mad pianist who continues to play despite the loss of one hand. His favorite piece was composed especially for him by con-man Conrad (Robert Alda). Ingram has become obsessed with his nurse, Julie, and retains a resident astrologer, Hilary Cummins (Lorre). One night, he gathers these people and his lawyer to attest that he is of sound mind and changes his will to leave everything to Julie.
Soon after, Ingram takes a terrible fall down the stairs and dies. His greedy relatives come to the reading of the will and vow to contest it. But all who oppose the will start dropping like flies. Could the deceased’s severed hand be responsible? All the fingerprints and the evidence of the music issuing forth from the piano suggest that it could be. With J. Carroll Naish as the local comisario.
This movie takes some time to get going, but once it does it is filled with groovy special effects, flamboyant camera work, and a bravura performance by Peter Lorre. If you like this kind of thing, go for it.
Cloak and Dagger Directed by Fritz Lang Written by Albert Maltz and Ring Lardner Jr.; original story by Boris Ingster and John Larkin 1946/USA Warner Bros./United States Pictures
First viewing/Netflix rental
[box] I was never a spy. I was with the OSS organization. We had a number of women, but we were all office help. — Julia Child [/box]
This is not one of Lang’s more memorable films but it still looks awfully good.
The Office of Strategic Services (wartime forerunner of the CIA) recruits nuclear physicist Prof. Alvah Jesper (Gary Cooper), known as “Jess”, to contact a scientist friend of his in Switzerland and bring her back to the U.S. The scientist should be up on the latest on German progress toward developing an atom bomb. But the Germans kill the woman before Jess can complete his mission.
Jess decides the next best thing is to go to Italy and look up an old associate, Dr. Poldi (Vladimir Sokoloff) who is also working on bomb development. He is met by a group of Italian resistance fighters, including the world-weary Gina (Lilli Palmer). Naturally, Jess and Gina immediately fall in love despite her professions of toughness. It turns out Poldi is being kept on a short leash by the Nazis who have his beloved daughter in their power. The resistance must rescue the daughter before Poldi will agree to cooperate.
This movie would have been better if there had been more espionage and less doomed romance. It’s OK for what it is anyway and the images are striking.
Crisis (Kris) Directed by Ingmar Bergman Written by Ingmar Bergman from a play by Leck Fischer 1946/Sweden Svensk Filmindustri
First viewing/Hulu Plus
[box] Any idiot can face a crisis – it’s day to day living that wears you out. — Anton Chekhov [/box]
Ingmar Bergman is still finding his way in his directorial debut.
Nelly has been raised by her nearly penniless “Mutti” Ingeborg in conservative small town Sweden. She is now 18 years old and has not seen her real mother, Jenny, since she was a toddler. Nelly is being wooed by veterinarian lodger Ulf but feels only friendship for the older man. On her birthday, the worldly, rather vulgar Jenny arrives from the city to take Nelly to live with her. Jenny has her flamboyant ne’er-do-well boy toy Jack in tow.
Nell has set her heart on making a splash at the local ball that evening. Jack sweet talks her and gets her drunk and she succeeds beyond her wildest dreams, thoroughly scandalizing the townspeople in the process. Lured by Jack and afraid to face the sea of judgmental faces, Nell agrees to go to work at her mother’s beauty parlor.
Ingeborg is left distraught and alone since Ulf moves out as soon as Nell does. She is also seriously ill. But more than that she worries that Nell is unhappy. Her visit to the city offers a fairly horrifying look at the clientele of the beauty parlor and confirms Ingeborg’s suspicions. Yet Nell does not want to go home. Before she can, she needs to face a crisis set up by Jack.
The film starts out looking like a satire on small town life, with some witty looks at provincial manners. It ends up as a psychological study complete with Bergman’s trademark closeups and some symbolism. Right off the bat, he obviously had a way of bringing the best out of his actors. I actually liked both halves of the movie but it could have worked better as a coherent whole. I guess he had to start somewhere.
Angel on My Shoulder Directed by Archie Mayo Written by Harry Segall and Roland Kibbee 1946/USA Charles R. Rogers Productions
First viewing/Netflix rental
[box] Shoveler: There ain’t no bottom in this joint.[/box]
This fantasy is poorly paced but the performances are quite good.
Eddie Kagle (Paul Muni) gets out of jail and into the car of his right hand man Smiley. After a pleasant conversation, Smiley lets Eddie have it with his own gun. It’s straight to Hell with the gangster.
He soon gets an audience with Nick (Claude Rains), the head man. Nick knows that each person has his exact double and Eddie happens to be the look-alike of righteous Judge Frederick Parker, a candidate for Governor. Nick tempts Eddie with the opportunity to get revenge on Smiley if he will occupy Parker’s body and destroy the man’s reputation.
Eddie’s personality does not change in the least after he takes over Parker’s body and Parker’s fiancee Barbara (Anne Baxter) has the feeling the old stick-in-the-mud may be going insane. But Nick is sorely disappointed. A couple of mishaps leave Parker looking better than ever. Then Nick gets religion and finds love.
Claude Rains is the reason to see this movie. He is absolutely delicious as the Devil. It is also a lot of fun to see Muni in a nod to his Tony Montana roots. Unfortunately, the story quickly becomes predictable and then it just sort of plods along.
Bedlam Directed by Mark Robson Written by Val Lewton (as Carlos Keith) and Mark Robson suggested by the William Hogarth painting “Bedlam”, Plate #8 of “The Rake’s Progress” 1946/USA RKO Radio Pictures
First viewing/Netflix rental
[box] Lord Mortimer: A capital fellow, this Sims, a capital fellow.
Nell Bowen: If you ask me, M’Lord, he’s a stench in the nostrils, a sewer of ugliness, and a gutter brimming with slop.[/box]
This was the last of the horror films Val Lewton produced at RKO. He went out on a high note.
Nell Bowen (Anna Lee) is the “protege” of Lord Mortimer, a sort of resident fool who keeps the vain fat man amused with her cockatoo and quips. She and a Quaker witness an inmate falling off the roof of the insane asylum at Bedlam and are sure it was murder. It turns out that the victim was a poet Lord Mortimer had hired to write for a fête. The overseer of Bedlam George Sims (Boris Karloff) is a bit of an amateur poet himself. Although it seems fairly clear that Sims wrongfully committed the poet and set him up for the fall, all Mortimer really cares about is the fête. Sims offers to feature some of his inmates in the entertainment and Mortimer is satisfied.
Although Nell is a thorough cynic, she cannot help but being disgusted by the evil Sims. He offers to give her a tour of the premises, which are open to public for tuppence. Nell is further disturbed by the squalid conditions of the place and the obvious cruelty with which the inmates are treated. Later at the fête an inmate who has been covered in thick gilt paint to give a recitation dies and Nell tries to convince her boss to get money from the City Council to reform Bedlam.
Sims convinces Mortimer to leave things as they are and Nell quits with an angry tirade. She tries to retaliate by selling her cockatoo, who has been trained to spout rude rhymes about Mortimer, to his political opposition. Sims persuades Mortimer to sign commitment papers and before she knows it Nell is an inmate herself. Nell’s friendship with the Quaker enables her to survive her ordeal.
Karloff shines without horror make-up as the cruel yet oddly pathetic villain of the piece. Anna Lee is not too convincing as a vixen but does better as the angel of the hospital. For me, the highlight of the movie was Nicholas Musuraca’s wonderful atmospheric cinematography and the art direction that made every frame look like something out of a Hogarth painting. It is really amazing what Lewton’s team could create on a shoestring budget.
The DVD contains an informative commentary by horror scholar Tom Weaver.
Notorious Directed by Alfred Hitchcock Written by Ben Hecht 1946/USA RKO Radio Pictures
Repeat viewing/Criterion Collection DVD
#193 of 1001 Films You Must See Before You Die
[box] Madame Sebastian: Wouldn’t it be a little too much if we both grinned at her like idiots?[/box]
If I had a gun held to my head and was forced to name my favorite Alfred Hitchcock film, there could be only one answer. This one.
After the arrest of her father as a Nazi traitor, Alicia Huberman (Ingrid Bergman) becomes a party girl and budding alcoholic. One night. a tall, dark, handsome stranger, Devlin (Cary Grant), crashes one of her parties. She is immediately attracted, then repelled when she discovers he is one of the many “cops” who are tailing her. It turns out he has a proposition to make. The U.S. government wants her help in rooting out some Nazis in South America. She is more attracted than repelled by Devlin and he appeals to her patriotism, so she agrees.
After they leave for Rio, the two rapidly become an item. Alicia is unabashed in her love but Devlin has evidently been burned before and keeps his emotions tightly in check. It turns out that the job Devlin’s superiors have in mind for Alicia is basically to prostitute herself to get close to Nazi cell leader Alexander Sebastian (Claude Rains). Devlin, not trusting in Alicia’s redemption by love, neither puts up a fight with the authorities nor discourages Alicia from taking on the assignment. Broken hearted, Alicia agrees to take on the job. She is successful beyond anybody’s wildest dreams in that Alex asks her to marry him.
Devlin continues to be Alicia’s handler and their meetings continue to stick the knife into Alicia’s heart. Meanwhile, Alicia is informing on all of Alex’s associates and some suspicious circumstances surrounding the wine cellar. Matters come to a head when she gets Devlin invited to a big bash at the house so that she can slip him the stolen key to the cellar. With Madame Konstantine as the mother-in-law from Hell.
I have no problem in pronouncing this movie perfect. It combines a lush and beautiful romance with some serious suspense. No matter how many times I see it, I still get a little nervous in that wine cellar. Devlin’s conflicted feelings give the romance its own suspense. And just looking at Grant and Bergman as photographed by by Ted Tetzlaff is pleasure in itself. This time around, I focused especially on Claude Rains’ performance. The movie would not have worked as well as it does if he had not been able to make us feel pity for his situation. My highest recommendation.
Claude Rains was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Notorious. Although non-professional-actor winner Harold Russell was very good in The Best Years of Our Lives, I think Rains got robbed. The film was also nominated for Best Writing, Original Screenplay.
The Blu-Ray DVD contains two commentaries by film historians, one on the context of the making of the film and one on the film itself. I really enjoyed learning about the history of RKO, the history of David O. Selznik and the collaboration of the two on Notorious.
Trailer – talk about a trailer that gives away the whole plot!
My Reputation Directed by Curtis Bernhardt Written by Catherine Terney from a novel by Clare Jaynes 1946/USA Warner Bros.
First viewing/Amazon Instant
[box] Jessica Drummond: You know, it’s amazing how I can learn to like martinis. It’s an acquired taste like anchovies.[/box]
Taking over a role that might otherwise gone to Bette Davis, Barbara Stanwyck is absolutely terrific in a glossy Warner Brothers “woman’s picture” that manages to stay clear of melodrama.
The year is 1942 and the city is Chicago. As the story begins Jessica Drummond (Stanwyck) has just lost her husband after two years of illness. She has two adolescent boys. Her mother (Lucille Watson) is the model of turn-of-the century manners and is aghast that Jessica refuses to wear black. A friend of the family is helping Jessica manage the estate. After a decent interval has passed, the mother urges Jessica to marry him. In the meantime, Jessica, while keeping up a brave front, is going nearly crazy with loneliness. This gets worse when the boys return to boarding school. Best friend Ginna (Eve Arden) urges Jessica to join her and her husband at their cabin at Lake Tahoe instead of going South with her mother as planned. Jessica takes Ginna up on the offer.
At Lake Tahoe, Jessica meets cute with Maj. Scott Landis (George Brent) when she breaks a ski. They spend most of the remaining days together but Jessica energetically rejects Scott’s advances and they part abruptly. Jessica can’t get him out of her mind when she returns home, however, and when Ginna spots him at a Chicago restaurant Jessica rushes there to “accidentally” run into him.
Before long, Jessica is in love and ready to throw caution to the wind. She even persists with the relationship after Scott makes clear that he is not the marrying kind. But does Jessica have the strength to carry on with the affair over the objections of her mother and children and the ugly gossip in her social set?
The plot is quite reminiscent of All That Heaven Allows but Stanwyck’s character has more backbone from the get go than Jane Wyman’s ever mustered. She is absolutely radiant here and the part lets her explore a broad range of emotions. The staid George Brent does not really convince as a free spirit but does not detract from the film either. Both Eve Arden and Lucille Watson are their usual enjoyable selves. The film was sumptuously shot by cinematographer James Wong Howe and looks beautiful. The film has been described as a melodrama but I really didn’t see that. At no point does Stanwyck play the victim of anybody. Recommended.
The film was made in 1943 but was not released to the general public until 1946.
Night Editor Directed by Henry Levin Written by Harold Jacob Smith from a story by Scott Littleton and a radio program by Hal Burdick 1946/USA Columbia Pictures Corporation
First viewing/Netflix rental
[box] Jill Merrill: I don’t need you, I can buy and sell you. I don’t know why I bother seeing you.
Tony Cochrane: You don’t know why? I’ll tell you. You’re rotten through and through. Like something they serve at the Ritz,only its been laying out in the sun too long.[/box]
This was a fun pulpy film noir but what was it with the ending?
A reporter stumbles into his office, late, drunk and unable to go home. The editor and some other reporters are playing poker. The editor takes up the cautionary tale of homicide detective Tony Cochrane.
It seems that Cochrane (William Gargan) was a crack detective and devoted family man, especially close to his little son. That all changed when he fell prey to socialite Jill Merrill (Janis Carter) and began an adulterous affair, from which he seems powerless to extricate himself. While Cochrane and Jill are smooching on an isolated lover’s lane, they witness a man beating a girl to death in a car with a tire iron. Cochrane is prevented by Jill, who fears publicity, and his own cowardice re his wife from going to the victim’s aid or investigating. Jill opines that the girl probably deserved what she got anyway. Naturally, Cochrane is assigned to the homicide investigation.
Unfortunately, Cochrane’s car left a tire print at the scene of the crime which he feels compelled to destroy, further implicating him in the crime. But he doggedly pursues his leads even when they take him deep into Jill’s social circle. There is really only one possible outcome. I will leave it to viewers to see how the film gets there.
OK, so we know that under the Hayes Code adultery cannot pay. I was not prepared for the sheer audaciousness of the ending though! Another given of the period is that in any adulterous relationship the woman must be evil personified and the man her hapless dupe. Janis Carter may not be the world’s greatest actress but she does make a really wicked femme fatale.
Three Strangers Directed by Jean Negulesco John Huston and Howard Koch 1946/USA Warner Bros.
First viewing/Amazon Instant
[box] David Shackleford: [to Crystal] You only want what you can’t have as long as you can’t have it.[/box]
This is a fun John Huston-penned thriller about his favorite topic, greed. It contains dynamite performances by Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre.
Crystal Shackleford (Geraldine Fitzgerald, also fantastic) is in the possession of the idol of Chinese goddess Kwan Yin. She believes that the goddess will grant one wish by three strangers at midnight on Chinese New Year. So Crystal picks up lawyer Jerome Arbuthny (Greenstreet) and dipso Johnny West (Lorre) on the street, being careful not to learn their names, and takes them home. Johnny is intrigued but Arbuthny scoffs at the whole project. The three have different problems but money will help solve all of them and Crystal gets the men to agree to wish that an Irish Sweepstakes ticket will win and to pledge not to sell the ticket before the race.
After making the wish at midnight, the three exchange names and go on their merry way. We learn that the truly wicked Crystal’s real wish is to get her estranged husband back, apparently so she can make him suffer some more. Arbuthny’s wish is to be admitted into a select lawyer’s club but he has been speculating with a client’s trust fund money and fears for his reputation if found out. Johnny, besides drinking himself to death, has been an unwitting dupe in a robbery that ended in murder. He is hiding out with his girlfriend Icey (Joan Lorring) and a gangster during the trial of the actual murderer. Then the murderer decides to admit to the robbery and finger his associates for the murder and Johnny is in real trouble.
I won’t spoil the next developments. Anyone who has seen Treasure of the Sierra Madre and can transpose the situation into this kind of story will have a pretty good guess.
Where to start? Lorre is really the the hero if this film has one. It’s so nice to see him without the usual tics and with a girlfriend who adores him. You just have to love him. Greenstreet gets to shine in the third act with a truly manic and scary turn. The multiple subplots did not detract from the story arc. It’s amazing what strong writing can do. Recommended.
I’ve been a classic movie fan for many years. My original mission was to see as many movies as I could get my hands on for every year from 1929 to 1970. I have completed that mission.
I then carried on with my chronological journey and and stopped midway through 1978. You can find my reviews of 1934-1978 films and “Top 10” lists for the 1929-1936 and 1944-77 films I saw here. For the past several months I have circled back to view the pre-Code films that were never reviewed here.
I’m a retired Foreign Service Officer living in Indio, California. When I’m not watching movies, I’m probably traveling, watching birds, knitting, or reading.
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