Lively, entertaining reviews of, and essays on, old and newer films and everything relating to them, written by professional author William Schoell.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

THEY WERE SISTERS


THEY WERE SISTERS (1945). Director: Arthur Crabtree

"The truth is I could never help being a bore."

British drama/soap opera about three sisters, the romantic choices they make, and the way their lives turn out meanders along but builds up steam as it nears a powerful conclusion. Vera (Anne Crawford) is not really in love with her placid husband, so she has an affair with another man. Lucy (Phyllis Calvert) loses a child. The main and most interesting story has to do with Charlotte (Dulcie Gray) , who makes the mistake of marrying the neurotic Geoffrey (James Mason). Geoffrey is such a bitch that at one point he wants to kill his little son's dog! Mason and Gray give an absorbing two-character portrait of a cowered wife dealing with a sadistic husband leading to tragedy and a satisfying conclusion.

Verdict: No Hollywood gloss, but rather compelling just the same. ***.

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