MADELEINE

Did she or didn't she? Ann Todd as Madeleine

MADELEINE (1950). Director: David Lean. 

Madeleine Smith (Ann Todd of So Evil My Love) of Glascow is being courted by one William Minnoch (Norman Wooland), a perfectly pleasant if unexciting man whom her father (Leslie Banks) heartily approves of. Mr. Smith can't understand why his oldest daughter keeps putting Minnoch off, but he doesn't know that she has been keeping secret rendezvous with a sexy French shipping clerk named Emile (Ivan Desny), something that would cause a scandal in the Victorian era. Madeleine can't bring herself to tell her father the truth, so she decides to run away with Emile, but he is dismayed at the thought that they would have to live on his comparatively meagre income. When Madeleine gets engaged to Minnoch, Emile threatens to tell her father, ruining her chances for a successful union with the other man. But has Madeleine cooked up a scheme to make absolutely certain that Emile cannot interfere?

Ivan Desny as Emile

Madeleine is based on the famous Madeleine Smith murder case. Todd, who was married to David Lean at the time, had played the role on the stage and importuned her husband to direct her in a film also based on the case (but not on the play). She is quite good in the film, matched by Ivan Desney of Lola Montes and Anastasia -- who never quite reveals if Emile is a complete mountebank or just a man who genuinely loves Madeleine but also simply wishes a better life. In fact, the one major problem with the film is that the characters are not as dimensional as one might like. Wooland and Banks [The Most Dangerous Game] prove good support for Todd, and Andre Morrell offers his customary sharp performance as her lawyer. The same case also inspired the Joan Crawford film Letty Lynton. 

Verdict: Absorbing true crime story with some fine performances. ***. 

THE PASSIONATE FRIENDS

Claude Rains and Ann Todd

THE PASSIONATE FRIENDS (1949). Director: David Lean.

Professor Steven Stratton (Trevor Howard) has always been in love with Mary (Ann Todd), and vice versa, but she's afraid of losing her identity and freedom in a romantic match with him and marries the wealthy Howard Justine (Claude Rains) for practical reasons instead. Years later, Mary and Steven reignite their passion and Mary's marriage almost ends, but she decides to stay with Howard. In what could only be termed an improbable and utterly amazing coincidence, Mary and Steven inadvertently wind up in adjoining rooms in the same resort at the exact same time, leading a disbelieving (of their innocence) Howard to file for divorce, even though Steven has since married another. This leads to some powerful and emotional sequences as husband and wife face the worst crisis in their lives, and an older-but-wiser Mary must make a supreme sacrifice. With direction from David Lean [Doctor Zhivago], and a script by Eric Ambler (from one of H. G. Wells' non-science fiction stories) The Passionate Friends isn't as good as Lean's earlier romantic drama Brief Encounter, but comes close. The performances by Claude Rains and Ann Todd [The Paradine Case] are simply superb, and Trevor Howard, while a cut below the other two, is also excellent. (It is probably because of the strength of the cast that it was decided not to use different actors for the varying ages of each character.) The film also boasts outstanding cinematography by Guy Green, and a fine score by Richard Addinsell, as well as a quite moving conclusion. The film is so good and so well-acted, in fact, that one can forgive the incredible coincidence that leads into the dramatic events that follow.

Verdict: Superior romantic drama with top talents involved. ***1/2.

THE LION HUNTERS

THE LION HUNTERS (1951). Writer/director: Ford Beebe.

Yes, Bomba (Johnny Sheffield) is back in his fourth adventure, discovering that a lion has been injured and left to die in agony. At first Bomba blames the Masai tribe, but then learns that certain hunters are capturing the noble beasts presumably to put in zoos and circuses. Bomba doesn't feel that any animal should lose his freedom, and a young lady named Jean (Ann Todd) comes to agree with him. Jean is the daughter of the kind-hearted Tom Forbes (Morris Ankrum of Rocketship X-M), but his business partner and fellow trapper Marty (Douglas Kennedy of Flaxy Martin) isn't quite so benevolent. Meanwhile Bomba sneaks through Forbes' encampment and frees all of the lions. In another development the Masai chief's son goes out to kill a lion as a rite of passage but panics, with Bomba trying to prevent further bloodshed. An all-out lion attack caps the action. This is not a bad Bomba adventure, and the stock footage is very cleverly integrated into the new action. Ann Todd, aka Ann E. Todd, is not to be confused with the British actress of the same name. She was a nice actress and had many film credits but this was her last film. She then became a regular for many episodes of The Stu Erwin Show. Sheffield, now twenty-one, makes a very appealing hero exhibiting both a strong and sensitive nature.

Verdict: The lions are beautiful. **1/2.

DAYBREAK

Eric Portman and Ann Todd

DAYBREAK (1948). Director: Compton Bennett.

"That's what I feel like with you. Like a river that's stopped winding and found the sea."

Eddie (Eric Portman) works in a barber shop with his friend, Ron (Bill Owen), when he discovers he's got a small inheritance, including a barge on the river. Adding to his contentment is a lovely young lady named "Frankie" (Ann Todd), who agrees to become his wife and live with him on the barge. Eddie makes extra money in an unusual occupation that he keeps from his wife, and while he's away she grows closer to an unconventionally attractive hired worker named Olaf (Maxwell Reed), which leads to a major misunderstanding and a highly dramatic resolution that ties in with Eddie's secret occupation. The movie is told as a flashback leading up to these dramatic events. Todd [So Evil, My Love], Portman and Reed give wonderful performances, the film is moody and absorbing, and there's an evocative and memorable score by Benjamin Frankel [The End of the Affair]. Bill Owen [The Comeback] is also notable as Ron.

Verdict: Unusual, compelling, and beautifully acted. ***.

SO EVIL MY LOVE

Ray Milland as rotter Mark

SO EVIL MY LOVE (1948). Director: Lewis Allen.

A missionary's widow named Olivia (Ann Todd of The Seventh Veil) nurses a sick man named Mark (Ray Milland of A Life of Her Own) on a voyage returning to 19th century London and he later comes to board in her house. Mark is a thorough rotter and criminal with a cheap girlfriend, but he brings out Olivia's hidden desires and passions and she falls hard for him. Eventually the two work out a scheme for money that involves Olivia's old school chum, Susan (Geraldine Fitzgerald of Nobody Lives Forever), and her tiresome, tight-assed husband, Henry (Raymond Huntley). Much later an untenable situation develops that casts Susan into a nightmare and Olivia into a pit of torment and confusion. As for Mark, he is developing certain feelings that surprise even him. The best thing about this fascinating study of obsession is that it's completely unpredictable, throwing twists and turns at the viewer from start to finish. Although Milland may not be the best casting, he gives a good performance, Fitzgerald is fine, and Ann Todd is perfect and wonderful as the decent woman given in to love, lust and immorality. It all builds to a terrific and ironic conclusion. The score is by William Alwyn and Victor Young. Leo G. Carroll is the most notable of the supporting cast. Lewis Allen also directed Desert Fury and many others. Supposedly inspired by a true story.

Verdict: Absorbing romantic suspense film. ***1/2.

THE SEVENTH VEIL

THE SEVENTH VEIL (1945). Director: Compton Bennett.

Francesca (Ann Todd) is a deeply troubled and suicidal concert pianist whose guardian, her older cousin Nicolas (James Mason), a lame woman-hater, dominates her life and has kept her apart from the man she loves, a musician named Peter (Hugh McDermott). Dr. Larsen (Herbert Lom), a psychiatrist, treats Francesca and tries to determine what earlier events led her to want to take her own life. The performances in this are excellent, and there's a good use of classical music [and Ben Frankel contributed a memorable theme], although some may feel the "happy" ending is a little suspect. Todd and Mason became involved in real life. Beethoven's "Pathetique" figures in an important sequence.

Verdict: Twisted romance. ***.

SCREAM OF FEAR aka TASTE OF FEAR

SCREAM OF FEAR (1961). Also known as Taste of Fear. Director: Seth Holt.

Penny (Susan Strasberg) arrives in France to live with her stepmother Jane (Ann Todd) and her father, whom she hasn't seen in ten years. She is befriended by the handsome chauffeur, Bob (Ronald Lewis), who kindly listens to her tales of strange goings on in the villa, including sightings-by-night of her father's dead body. Could her stepmother be cooking something up with the doctor (Christopher Lee) who frequently comes to dinner? This is a nice, suspenseful thriller with several neat twists, courtesy of screenwriter Jimmy Sangster, and good acting from the leads. While the story may not hold up under close scrutiny, it makes for an effective mystery, with a nifty sequence in a pool.

Verdict: You may not scream but it is entertaining nevertheless. ***.

THE PARADINE CASE

THE PARADINE CASE (1948). Director: Alfred Hitchcock. NOTE: This review contains important plot points.

The Paradine Case is essentially a film about a middle-aged barrister undergoing a mid-life crisis. He falls for his beautiful client and is so convinced of her goodness and innocence that he virtually drives an innocent man he accuses of the crime in court to suicide. When his client confesses on the witness stand, he is emotionally shattered and wants to quit the bar. Okay. The trouble with The Paradine (pronounced Para-deen) Case is that this middle-aged lawyer is played by Gregory Peck with two streaks of gray in his hair which do absolutely nothing to make him look any older than a man in his thirties, which he was at the time. Although Peck can deliver his lines with authority, he is not good at displaying emotion or vulnerability (Jimmy Stewart would be have much better, as his performance in Vertigo indicates) so that much of the power of the film is completely lost. This is truly a shame because the film boasts excellent performances by a large ensemble cast, superb Selznick production values, a wonderful score by Franz Waxman, and has many good scenes and fascinating details. (Alida) Valli, as the accused murderess Mrs. Paradine, has such an expressive face that she doesn't really have to act. Charles Laughton and Charles Coburn are excellent as the judge and Peck's law partner, respectively. Ann Todd scores in a sensitive performance as Peck's wife, trying to be brave and mature as she watches her husband falling in love with an immoral woman, and Joan Chandler, so fine in Rope, offers another expert performance as Coburn's snappy daughter. Louis Jourdan, who was “introduced” in this film along with Valli, is also excellent as the man Mrs. Paradine loves with all her passion. The Paradine Case is certainly worth a look despite the fact that it isn't the masterpiece it could have been. [Hitchcock wanted to use Laurence Olivier and Greta Garbo for the lead roles!]

Verdict: Not great but definitely under-rated by many. ***.