WITHOUT HONOR

Laraine Day and Franchot Tone

WITHOUT HONOR (1949). Director: Irving Pichel.

Jane Bandle (Laraine Day of Foreign Correspondent) is a bored and neglected housewife whose husband, Fred (Bruce Bennett of Smart Girls Don't Talk), frequently leaves her alone and who insists he wants no children. She enters into an affair with Dennis Williams (Franchot Tone), who claims to love her to such an extent that he wants to leave his wife, Katherine (Agnes Moorehead) and daughters. But when Dennis gets wind that Fred might be having him followed, he gets cold feet and wants to end his relationship with Jane. Things spiral out of control and who should show up but nasty Bill (Dane Clark of Whiplash), Fred's jealous brother, who has reasons for despising Jane. He's also invited Mr. and Mrs. Williams to come over for a chat, but none of the players, including a clueless Fred and despairing Jane, realize that Dennis may be permanently out of the picture. 

Day with Dane Clark

One could quibble with certain aspects of Without Honor, but on its own terms it's a credible and absorbing -- and certainly unpredictable -- melodrama with a good script by James Poe. The performances are quite good across the board, and while Pichel is no Hitchcock he keeps things moving and manages to build up a degree of suspense. Another "player," as usual, is composer Max Steiner, who provides good back-up for the goings-on, with some of the catchy music acting as counterpoint to the generally grim proceedings. Without Honor has certainly gotten mixed reactions from viewers, with some hating almost every aspect of it and others finding it a bit unique and different. Count me in the latter camp.

When Ladies Meet: Agnes Moorehead with Day

Bill hates Jane because years before he made a pass at her while she was dating his brother and she made a fuss about it, perhaps somewhat altering the relationship between the two men. Some viewers feel that Bill has incestuous sexual feelings for his own brother -- the notion that Bill is in love with Fred might make more sense if Bill was Fred's best friend and not his brother -- but while Bill does come off like a rejected lover (of Fred's) due to the intensity of Clark's performance, I don't think that was the film's intention (although Poe did deal with homosexual characters in his adaptations of plays by Tennessee Williams).

Verdict: Unusual and arresting film that never quite goes where you expect it to. ***1/4. 

THE GREAT RUPERT

THE GREAT RUPERT (1950). Director: Irving Pichel. 

Now here's a weird one. A down-on-his-luck entertainer, Joe Mahoney (Jimmy Conlin), with a trained squirrel act, reluctantly lets the squirrel, Rupert, go off on his own when he finds he can't get them bookings. Louie Amendola (Jimmy Durante), another entertainer who can't find work, moves into the apartment vacated by Mahoney with his family, but is unaware that the squirrel has moved back in. When Mrs. Amendola (Queenie Smith) prays for money, it drops from the ceiling into her hands! She is unaware that the landlord, who doesn't believe in banks, stashes his loot in a hole behind his bed, from whence the squirrel promptly throws it out. Despite the title, and the pivotal role that Rupert plays in the fortunes of the Amendola family, the squirrel -- animated through stop-motion -- hasn't much to do in the movie (although he isn't entirely forgotten either), which is decidedly bizarre, utterly original, and even strangely touching. The cast, including Durante, Sara Haden (as the landlord's wife), Chick Chandler (as an agent) and Terry Moore (Durante's daughter) are all fine, although love interest Tom Drake is strangely devoid of charm. 

Verdict: Really not as bad as you might expect, but certainly not for everyone. ***.

DESTINATION MOON

John Archer and Warner Anderson

DESTINATION MOON (1950). Director: Irving Pichel. Produced by George Pal.  In Technicolor.

General Thayer (Tom Powers), recognizing that the government is reluctant to spend on space travel during peacetime and after one of their rockets exploded, appeals to the private sector in the form of industrialist Jim Barnes (John Archer) for help. Barnes and a select committee of businessmen employ Dr. Charles Cargraves (Warner Anderson of The Star) to build a new rocket that will fly them to the moon. Thayer is afraid that a foreign power will beat them into space and be able to fire missiles from the moon. Learning that the authorities will block them from performing certain tests, causing delays, Thayer, Cargraves and Barnes -- plus technician Joe Sweeney (Dick Wesson of Starlift) -- take off in their rocket, "Spaceship Luna," in a hurry. They encounter some complications in space, and on the moon come to realize that one of them may have to be left behind ... 

pulling away from earth's gravity

Destination Moon, based on a novel by Robert Heinlein (who co-scripted), was one of the very first big-screen sci fi movies of the fifties. Unlike Rocketship X-M , which debuted the same year, it is generally serious and intelligently told. A scene when one of the men, making repairs, floats away from the ship, is suspenseful, as is the ending, when a fateful decision must be made, and the actors are all satisfactory and credible. The FX, including the fairly elaborate moon set, are quite good for the period, and pretty much hold up well today. The movie is low-key but effective, greatly bolstered by Leith Steven's [Julie] excellent and majestic scoring. A very odd moment occurs when the men argue about who should be left behind and Cargraves never even mentions his wife! Director Irving Pichel also appeared as an actor in many movies. 

Verdict: Absorbing George Pal production that generally avoids melodrama -- and giant spiders. ***.  

I AM A THIEF

Ricardo Cortez and Mary Astor

I AM A THIEF (1934). Director: Robert Florey.

Jewel robberies have become such frequent occurrences in Paris that the board of the insurance firm Hayle's Ltd figures that post-war adventurers have banded together for the purposes of crime. At an auction for the famous Karenina Diamond necklace, the bidders include Odette (Mary Astor) and Pierre (Ricardo Cortez of The Big Shakedown) who wins the necklace and begins a romance with Odette. The action then switches to the Orient Express, where Odette has followed Pierre when he suddenly takes the train to Istanbul. There are other sinister characters, necklace switches and jewel robberies, and at least one murder on the Orient Express.

Irving Pichel and Astor

I Am a Thief is an entertaining picture that keeps you in suspense because you don't know for quite a while just who is the "thief" of the title, with one never being certain if either Astor or Cortez are "on the side of the angels." Astor, looking comparatively drab, is excellent, as usual, while an amiable Cortez gets by mostly on charm. There are good performances from Irving Pichel [Dick Tracy's G-Men] as Count Trentini; Dudley Digges as Colonel Jackson, who wants to buy the necklace from Pierre; Ferdinand Gottschalk as the little fellow, Cassiet; and Hobart Cavanaugh [Dangerous Blondes] as the insurance man Daudet. Although this has a very different plot, Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express was published the same year. Suspects are gathered in a coach at one point just as in the Christie novel.

Verdict: Smooth, fun picture with good performances. ***.  

AND NOW TOMORROW

Susan Hayward and Loretta Young

AND NOW TOMORROW (1944). Director: Irving Pichel.

Socialite Emily Blair (Loretta Young) has become deaf due to meningitis, and pursues different doctors to find a cure. Family friend Dr. Weeks (Cecil Kellaway) gets Emily together with Merek Vance (Alan Ladd), who is working on a serum that may cure Emily, but who has a chip on his shoulder regarding her wealth and privilege. Adding to the complications is the fact that Emily's fiance, Jeff (Barry Sullivan), has fallen in love with her somewhat selfish sister, Janice (Susan Hayward), and vice versa. If she gets her hearing back, Emily may be in for a big surprise ... And Now Tomorrow is an entertaining soap opera that probably has little to do with the realities of hearing loss, and might even be considered a heartless fantasy for the deaf. On the other hand, it's very well-acted, with Young, Hayward, and Kellaway [Love Letters] taking the top honors, although Ladd [Boy on a Dolphin] and Sullivan [Jeopardy] also acquit themselves nicely. Beulah Bondi, Grant Mitchell and Helen Mack have smaller roles, and all are fine. The movie borders on the absurd at times but never quite goes overboard. and is well-paced and entertaining. Young is excellent, but Hayward comes close at times to stealing the movie from her.

Verdict: Having a handsome doctor is half of it. ***.

THEY WON'T BELIEVE ME

THEY WON'T BELIEVE ME (1947). Director: Irving Pichel.

A man named Larry (Robert Young), on trial for murder, takes to the stand and tells his sordid story to the jury in an effort to save his life. Married to the lovely but somewhat controlling Greta (Rita Johnson of The Second Face), Larry enters into an affair with Janice (Jane Greer). Later he finds himself falling for yet another woman, Verna (Susan Hayward), and plans to run away with her. But fate intervenes, two of those women wind up dead, and Larry's in deep trouble. The absorbing picture is uncompromising not just for its anti-hero and other unsympathetic characters, but for its knock-out of an ironic ending. Johnson, Hayward and Greer all deliver, and Young, who did play bad guys in the days before Father Knows Best, is nonetheless cast against type as Larry  -- that just makes his performance more effective. Most of the characters in this are distinctly unlikable for one reason or another, but that doesn't affect one's enjoyment of the movie. Jane Greer [Run for the Sun] looks especially luscious in this. Johnson and Young also appeared together in Honolulu.

Verdict: Very satisfying and well-done film noir.

SHE (1935)

Helen Gahagan as "She"

SHE (1935). Directors: Lansing C. Holden; Irving Pichel. Colorized version. Based on the novel by H. Rider Haggard.

John Vincey (Samuel S. Hinds), who is dying of radiation poisoning, tells his nephew, Leo (Randolph Scott), that he can find the secret of immortality by finding the flame in a lost civilization which was first discovered by Leo's lookalike ancestor. Leo, Horace Holly (Nigel Bruce), and Tonya (Helen Mack of Son of Kong), whom they sort of pick up along the way, travel through a frigid wasteland and after an avalanche discover the cavern that leads to this lost land. There they find a bunch of unfriendly savages, but they also find -- "She" (Helen Gahagan), the absolute ruler of this weird little empire. She has lived for centuries, and thinks Leo is his ancestor, John, whom she actually murdered many years before. Now she wants to sacrifice Tonya ... She, superior to the sixties remake, has some striking settings, good special effects (for the period), and is well-acted by the two ladies. Bruce is less effective than he was as Dr. Watson, and Scott [Go West Young Man] is embarrassingly awful as the hero. The best scene depicts a thrilling fight on a high precipice that keeps tottering during the battle. Elaborately produced for its time, She was probably an influence, unconscious or otherwise, on such cruel-queen-in-strange-settings movies as Queen of Outer Space and many others. [At least this society has the Arts, evidenced by the dancing and statuary.] This is an entertaining adventure film, but Max Steiner's excellent score probably makes it seem even better than it is. The big gate from King Kong shows up early in the film. A singer and politician, Gahagan only appeared in this one movie.

Verdict: Interesting adaptation of classic adventure story. ***.

THE STORY OF TEMPLE DRAKE

THE STORY OF TEMPLE DRAKE (1933). Director: Stephen Roberts.

"If I was the old judge I'd marry her off quick!"

This first film version of William Faulkner's "Sanctuary" concerns the flighty young lady Temple Drake (Miriam Hopkins), granddaughter of a judge, who goes out one night with drunken Toddy (William Collier Jr.) and winds up in a dilapidated house occupied by a gang of bootleggers. Although the young and somewhat "slow" Tommy (James Eagles) tries to protect her, she is raped by the brutish if slick "Trigger" (Jack La Rue) after he murders Tommy. A frightened and ashamed Temple goes off with Trigger, and her close friend Stephen (William Gargan) winds up defending Trigger's associate Lee (Irving Pichel) on the charge of murdering Tommy. Can he convince Temple to not think of herself and her reputation and testify as to Lee's innocence? The Story of Temple Drake has little to do with Faulkner's original story -- the ending is completely changed -- but it is well-directed for the most part and features competent (if never outstanding) performances. Hopkins has her moments but is uneven, possibly due to her role. Florence Eldridge plays Lee's wife, and there are appearances by Elizabeth Patterson and Grady Sutton. Photographed by Karl Struss, who has one scene in complete darkness except for the lighted tip of Trigger's cigarette. Remade in 1961 as Sanctuary.

Verdict: Rather unpleasant all told. **1/2.

SOMETHING IN THE WIND

O'Connor, Durbin and Dall

SOMETHING IN THE WIND (1947). Director: Irving Pichel.

When Donald Read (John Dall of Rope) discovers that his late grandfather was making payments to a certain "Mary Collins," he mistakenly assumes that the lady in question is a pretty young radio singer (Deanna Durbin) and that she was grandpop's mistress. Actually the Mary Collins who received the checks for all those years was the singer's aunt, who had been dumped by the society-conscious old man many years before; the whole check business is more or less innocent. Young Mary is virtually kidnapped by the Read family and brought to their mansion, where she decides to torment them by not revealing the truth. Even though Donald has a fiancee, Clarissa (Helena Carter), he is drawn to Mary even as his brother, Charlie (Donald O'Connor) wants Clarissa for himself. Further muddying the waters is larcenous Uncle Chester (Charles Winninger), who hopes to exploit the situation for his own benefit. Something in the Wind is amiable enough, with Dall and Durbin making a better romantic pairing than expected; the trouble with the movie is that it isn't really that funny, and while Durbin is competent, she isn't exactly a skilled comedienne. Her singing is lovely, however, and she even manages to acquit herself admirably doing a duet from Verdi's Il trovatore with tenor Jan Peerce (who plays a singing cop and is quite good as well as in fine voice). Margaret Wycherly adds a touch of class as the grandmother who wants to size up her late husband's cutie. O'Connor is as adept and exuberant as ever, but his novelty song numbers are not that amusing. Helena Carter later appeared in such films as Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye with Cagney and in the sci fi not-so-classic Invaders from Mars.

Verdict: Mostly for Durbin fans but not bad. **1/2.

THE CHEAT

Tallulah Bankhead

THE CHEAT (1931). Director: George Abbott.

"If you're trying to appeal to my better nature, it's hopeless, for I haven't any."

Elsa Carlyle (Tallulah Bankhead) and her husband Jeffrey (Harvey Stephens) are feeling a financial pinch when Elsa makes matters worse by losing a bundle at cards. She compounds this error by making a very unsound investment. The oily Hardy Livingstone (Irving Pichel), a wealthy man who collects women like literal trophies, offers Elsa his help -- but at a price she isn't willing to pay, leading to melodramatic complications and a climactic courtroom scene. Except for her overacting at the finale, Bankhead is quite good, and while hardly a raving beauty, one can imagine she never lacked for dates. Stephens is adequate and Pichel is fine, although the movie might have had more of an edge -- and given Elsa more of a moral dilemma -- had Hardy been played by a sexier actor one could believe she was attracted to. The picture is minor but holds the attention and Bankhead is basically swell and appealing. Pichel was later the villain in the serial Dick Tracy's G-Men and directed many films, including The Most Dangerous Game (co-director) and Quicksand. Bankhead later appeared in everything from Hitchcock's Lifeboat to Die, Die, My Darling to the TV series' Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour and Batman.

Verdict: Creaky old pre-code melodrama enlivened by Bankhead. **1/2.

THE BRIDE WORE BOOTS

THE BRIDE WORE BOOTS (1946). Director: Irving Pichel.

The marriage of Sally Warren (Barbara Stanwyck) to her writer husband Jeff (Bob Cummings), has already been tested by his disdain for the horses Sally loves, as well as the continual, irritating presence of would-be boyfriend Lance (Patric Knowles), but now there's a new threat in the form of pretty and perky Mary Lou (Diana Lynn), who has a crush on Jeff and wants to be his secretary -- and more. Naturally the couple break up, come together, and break up again, with all sorts of amusing complications. Willie Best (of My Little Margie and many movies) works for the Warrens, and little Natalie Wood is one of their adorable children. Stanwyck has always been as adept at comedy as she is at drama, and proves it once again, where she's right up there with skilled comedian Cummings. Peggy Wood and Robert Benchley are fun as, respectively, Sally's mother and uncle, and Lynn and Knowles are also effective. Gertrude Hoffman, also of My Little Margie, has a small role as a club woman. The picture is fast-paced and cute and very well acted.

Verdict: A trifle, but nice. ***.

COLONEL EFFINGHAM'S RAID

COLONEL EFFINGHAM'S RAID (1946). Director: Irving Pichel.

Okay, you'd think that any film with Charles Coburn, Joan Bennett, Donald Meek, Elizabeth Patterson, Allyn Joslyn and Frank Craven (of In This Our Life fame) in it couldn't be all bad, but there's little to recommend in this dull little alleged "comedy" that grossly wastes the talents of all concerned. Coburn is a retired Army colonel in a small town on the eve of U.S. entry into WWII who stirs people up via his column in the local newspaper, where Bennett and William Eythe also work. A particular sore subject is that the town's politicos want to tear down the stately old courthouse. The film makes the point that everyone -- big and small, young and old -- has the right to speak out on issues of importance to them, but it makes this point in the most boring way possible. The 70 minute running time seems like two and a half hours, and the film has not a single laugh. Joan Bennett spiritedly plays a rather likable and independent-minded young lady.

Verdict: Pretty much a total stinker. That cast deserves much better. *.

DRACULA'S DAUGHTER

DRACULA'S DAUGHTER (1936). Director: Lambert Hillyer.

This first sequel to the Bela Lugosi Dracula has Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloane) trying to explain why he drove a stake through Count Dracula's heart and in danger of either being put on trial for murder or institutionalized as insane. [A similar situation occurred in Columbia's entry into the vampire sweepstakes, Return of the Vampire.] Otto Kruger plays Jeffrey Garth, a psychiatrist who tries to help his friend Van Helsing, and Marguerite Churchill is his busy-body secretary. But the main attraction is Countess Marya Zaleska, who claims to be Dracula's daughter, and is played by one of the most fascinating screen presences of the period, Gloria Holden. Holden is very effective as a tormented woman who hopes that Dracula's death means she is free from his curse of vampirism, which turns out (luckily for the audience) not to be the case. Irving Pichel, who also directed many films, plays Sandor, the countess' major domo. Nan Grey is effective as a pretty young would-be suicide, Lily, who becomes a victim of the she-vampire, and Hedda Hopper appears as a high society acquaintance of Garth's.

(Some have seen a supposedly "sapphic" tone to Dracula's Daughter because of the scene in which she hypnotizes Lily and then drinks her blood. But she also hunts and attacks a man earlier in the film, and wants to turn Otto Kruger into one of the undead so that he can spend eternity with her. Besides, in the Lugosi Dracula his victim Lucy, once undead, stalks children, which doesn't necessarily make her a pedophile.) The film doesn't quite make it clear if Holden is actually Dracula's daughter (can the undead impregnate?) or simply someone he turned into a vampire via his curse of blood. In any case, it seems clear that the countess wants to be cured so that she can enter the world of light and laughter, not because she cares about her victims, making her selfish and ultimately unsympathetic. Dracula's Daughter is an entertaining picture, but there's too much comedy and romance in the film, and not enough horror. Even so, it's better than the original. Although Holden appeared in quite a few films after Dracula's Daughter, and played the wife of Emile Zola, her promise was never fulfilled.

Verdict: Flawed but fascinating. ***.

THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME

THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME (1932). Directors: Ernest B. Schoedsack and Irving Pichel.

Bob Rainsford (Joel McCrea) is the only survivor of a shipwreck near a small island owned by the sinister Count Zaroff (Leslie Banks). Safe on land in the count's gothic castle, he learns that Eve Trowbridge (Fay Wray) and her brother Martin (Robert Armstrong) are also ship-wrecked "guests" waiting patiently for the count's launch to be repaired -- only Eve tells Bob that she's heard the launch going out at night. It turns out that the sociopathic Zaroff deliberately causes shipwrecks and then hunts down "the most dangerous game" -- human beings -- from the survivors. The first half of the film is suspenseful enough, but the second half is non-stop excitement as Bob and Eve try desperately to outwit the count, his men, and his killer dogs and survive until dawn. Thrilling right up until the very last shot. Made concurrently with King Kong (as the FX of that film were being completed) this utilizes some of the same, very recognizable sets. Robert Armstrong gives a more flavorful, less wooden performance than usual and is very good as the ill-fated brother. The shipwreck sequence is very well-done, the effects work is excellent, and the castle settings are atmospheric and intriguing. Although he has been criticized as being "campy," Leslie Banks actually offers a very effective and comparatively low-key portrait of the psychopathic count and never gnoshes on the scenery. His versatility is shown with his much more benign character in The Tunnel. The Most Dangerous Game is highly entertaining although it could probably have used a few more minutes of character development. Suitably rousing score by Max Steiner.

Verdict: A classic! ***1/2.

QUICKSAND

QUICKSAND (1950). Director: Irving Pichel.

Probably trying to change his image and show his range the way song and dance man Dick Powell did years before, Mickey Rooney starred in this film noirish thriller about a mechanic who winds up on the run from police after meeting a tough blond with expensive tastes. Rooney is loved by a good brunette (Barbara Bates), but is more fascinated by the zesty blond (Jeanne Cagney) who lusts after a two thousand dollar fur coat. Rooney's troubles begin when he “borrows” twenty dollars from the till to take Cagney out on a date. Before long he's pawning watches he doesn't quite own, mugging drunks carrying wads of cash, stealing cars from his boss, breaking into arcades for the night's take, and strangling his employer. But the movie refuses to truly let Rooney be a bad guy even though it's clear that he is. His criminal actions aren't prompted by a desire to feed a starving family but by expediency; throughout the picture he consistently makes the wrong and most evil choices. SPOILER ALERT: Running off with the good brunette after presumably murdering his boss, he conveniently hijacks the car of a sympathetic lawyer and eventually learns that his employer is still alive. (“Men don't die easily,” the lawyer tells Rooney. “They take a lot of killing.”) At the unconvincing conclusion, Rooney assures everyone that he's ready to take what's coming to him, that he's essentially a “decent” person (who mugs, robs and “murders!”). In a part that could have been tailor-made for a young Cagney, Widmark or Garfield, Rooney acquits himself nicely, only resorting to stock good guy mannerisms – as if to redeem his unlikable character -- in the film's final quarter when the story goes completely awry and his formerly vital, emotionally-true thesping becomes perfunctory. The film's standout performance is from vivid Jeanne Cagney, who positively sizzles as the blond who's only out for herself. Equally good in a supporting part is Peter Lorre, who plays the arcade owner who's carrying a torch for former employee Cagney; he and Rooney have several good scenes together. Barbara Bates' mediocre acting proves beyond a doubt why little was heard of her after she appeared in this and at the ending of All About Eve the same year. The picture is well-directed and has an effective if unmemorable score by Louis Gruenberg, who decades before was composing operas for the Met.

Verdict: Not great but has its moments. **1/2.