THE HASTY HEART

Patricia Neal and Richard Todd

THE HASTY HEART (1949). Director: Vincent Sherman.

In Burma at the very end of WW2, a Scots soldier named Lachie (Richard Todd) is shot in the kidney. That one kidney is destroyed and the other is defective, meaning he only has a short time to live. In the hospital, the other patients are told to make what time he has left as convivial as possible, but it won't be easy because Lachie has a massive chip on his shoulder and is extremely unpleasant. But can they and the sympathetic nurse, Sister Parker (Patricia Neal), be able to get through to the man? Based on a play by John Patrick, The Hasty Heart presents a sad and intriguing situation and makes the most of it, bolstered by an outstanding lead performance from Richard Todd [Lightning Strikes Twice]. Patricia Neal is lovely in the movie, and there are also fine jobs from Ronald Reagan [Bedtime for Bonzo] as the American, and  from Ralph Michael, Howard Marion-Crawford, and John Sherman as the other patients in the ward. Orlando Martins is given the thankless role of the near-silent tribesman, Blossom, but he, too, is effective. An amusing if odd sub-plot has to do with the fellows trying to find out if Lachie wears anything under his kilt -- their attempts to peek underneath it get a little obsessive at times. Todd's best scene is his reaction when he learns the truth about his medical condition, but, while he's perhaps a bit older than the character, he is on top of his game throughout. Todd played the role on Broadway after Richard Basehart left the cast. Aside from Neal and Reagan, the supporting characters aren't that well developed, and in truth, we don't learn all that much about those two, either. But somehow it doesn't matter, as the film is completely absorbing and deeply moving. This was remade as a telefilm with Gregory Harrison and Cheryl Ladd (!) and it gets a higher rating on imdb.com than the original, but I can't imagine it's better than this. Vincent Sherman also directed The Damned Don't Cry and many, many others.

Verdict: When dramas were dramas and not sitcoms. ***1/2 out of 4.

DEAD OF NIGHT (1945)

Michael Redgrave

DEAD OF NIGHT (1945). Directors: (Alberto) Cavalcanti; Charles Crichton; Basil Dearden; Robert Hamer.

Walter Craig (Mervyn Johns of Edward, My Son) comes to a house to see about a possible restoration, and encounters a group of people that he has seen in a dream. He wants to leave, because in his nightmare things end very badly, but some of the guests tell of their own peculiar experiences. Grainger (Anthony Baird), a racer who nearly died, has a vision of a hearse that warns him of disaster; a young girl, Sally (Sally Ann Howes) discovers the ghost of a little boy (uncredited) during an party in an old house; Peter Cortland (Ralph Michael) is given an antique mirror whose original owner comes to possess him; a triangle over a woman, Mary (Peggy Bryan) and two golf enthusiasts leads to comical, supernatural complications; and Dr. Van Straaten (Frederick Valk of Bad Blonde) relates the tale of a ventriloquist (Michael Redgrave), who is convinced that his dummy, Hugo, is alive and wants a new partner. The best tale by far is the last of the five, and it boasts an intriguing script and a superb performance from Redgrave, whose despair is palpable. The mirror story isn't bad, but the other two aren't that well developed. The fourth story about the golf enthusiasts is pretty stupid and not especially amusing. Georges Auric [Caesar and Cleopatra] has contributed an interesting score. In addition to the ventriloquist story, the most memorable sequence details poor Walter's exacting and delirious nightmare.

Verdict: Redgrave and the dummy make the movie. *** out of 4.