Cooper and Yordan were given joint screenwriting credit in the film.[6]. . U.S. release: 21 August 1944. 13 October 2009. Performances are above-average in this hypnotic tale of deception with Dean Jagger cast as a shady salesman who has just gotten himself hitched to sweet, innocent heroine Kim Hunter. Infidelity may be the cause of divorce for a long-term marriage, but, in reality, infidelity is only a symptom of a problem in the marriage. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Willowjean Will Parker is coming off of the fresh high of apprehending a kidnapper with her boss Lillian Pentecost, 1947 New York Citys most celebrated detective. One big flaw is the storyline, which is completely preposterous and with some of the most absurd contrived coincidences in the annals of mysteries. A symptom that finally breaks the bond between husband and wife. Shes newly arrived in New York City looking for her husband, a traveling salesman named Paul Baxter. Every 'Love Is Blind' Couple Who Got Engaged in the Pods: Where Are They Now? The issue of slavery, murder and the insufficiently fleshed out plot gave me a headache. The plot is rather unlikely and focuses on the idea of a man and a woman getting married without really knowing each other. Letterboxd is an independent service created by a small team, and we rely mostly on the support of our members to maintain our site and apps. When Strangers Marry (also known by the less accurate title of Betrayed) shows the director's increasing confidence as he ventures into the territory of the new film noir genre. This is a nice touch in the directing to emphasize the physical size and thus ominous presence of the mystery man. Kim Hunter marries in a hurry and is unsure whether her husband is a murderer or not. Like Dan above, we all change with time. It is wholly ordinary in the long run, probably echoing the previous year's Shadow of a Doubt; she has married a man who is really a stranger to her and may be the killer sought by police. Some Castle tropes get an early treatment in this film. Kim Hunter believes the improbable. He guessed wrong: the plot is riddled with holes, the lighting and camera-work, essential to make noir movies really work, are shoddy and bleak. She lives in Washington State with her husband and two children. Directed by William Castle. His evasive actions are enough to raise suspicions even in a naive Ohio gal like her -- he makes her wander the streets of wartime Greenwich Village at night (as she did a year earlier in Val Lewton's The Seventh Victim). Joe was Robert Mitchum's breakthrough role, earning him his only Academy Award nomination, but he received first billing the year before in the psychological thriller When Strangers Marry. By the end of 1944, film noir was in full bloom. Honestly, it annoyed me more than anything. It stars Dean Jagger, Kim Hunter, Robert Mitchum and Neil Hamilton. Her wanting to help him the second he finally appears and asks for it should make logical sense since it shouldn't take too much of an effort to convince someone who's absolutely in love with you to believe your sincerity--but still with the quickness that she came to believe the worst about him not twenty minutes before he appears onscreendoes it make logical sense in. Third-billed Robert Mitchum was elevated to star status on the reissue prints of When Strangers Marry, which unfortunately tended to give away the film's surprise ending; also in the cast in a tiny role is Mitchum's future Out of the Past co-star Rhonda Fleming. Clocking in at a nimble 67 minutes, Castle never loiters, and the last minute train scene hearkens back to an earlier one. The actors really make a difference. HarperCollins. Berkeley: University of California Press, c1991. Castle constructs the individual scenes better than the movie comes together as a whole. Lo estoy pasando de perlas con la iniciativa del Club Leo Romntica Per de leer sus novelas en el orden en que fueron publicadas; creo que vamos a descubrir verdaderas joyas. Gets 2 of it's stars for the sheer vision that is robert Mitchum in 1944 and the other half for some decent dialogue around the edges and one or two moody noir sequences. Even little things work against her in the big, impersonal surroundingsthe unhelpful news guy, streetlights suddenly going out. The film was directed by William Castle, an often underestimated director who did his share of noir work before becoming famous later on as a producer/director of cheesy horror movies marketed with outrageous gimmicks. Max is furious with Etienne and wants a duel as revenge for his wife. Posters are sourced from TMDb and Posteritati, and appear for you and visitors to your profile and content, depending on settings. With the excuse that Millie hasn't a clue as to what's going on, the film obscures exactly what happens to the murder victim, the squeaky-voiced Dick Elliott. The surprise twist at the end is just too predictable to forgiveall these faults, and the ending..surely when they're on the rooftop together the killer will..? They would be joined by virtually all of Hollywood at one time or another, from the pinnacle of the power structure (MGM, the worlds most powerful studio, produced gems like 1949s Act of Violence and 1950s The Asphalt Jungle) to Poverty Row studios that shot movies for pennies (lowly PRC produced 1945s Detour, perhaps the purest distillation of the noir ethos ever made). People were quick to make their wants and themselves known and didn't mince words. When Strangers Marry marked Rhonda Fleming's film debut in a small role. Philip Yordan. Strangers has its fair share of contrivance from convenient gaps in the blasting of street music (just close the window!) Everything about "When Strangers Marry" is polished. There is really no other option. "Betrayed"/"When Strangers Marry" is a solid, fast moving noir/whodunit from 1944. Mobilesite. 2. Mitchum and Hunter do well in spite of their material where Hunter marries a man she only met three times (Jagger) and Michum is the man she turned down, which makes it kind of senseless that Hunter and Mitchum are always such close friends where he even wants to volunteer to find the missing husband (being turned down, wouldn't he hope a divorce results if the husband doesn't come back?) Lysette buried her face against Max's throat. Click on a plot link to find similar books! Two strangers are married after three meetings and immediately separated. Made by fans in Aotearoa New Zealand. . I know The Story of G.I. ), , . When Strangers Marry is almost a continuation of The Seventh Victim, with Kim Hunter's Mrs. Baxter only a little less nave than her Mary Gibson character from before. When Strangers Marry was written by Phillip Yordanthough its more correct to say that it was rewritten by Yordan since his usual practice was to farm out projects to underlings. McGilligan, Patrick. And so can we, while watching this film, for 67 glorious, poetic minutes. He was so happy to be around his wife, and I really don't see that much in historical novels until nearly the end of the book. Max and Lysette are quite different from the typical hero and heroines. Simultaneously layered as a whodunit and a revenge story, Rian Johnson creates something so complex, so outlandish, and yet at the same, Alice Lee is eighteen years-old when she takes off from her small Wisconsin town, drawn like a moth to the bright lights of New York City. Meeting someone was no problem as eligible were all over the place. And Millie, nave to a fault, makes for a particularly hapless leading lady. In the films best sequence, Millie stands in a cheap hotel room late at night while the flashing lights of the nightclub across the street plunge her in and out of darkness. An intriguing noir premise is undone by a terrible lead character that is so annoying and fucking naive it set me on edge. Jake Hinkson, The Night Editor, is the author of The Posthumous Man and Saint Homicide. It's a great visual metaphor for the danger facing our young stranger in the city. The mysterious big man at the bar has his back squared up to the camera but you will notice his shoulder slightly blocks out the front of the bartender's face. Sound: Excellent
It becomes apparent the moment he shows up that he is in trouble and may be the killer of a drunk man he admits to having rolled in Philadelphia. The Warner Archive Collection DVD-R of Betrayed (When Strangers Marry) is an excellent transfer of elements that don't seem to have been disturbed in 66 years. By the end of 1944, film noir was in full bloom. ISBN 13: 9780739427224. . The movie starts with the murder of wealthy drunk Charlie (Milton Kibee).He was last seen with traveling salesman Paul Baxter (Dean Jagger) who helped Charlie to his home.The police discover Charlie had been strangled with a pair of silk stockings. Web. "The story has locomotor ataxia at several of its joints and the intensity of the telling slackens off toward the end; but taking it as a whole, I have seldom, for years now, seen one hour so energetically and . More at Lets put it this way, in a movie like this, hes either the hero or the villain waiting to reveal himself. In this melodrama, Kim Hunter plays a waitress who comes to New York to meet her husband Dean Jagger. Close. This book is a nod to the 80's/90's body rippers/virgin heroines etc. When Strangers Marry. On a scale of Excellent, Good, Fair, and Poor,
', Army Film, Due Next Month The killer is only seen over-the-shoulder, like the murderous Mr. "X" in the later D.O.A.. Poor Millie just doesn't know if her husband even wants her. 26 Film Noir movies from the WAR NOIR PERIOD. . She soon discovers that Jagger may very well be a homicidal maniac. I think one of the many things, is that even though on the surface Lysette seems naive and young, she has great strength and courage, and knows that even though Max is hiding things from her, she still has faith in him, which is remarkable from the way they interact with each other in the beginning of the story. However as Lysette becomes more involved with his life and household, his ulterior motive of revenge melts away to be replaced by a need to protect her from anyone who might wish to cause her harm and that includes, Etienne and her family. Chicago Daily Tribune 15 June 1952: g6. Girl finds her man in hiding, and the two continue dodging the cops. "[12] Welles would later work with Castle on The Lady from Shanghai. A hostile world appears on one side and poor Millie all alone on the other. "When Strangers Marry" (not "When Cousins Marry" like the poster in the musical 'The Producers') is a good 1944 noir directed by William Castle starring Robert Mitchum, Kim Hunter, Dean Jagger, and Neil Hamilton. Millies old pal Fred (Robert Mitchum) enters as an alternative, bringing news of an unexplained killing at a Philadelphia hotel. When I saw on opening credits William Castle directing this minor Noir I had really stayed worried about that, however he proves to be a prolific director as displayed in this one, the movie suffers of a lack of veracity when a young girl Mildred Baxter (Kim Hunter) marries an older man Paul Baxter (Dean Jagger) in few days, around twice of her age, it sounds to me implausible, Mildred already has been courted by the personable Fred Graham (Robert Mitchum) around 27 years typified as better choice for her naturally, well saying that, the plot stays is lame to start, when a murder is committed at Hotel Philadelphia which was stolen 10.000 cash, seemingly Paul Baxter is the murder, when his wife is invites by Baxter for a meeting at New York's hotel, strangely he didn't appears, raising unequivocal suspects by such unusual behavior, the screenplay driven forces to the audience reach in this unasked conclusion, as said an oldest saying "In this bush had a rabbit", the veteran actor Neil Hamilton plays a Police Lieutenant Blake in arobust acting, for a low budge movie shot in a week or so by the multi-skilled and cherished William Castle!! Given the big name cast and Director, expectations are high but it doesn't deliver. This books publish date is Jul 30, 2002 and it has a suggested retail price of $7.99. As in The Seventh Victim, Kim Hunter wanders alone and intimidated into New York. When Strangers Marry can't help but look cheap, what with all those close-ups of stage floors with haphazard standing-set carpets and furniture. This thing was insubstantial yet diverting. Her books are published in fourteen languages and are bestsellers all over the world. Then again, nobody was exactly looking for a series of imitation Hitchcock B-pictures. Robert Mitchum has a breezy quality to fit his role of boyfriend, and Neil Hamilton plays the police lieutenant quietly and with dignity. Bargain basement noir with some nice touches, but ultimately disappointing. The husband remains mysteriously out of site for a while, so she gets reacquainted with Mitchum before finally encountering her husband (Dean Jagger). to a missing persons report being filled with a homicide detective. In an attempt to escape marriage to a man she despises, Lysette Kersaint flees right into the arms of Maximilen Vallerand, a man who is rumoured to have strangled his first wife. A nice touch. The film is only just over an hour long and I wouldn't be surprised to find that it was made as a 'B' feature for some bigger movie. When our heroine suspects that her husband, Paul Baxter (Dean Jagger of "Bad Day at Black Rock") may be a notorious 'silk stocking' slayer, she runs to another salesman, Fred Graham (Robert Mitchum of "The Night of the Hunter") for advice. It is, however, a must for fans of Robert Mitchumand who the hell isnt a fan of Mitchum? Then we have Kim Hunter and Dean Jagger. Lysette winning everyone over with her perfection. I wouldn't have believed that this film could run barely over an hour in length; in the course of its 67 minutes, it crams in more plot twists, emotional punch and sheer tension than recent blockbusters can manage in 200 or more, with never a wasted moment but no lack, either, of aching silences and endless hours at night. Nah, just let the cops nab him posting a letter. Then begins another type of manhunt, the police on the trail of a killer who to all intents and purposes is the disappearing husband. External Reviews [6], The film was adapted for an episode of Lux Video Theatre as "I Married a Stranger."[13]. This is a Hitchcockian film that reflects well the Film Noir period of Hollywood. A naive small-town girl comes to New York City to meet her husband, and discovers that he may be a murderer.A naive small-town girl comes to New York City to meet her husband, and discovers that he may be a murderer.A naive small-town girl comes to New York City to meet her husband, and discovers that he may be a murderer. Throughout "When Strangers Marry," Jagger casts a crooked shadow. Fred agrees to help her look for her husband and the pair begin tracking him across New Yorkbut it soon becomes clear that there's something sinister surrounding his disappearance. and help locate the silk stocking strangler. Much of your enjoyment will depend on how you take the twist towards the end, but, it moves along at a brisk 67 minutes and has enough to pass the time. There were many things that I found that I just loved about this book. I couldn't help but note the parallels between this story and Daphne du Maurier's. Castle had previously directed Chance of a Lifetime from a script that he disliked and did not wish to repeat the experience. An underdog favorite among critics, When Strangers Marry attracted special attention in the influential book Kings of the Bs edited by Todd McCarthy & Charles Flynn. Report this film. Monogram produced a lot of stinkers, but they also had their share of classics. The brothers introduced Castle to writer Philip Yordan, with whom he devised a new story idea that the Kings liked. Marriage was one of those subjects and comes up in the older movies. Max wants desperately to destroy Lysette's fiance, so clearly ruining Lysette is the answer. Pre-noir, over the top, compact crime film that works! Thinking that this spoiled brat needs a strong hand to get her in line, he gives her a good spanking. Beautiful Lysette Kersaint flees from her affluent fiance to seek sanctuary in Maximillien Vallerand's house, not knowing that both he and her fiance are enemies. 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