RogerBW's Blog

1944 psychological thriller, dir. George Cukor, Charles Boyer, Ingrid Bergman: IMDb / allmovie. Is she going mad?

So MGM noticed the success of the 1940 adaptation and wanted to make its own big-budget version; part of their contract stipulated the destruction of all prints of the 1940 film, and they appear to have gone after the negatives too. I suppose in those days cinemas might actually have shown a film that was four years old.

This deviates further from the play than did the 1940 adaptation, but generally in a good way: for example, where Paul in 1940 was constantly overbearing Bella, we first see Gregory here wooing Paula, and later carefully mentioning her errors in a friendly way because she wouldn't want to be embarrassed by someone else noticing would she? It's altogether more subtle and more effective.

What's more, it was Paula's aunt who was killed and Paula's inherited the house, which is a plausible reason for Gregory to need her in order to get access to it.

Ingrid Bergman doesn't have the chemistry with Charles Boyer than Wynward and Walbrook managed, but she plays solo very effectively: she has a range of worry, of panic, of hysteria, and the gradual escalation is very effective. (I never believed that she was going to stab Gregory at the end, though.)

There's also Angela Lansbury's first film role as the maid who's clearly no better than she should be, but still has an eye to the main chance; in particular she performs a splendidly impudent curtsey when Gregory and Paula are getting into a cab. (I'm a sucker for these little bits of physical acting.)

All right, there's also the curious neighbour "Bloodthirsty" Bessie Thwaite, and while I always love to see May Whitty she's written in very broad strokes. Another major change is making the policeman also a romantic hero, indeed someone who was obsessed with the aunt as a callow youth, which comes over as just a little bit creepy. More seriously, in order to make him a candidate for romance, he's shorn of much of the interest and quirky personality that Rough had in 1940.

It's certainnly better than the 1940 film. But my word an even better version could be made combining elements from both.

I talk about this film further on Ribbon of Memes.