A Tattered Web

Average TV movie concerning cranky cop (Bridges) whose son-in-law (Converse) is having an affair with local harlot (Helm) that threatens to de-rail his marriage to Bridges beloved daughter (Shockley). Bridges tries to convince both Converse and Helm (separately) to end the infidelity, but goes too far, resulting in the title woes.

Murray Hamilton is reliable as Bridges' loyal police buddy, concerned by his colleague's apparent carelessness in handling aspects of the murder case, while familiar faces Walter Brooke, James Hong, John Fiedler and Whit Bissell have small roles. Broderick Crawford has a key supporting role as a drunk fingered for the crime, but Hamilton's not convinced by the forced confession obtained by Bridges. In my opinion Shockley, as the almost child-like daughter of Bridges over-protectiveness, does an outstanding job, neglected by her two-timing husband, but knowing more than she appears to comprehend.

Small-scale thriller moves at an economical pace with solid performances and some moments of suspense. Experienced TV and movie director Wendkos knows how to fashion a taut thriller for 70 minutes, but where there was the promise of a tense climax on two occasions (in both the bedroom scene and cliff-edge confrontation with Converse), neither comes to fruition, instead, the conclusion is tepid and ultimately disappointing.

Gosh, Frank Converse was such a hunk. Wish I'd seen him do Streetcar Named Desire.

In A Tattered Web, he's 33, playing the cheating husband of Sallie Shockley and son-in-law of Lloyd Bridges in a tv movie directed by Paul Wendkos.

Bridges is Sergeant Ed Stagg who's been following Steve (Converse) to a girlfriend's (Anne Helm). Fiercely protective of his daughter to the point of obsession, Stagg confronts the woman, and during an altercation, accidentally kills her.

He can't have Steve accused, so he focuses on an old drunk (Broderick Crawford) who has already been arrested for murder and tries to convince him that he killed her.

The big problem here is that Stagg acts so guilty his colleagues become suspicious, especially when a sketch in the newspaper looks so much like Steve. He begins to unravel, remembering his drunken father and how he nearly killed him.

Steve, meanwhile, knows he's innocent and wants to come clean with his wife and the police. To Stagg, these are not admirable qualities.

Bridges unravels very well, and Converse is convincing. Broderick is excellent, very sympathetic. Shockley doesn't have much to do, but one certainly feels sorry for her going forward. Her dad's losing it.

Sgt. Ed Stagg (Lloyd Bridges) is a tough cop who has a son-in-law who is cheating on his wife (the sergeant's daughter). When Stagg finds out about it, he goes to see the mistress to scare her into abandoning the man. But things get out of hand and soon Ed knocks the lady across the room...and she dies.

When the body is discovered, Ed and his partner are the detectives called to investigate. Now it's not surprising that Ed would protect himself from being a suspect, but oddly he also shields his son-in-law, as although he hates the guy he doesn't want to see his daughter hurt. But there's a problem...witnesses have seen the son-in-law with the dead woman and he's a prime suspect. So, Ed has to find someone to pin this murder on in order to make the case go away. It all seems too easy...but it isn't.

I generally liked this movie as well as the creepy close relationship between Ed and his daughter. However, all this good is undone a bit at the end, as the ending is poorly handled and even a bit silly. Not a bad made for TV movie....but the ending left me feeling disappointed.

The adage implies the reverse, or that crime cost or must be repaid. "A Tattered Web" is a good film with a message, and some good acting Lloyd Bridges as Police Sgt. Ed Stagg, Frank Converse as his son-in-law and fellow police officer, Steve Butler, are particularly good. And Murray Hamilton as Sgt. Joe Marcus, Ed's partner, is quite good.

The movie involves an accidental killing, adultery, an effort by Stagg to cover up the real truth and his role, a very dysfunctional past family life, and a dark past killing that was never reported but still weighs on Stagg's mind. Will justice be served in the end, and if so, how?

A subtle message of this film, that may not be so apparent with the specific case and situations, is the old adage that "crime doesn't pay." But more specifically, as this plot bears out is that no one can avoid a slippery slope when living lies.

A police sergeant in California, still grieving over the loss of his wife years before, follows his untrustworthy son-in-law to a woman's apartment and rightly suspects the two of having an affair; not wanting his incredibly naïve daughter to be hurt, the cop takes matters into his own hands--with tragic results. TV-made melodrama with a good set-up diffused by meandering, awkward results. There's nobody here to sympathize with: not the tortured sergeant (Lloyd Bridges, getting upstaged by his thick crop of hair), nor his randy in-law, the apathetic tramp, the clinging daughter...not even the detective's partner on the police force (who seemingly can't wait to bring his friend down!). There's a clever bit involving a thumb-print on a drinking glass, and Broderick Crawford does excellent work as a drunkard wrongly implicated in a crime. However, the remainder of the second-string cast is lackluster (though Bridges does try hard) and Paul Wendkos' direction is balky.