Dark Waters

It seems too good for Merle Oberon in Dark Waters. Being one of four survivors from a ship that left Japanese occupied Dutch East Indies in a perilous voyage that took her parents, she's alone in the world. But her doctor, Alan Napier, in New Orleans where she was taken finds she has relatives in New York. But miracle of miracles they are in residence in an old family plantation in the bayou country not far from the Big Easy. She makes arrangements to go there and sends a telegram.

Merle's odyssey then takes a strange turn when no one is there to meet her at the station. She eventually gets to the plantation where uncle John Qualen and aunt Fay Bainter are pleasant enough as is another bachelor uncle, Thomas Mitchell. There's an overseer in Elisha Cook, Jr. who fancies himself a lady's man, but he hasn't got a prayer when Merle sets her sights on local doctor Franchot Tone. But a lot starts to make her more and more uncomfortable in these family surroundings.

This independent film released by United Artists veers right down the middle between Gothic horror and noir. The trappings are pretty cheap, the players are fine in their roles. As it turns out nearly all of them are cast against type, especially Mitchell. He's in a role that you'd expect Sydney Greenstreet to be doing, but Mitchell does fine with it in fact being cast against type probably works for him in terms of realism.

Franchot Tone was free from MGM and now doing roles he'd never be cast in with that Tiffany studio. He's out of dinner jacket and light comedy and gets a chance to show what he could do even in a part that's not the center of the film. Dark Waters is very much a Merle Oberon film.

The film really could have been a classic with a director like Alfred Hitchcock instead of Andre DeToth. It's not bad though, an interesting tale where a lot of the familiar players aren't doing their usual stuff.

Most of the IMDb reviewers found something to like about this odd little flick, and so did I. For sure, it's not at the top of the thriller heap by any stretch, but it has some good moments and decent casting. The plot is standard for '40's Hollywood (translation: it would never happen in real life) but it gives Oberon's glam lady-in-distress an excuse to freak out and hook up with a conveniently sympathetic doctor, adequately portrayed by Tone. The supporting cast is the main recommendation here---particularly Thomas Mitchell, the gifted character actor. He rises above the melodramatic material and makes a convincing mystery man. Reliable Elisha Cook Jr.--who apparently had a long career playing weird loners with one facial expression--is a natural scene-stealer. The other players are there to try and make the plot believable while leads Oberon and Tone do their drama thing. (Credibility would have been improved if the characters---remember, this is set near New Orleans on a plantation---had even a trace of Southern accent. Nobody noticed when they were filming this thing???)

This film is often labelled as film noir; but this is incorrect. Dark Waters certainly has some elements of the genre; but not nearly enough for the film to be considered a part of it. That aside, however, this is still is still a very interesting melodrama/thriller. The film is directed by André De Toth, the director most famous for his remake House of Wax; but a director that also did plenty of work within the thriller genre. Dark Waters works well principally because of the atmosphere; but also benefits from a well worked script. The film focuses on Leslie Calvin. Leslie was fortunate enough to be the only survivor of a submarine accident. Naturally, she's emotionally distraught at the situation; and her doctor recommends that she recuperates with relatives. She looks up her aunt and uncle, who she has never seen, and goes to stay with them. However, her recovery soon starts to go awry after a series of strange events and Leslie comes to question her own sanity.

The film is slow to start and the first hour mainly focuses on the characters and their situation before the plot starts properly. However, getting there is at least interesting and the final third of the film certainly justifies the wait. The film is bolstered by a host of strong performances; especially Merle Oberon who takes the lead role. She has just the right atmosphere about her to take the role and convinces throughout the film. She gets good backup from Franchot Tone, Thomas Mitchell, Fay Bainter and the ever-talented Elisha Cook Jr who stands out as usual. Director André De Toth implements a thick atmosphere that benefits the film throughout. The film is set in a swamp and this provides an ideal location for it all to take place; as it is moody and ensures that we are always aware that everything we are seeing is taking place in an isolated location. As mentioned, the final third is really well worked and the director ensures that everything boils down to a suitable conclusion. Overall, this is an interesting little thriller and is well worth a look.

Merle Oberon (Leslie) is a traumatized survivor of a sinking ship and Dr Alan Napier recommends that she goes to recuperate with her uncle and aunt on a plantation in the Louisiana swamps. Her mother and father have not survived the sea tragedy and she is loaded. However, she has never met her aunt or uncle. Does the visit do her any good……? Is her trauma sending her over the edge…?

Is everything as it seems in this film? No, it isn't but I don't think that it is the intention of the director to hide this. Perhaps this film could have been more suspenseful but the story still grips and has tense moments as we follow Oberon's awakening to what is going on around her. In fact, it is quite a rewarding moment when we watch her realize that things are not right. Thankfully, she has strength to take the situation on as opposed to crumble as a victim.

The cast are all good with the exception of that forever unconvincing loser that is Elisha Cooke Jr. In this film, he plays, once again, a heavy. How!!?? He's about 2 foot high, scrawny and more like a gimp than a threatening presence to anybody living in the real world. However, yet again, he turns up in a pretty decent film - see also "Phantom Lady" (1944), "I Wake Up Screaming" (1941) and "The Maltese Falcon" (1941). Check out "The Lodger" for another good film from this year starring Merle Oberon.

"Dark Waters" is a better film than I remembered it as being when I saw it around 10 years ago and so I recommend a viewing.

With a dark pertinence for the time of its release, Oberon is the scarred, traumatized survivor of a German U boat attack, which took the lives of her parents.

Invited to stay with family, who she has never met, alarm bells are ringing almost immediately when nobody meets her at the station and her relatives deny any knowledge of the telegram she sent, prior to her arrival. Shortly afterwards, the aforementioned correspondence is clearly seen....being slung out with the garbage. Herein lies Dark Waters' fundamental dilemma, it simply shows its foreboding hand way too soon. There is something stereotypical about the characters: Thomas Mitchell, dapper, cultivated, avuncular and seemingly unflappable, until he explodes over a plate of fried chicken. (Check out Alan Arkin in Little Miss Sunshine for further insight into this clearly sensitive subject). Faye Bainter is the affectionate, fussy, slightly eccentric aunt, who arouses Oberon's suspicions by putting her foot in it whenever she opens her mouth. Creepy, flirty Elisha Cook Jr, is the plantation boss, who Oberon finds deeply unsettling. At the opposite end of the spectrum, local doctor, Franchot Tone is a pillar of society and all round Mr Nice Guy.

Oberon feels increasingly threatened by otherworldly voices and a disconnected radio blasting out. Refusing food so often, that she must have been a prime candidate for Slimmer of the Year long before the final credits. Despite the impending doom, the movie never quite ignites or captivates. The waters may be dark, but they're not very deep. Everything comes off as mechanical and formulaic rather than spontaneous. In short the movie is missing that essential WOW! Factor, until.....the taut, tense exciting climax, amplified by its isolated and treacherous location, without which Dark Waters would be little more than a muddy puddle.