The Web

I saw this on AMC one night and loved it. One of the best things Vincent Price ever did. Nice twists and turns, great performances. A real underrated gem. Edmund O'Brien and William Bendix give wonderful performances. This movie is hard to track down. Try and seek it out.

Surprisingly good unknown noir, featuring fine work from noir regulars Ella Raines, William Bendix, Vincent Price and Edmund O'Brien. Taut, well-acted, although rather unsurprisingly plotted and photographed, this is quite a satisfying diversion.

Ms. Raines, a competent actress, seems to have relied on her 'ironed' and particularly sleek tresses to carry her career forward. Price, always elevated because of his voice, poise and diction, carries another role both admirably and distastefully. Edmond O'Brien, oleaginous and plump, doesn't sweat as much as usual, although he is subjected to a hotter than usual roasting from... William Bendix, who many of my generation recall as the harmlessly bumbling Riley in 'The Life of Riley' TV series of the 1950's, once again reprises his role as a hard as nails, street-wise tough guy as the police detective.

Great ensemble cast of noir regulars, good pacing and direction, mostly mediocre dialog and music and cinematography, yet still a joy to watch.

A strong cast and a neat story make up "The Web" from 1947, starring Edmond O'Brien, Ella Raines, Vincent Price, and William Bendix.

O'Brien is an attorney, Regan, who is hired for an exorbitant amount of money to be the bodyguard for a tycoon, Andrew Colby (Price). He is frightened of a former employee who has just been released from prison.

Regan meets Colby's beautiful secretary-girlfriend Noel (Raines) - she seems to be living in Colby's house, which makes me wonder where the censors were. Regan falls for her. After the released convict seemingly breaks into Colby's home, Regan kills him. Then he starts to think he's been set up.

Enjoyable noir with Raines a knockout - she's one of my favorite actresses of that era - and Price before his horror days and very effective.

Neat plot.

Ella Raines was one of the best and most under-utilized actresses of the 40's. She was great in Phantom Lady and Tall In The Saddle, and is even better in the Web. And Bendix, O'Brien, and Price all equal her in excellence. But, the writing is the single most above-average thing about this all-but-forgotten little gem. It is exceedingly well[plotted, suspenseful, and surprising without ever seeming the least bit contrived. Mystery fans should track AMC carefully to be sure to catch this one next time around.

The Web is one of dozens of forties thrillers featuring private detectives and the rich men who hire them, the beautiful women who love them, and the police, who invariably hamper their efforts to unravel the clues to intricate mysteries, the details of which are explained with astonishing clarity in the end, despite the fact that most viewers can scarcely be expected to keep track of all the evidence. This one is more elegant than most, with plush settings and striking photography. There's a touch of Laura here, thanks to the casting of Vincent Price and the character he plays, as well as a bit of the Chandler private eye cycle in the character of Edmond O'Brien's detective. Ella Raines makes a beautiful heroine, and Bill Bendix is on hand as the no-nonsense cop. Michael Gordon directs smoothly, and everything comes together in the end. There's nothing remarkable in The Web, which is just a cut above the generic, but it works like a Swiss watch.