GManfred
Joined May 2008
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GManfred's rating
Diplomat Ralph Bellamy is travelling by train through Russia, when an old friend pops into his compartment. Turns out she is a spy on the lam from Russian authorities. She explains her plight and Bellamy says he will marry her to throw off the Russians.
Turns out she was already married, to a psychopath who is in an asylum. We find he is a brilliant musician who had a breakdown, and while confined he reads about his wife's remarriage. He escapes, makes his way to London to blackmail the couple - and worse.
The picture succeeds due to a bravura performance by Alexander Kirkland as the maniacal fugitive, who owns the film with an over-the-top acting job. He overshadows the star Bellamy who gives one of his patented marshmallowy portrayals as the compromised diplomat.
An excellent story with several white-knuckle scenes, all with Kirkland at the center. Well worth seeing, this film might have done better with a more ominous title as well as foregoing the rewrite to remove some scenes deemed too horrifying for 30's audiences. See it if you can, and disregard the off-putting title.
It was shown at Capitolfest, Rome, NY, 8/23 on a print from UCLA Film Archive.
******** 8/10 - Website no longer prints my star ratings.
Turns out she was already married, to a psychopath who is in an asylum. We find he is a brilliant musician who had a breakdown, and while confined he reads about his wife's remarriage. He escapes, makes his way to London to blackmail the couple - and worse.
The picture succeeds due to a bravura performance by Alexander Kirkland as the maniacal fugitive, who owns the film with an over-the-top acting job. He overshadows the star Bellamy who gives one of his patented marshmallowy portrayals as the compromised diplomat.
An excellent story with several white-knuckle scenes, all with Kirkland at the center. Well worth seeing, this film might have done better with a more ominous title as well as foregoing the rewrite to remove some scenes deemed too horrifying for 30's audiences. See it if you can, and disregard the off-putting title.
It was shown at Capitolfest, Rome, NY, 8/23 on a print from UCLA Film Archive.
******** 8/10 - Website no longer prints my star ratings.
Absorbing morality play from Cecil B. DeMille about a poor boy who becomes a rich boy and his affinity for two upper class sisters. He likes the pretty one and abides the plain one and marries the pretty one when he hits it big with his candy business. But she is a gold digger and a big spender, with predictable results.
He is jailed as an embezzler as she spends his money, while the plain one becomes a true blue employee. Stopping here before I become a 'spoiler' but suffice to say the story is very well done, as expected with CB at the helm. Rod La Rocque is particularly good as the candy tycoon and Lillian Rich is lovely as his unprincipled wife.
Don't normally care for this type of movie but I was pleasantly surprised. I saw it at Capitolfest, Rome, NY, 8/23.
******* 7/10 - Website no longer prints my star ratings.
He is jailed as an embezzler as she spends his money, while the plain one becomes a true blue employee. Stopping here before I become a 'spoiler' but suffice to say the story is very well done, as expected with CB at the helm. Rod La Rocque is particularly good as the candy tycoon and Lillian Rich is lovely as his unprincipled wife.
Don't normally care for this type of movie but I was pleasantly surprised. I saw it at Capitolfest, Rome, NY, 8/23.
******* 7/10 - Website no longer prints my star ratings.
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