Gene Tierney Reunites with Otto Preminger: ‘Whirlpool’ 1950

 

Gene Tierney thinks she has troubles as a kleptomaniac in "Whirlpool."
Wait till she meets Jose Ferrer's hypnotist!

20th Century Fox upper middle class luxury meets lurid film noir via a charlatan hypnotist, in 1950’s Whirlpool. The con man (Jose Ferrer) takes advantage of a well-to-do housewife (Gene Tierney) who is a kleptomaniac. Once David Korvo has a hypnotic hold on Ann Sutton, he sets her up for murder.

Gene Tierney's Ann Sutton is under hypnotic suggestion to carry out crimes in
1950's "Whirlpool." The good news is she sleeps like a baby!

Fox studio head Darryl F. Zanuck was hoping for another Laura, as Whirlpool had the same director, female star, and composer. As the smooth-talking hypnotist, Zanuck wanted an elegant villain along the lines of Laura’s Clifton Webb. Filmed in mid-1949, I understand why Jose Ferrer was considered a casting coup at the time, as he was a huge Broadway hit as Cyrano de Bergerac.

Gene Tierney's troubled housewife falls under phony Jose Ferrer's spell in 1950's "Whirlpool,"from 20th Century Fox.

However, I think Fox should have stuck with one of their charming cads, Vincent Price or George Sanders. Ferrer is all sonorous voice but looks and acts like such a little weasel that it begs why someone like Gene Tierney would give him the time of day. At least with the two Fox stars, they had stature and good looks that allowed them the guise that hid the wiles. Or best of all, James Mason, who had a great face and voice, and was new to American movies.

Jose Ferrer's unctuous hypnotist is short on charm & long on creepy in "Whirlpool."

 Richard Conte seems somewhat miscast as Ann’s shrink hubby Bill, but Conte at least has conviction. I think that Conte is a handsome, solid, and intense actor. Conte would have thrived over at WB playing either cops or robbers; he has that kind of face. With those piercing eyes and jutted jaw, Conte always looks like he is gonna belt somebody!

Richard Conte is the psychiatrist husband of Gene Tierney's kleptomaniac in
1950's "Whirlpool."

Charles Bickford is always instantly believable, here as no-nonsense Lt. Colton, who finds the whole story beyond belief—and he's right! The police detective is also mourning the recent loss of his wife, which gives him some depth.

Charles Bickford is the no-nonsense police detective solving a nonsensical crime in
1950's "Whirlpool."

Barbara O’Neil, beloved by film fans as Scarlett O’Hara’s mother and   memorable as the deranged wife in All This, And Heaven Too, plays one of Korvo’s victims. To distinguish O’Neil as the older woman, she is given a skunk-like white streak in her dark hair! Her performance is much more subtle.

Barbara O'Neil's older socialite tries to give Gene Tierney's matron some friendly
 advice in 1950's "Whirlpool."

As for Gene Tierney, I've always admired her great beauty, class, and intelligence. Tierney always seemed to do best in roles where she seemed other-worldly. Here is no exception, given that Ann Sutton's under hypnosis half the time. There's a certain amount of psychology here, with a wife who seemingly has everything, but resorts to shoplifting for some kind of release. Tierney's performing is not electric, like Bette Davis, or deeply empathetic like Ingrid Bergman, but she performs well within the studio era’s stylized acting. 

Hey, when hypnosis doesn't work, drastic measures are required! Jose Ferrer and
 Gene Tierney in 1950's "Whirlpool."

Even for a studio era film noir, the plotting in Whirlpool is preposterous. The movie opens with moneyed suburban matron Tierney getting busted for shoplifting in a swanky LA store. When Ann Sutton is escorted to the manager’s office by security, onlooker David Korvo follows, and imposes his opinion about the awkward situation. In reality, the security would have escorted him out before he could finish his first sentence! Nor would anybody in their right mind meet with this obviously smarmy character in public, despite red flags galore. I won’t give away the finale, but it goes beyond the pale of believability.

One of the most unbelievable scenes, Jose Ferrer in 1950's "Whirlpool."

At the time, Whirlpool was considered an “A” picture, though it feels a bit minor by today’s standards. Zanuck had a personal hand in this film, the book was considered a hot property, Ben Hecht was the screenwriter, etc. And yet, all the ingredients didn’t create a memorable melodrama.

Part of the problem was the miscast leading men, plus neither were particularly box office magnets. Which meant the burden of carrying the picture fell on Gene Tierney’s slim shoulders. Even in her greatest vehicle, Leave Her to Heaven, Gene was bolstered by a strong supporting cast. As Laura, she got great support from Dana Andrews and especially, Clifton Webb. Tierney was a leading lady who always benefited from a strong leading man.

The direction by Otto Preminger, score by David Raksin, cinematography by Arthur C. Miller, and costumes by Oleg Cassini for then-wife Tierney are all top class. But the characters don’t click, due to off-target casting and absurd plot contrivances. Whirlpool is worth a watch, but it’s not exactly a hypnotic film.

Richard Conte and Gene Tierney call it a night in 1950's "Whirlpool."

My take here on Laura, the first and best of four films that Gene Tierney and Otto Preminger made together:

https://ricksrealreel.blogspot.com/2018/04/laura-1944.html

 

 

 

Fox’s Faithful Rendition of ‘The Razor’s Edge’ 1946

Gene Tierney & Tyrone Power are the well-cast leads in the 1946 all-star version
of "The Razor's Edge."

The Razor’s Edge from 1946 is remarkably faithful to W. Somerset Maugham’s best-seller, with many key passages of dialogue lifted directly from the book. While movie adaptations still run roughshod over their source novels, back in the golden era, studios were even cavalier with movie versions. The smart movie makers knew to adhere to the story as much as possible, as David Selznick did with Gone with the Wind and Rebecca.

Studio head Darryl F. Zanuck personally oversaw the production of 1946's
"The Razor's Edge."

20^th Century Fox head honcho Darryl F. Zanuck was intrigued by the public’s response to W. Somerset Maugham’s spiritual best-seller. The autobiographical novel’s hero is questioning life after WWI and no doubt mirrored many readers’ feelings after WWII. Star Tyrone Power, having just served in the war, felt a similar chord regarding this work.

Lovers Isabel & Larry can't reconcile their opposite worlds in "The Razor's Edge."

Reading the source novel of The Razor’s Edge, one can see how well Fox cast the film. Larry Darrell is described as dark, slim, with incredibly striking dark eyes. Rich girl Isabel, once she loses her youthful baby fat, is described as sleek and sensual with striking hazel eyes, like Gene Tierney. The stylish society snob, Elliot Templeton, is a great role for Clifton Webb. And tragic Sophie, who’s described as attractive but not beautiful, is fiercely played by young Anne Baxter. Her volatile character is played just as she’s described in the novel. Herbert Marshall makes a most urbane author as M. Somerset Maugham. The only dud is John Payne as Isabel’s “regular guy” husband, Gray. While pleasant enough in musicals and comedies, Payne’s out of his league here.

Tyrone Power's Larry Darrell, both fresh out of the service, in "The Razor's Edge."

The Razor’s Edge was filmed April through July of '46. Power went into the production right out of the service and turned 32 during filming on May 5. Tyrone is at the peak of his male beauty, charm and sensitivity, and with the gravity of having just served in the war. While Power’s seeking Larry Darrell is the mouth piece for the film’s spiritual philosophies, Tyrone is much more natural and convincing than when Gary Cooper looked most uncomfortable reciting Ayn Rand’s beliefs in 1949’s The Fountainhead. When one compares Power to MGM’s robotic Robert Taylor, Tyrone had a genuine quality that complemented his talents and great looks. Director Edmund Goulding also guided Ty through another challenging role, in 1947’s Nightmare Alley.

Tyrone Power as Larry Darrell, after he's sought spiritual enlightenment.

Gene Tierney was 25 during filming and Anne Baxter turned 23 just two days after Power's birthday. It is incredible how actresses back then seemed more womanly, while so young. Tierney is incredibly sophisticated as Isabel and Baxter looks older than her years as working class girl Sophie, who hits the skids after suffering great personal tragedy.

Gene Tierney & Anne Baxter as younger Isabel & Sophie, in "The Razor's Edge."

Gene Tierney was not a highly praised actress in her time. And Gene got some sharp critical jabs in The Razor’s Edge, but I think Tierney's terrific as Isabel. And it's a well-rounded character, not one-dimensional and softened. Gene plays the bright and charming, but self-centered rich girl pitch perfect.

Gene Tierney wows as Isabel, on her last night with Larry, in "The Razor's Edge."

Clifton Webb, while he gets to be the acerbic scene-stealer in a number of scenes, per usual, he also gets to be generous and good-humored. Webb’s deathbed scene surprised me in his touching emotionalism, as the social snob who sobbingly acknowledges that he’s been forgotten by his in-crowd. 

Clifton Webb is genuinely moving in his final scene from "The Razor's Edge."

Herbert Marshall is empathetic, but with dry humor, as author Maugham. Marshall had quite an association with screen works of W. Somerset Maugham, appearing in Garbo’s The Painted Veil, with Bette Davis in The Letter, and George Sanders in The Moon and Sixpence.

Herbert Marshall is W. Somerset Maugham, the author of "The Razor's Edge."

The Razor’s Edge is an intelligent, adult adaptation, though tweaked somewhat to be studio movie-friendly.  Zanuck and those involved in the production put great effort into this film. Edmund Goulding, who directed literate fare such as Grand Hotel, does a great job balancing movie style without letting it take over the film’s story. Since the movie was filmed immediately after WWII, location shooting was out of the question. The production offers a convincing depiction of Paris and other locales, without being obvious—like plunking a landscape of the Eiffel Tower outside of Larry’s apartment window!

Anne Baxter is startling as Sophie, who can't overcome tragedy in "The Razor's Edge."

It’s interesting to compare Power in The Razor's Edge with The Sun Also Rises, two literary Darryl F. Zanuck super productions just over a decade apart. But the difference between Power then and later is a shock. It's really a shame that they didn't film Sun right after Razor.

Gene Tierney's Isabel later looks at Anne Baxter's Sophie as an adversary in 1946's
 "The Razor's Edge."

The comparison to The Sun Also Rises is similar in their lead characters. Both male leads have suffered in WWI, leaving them at odds with the tantalizing women they love.

Also, there’s great similarity in characters between The Razor’s Edge and The Great Gatsby: lone wolfs Larry and Jay; society belles Isabel and Daisy; tragic Sophie and Myrtle; Gray as a nicer Tom Buchanan; and Maugham as the outsider observer, like Nick Carraway. They're variations of certain character archetypes. And wouldn't Tyrone and Gene have made a marvelous Jay and Daisy, as well? Finally, Tierney’s Isabel has a bit of Scarlett O’ Hara in her makeup, willing to be tough as a means to an end. And Power’s Larry is a bit of Rhett and Ashley!

Larry’s transformation is very detailed in the book version of The Razor’s Edge, but the movie does a skillful job of skimming his spiritual change. Both the novel and the ’46 adaptation of The Razor’s Edge are very worthwhile, indeed.

Tyrone Power at his peak, as Larry Darrell, in 1946's "The Razor's Edge."

Tyrone Power in his personal favorite role as a carny con man in the cult classic, 1947’s Nightmare Alley. My take here:

https://ricksrealreel.blogspot.com/2022/01/tyrone-powers-personal-best-nightmare.html

Here’s my look at Gene Tierney in her signature role, as 1944’s Laura:

https://ricksrealreel.blogspot.com/2018/04/laura-1944.html

20th Century Fox does justice to W. Somerset Maugham's "The Razor's Edge."

Laura 1944

Gene Tierney's "Laura" and her men: Vincent Price, Clifton Webb, & Dana Andrews.

What is left to say about 1944’s Laura, one of the most celebrated film noirs? So much has been written, that I can only comment that Laura is one of my all-time favorite films, regardless of genre.

When I was younger, I found dark, nightmarish film noirs fascinating and very adult. As I’ve grown older, this genre usually grates on my nerves, especially those with stories that hinge on incredible coincidences or characters who seem to be telepathic. For instance, my eyes roll routinely if I catch The Postman Always Rings Twice, where Leon Ames’ D.A. is on to John Garfield and Lana Turner’s illicit lovers from the start—before they even consider wrong-doing! The same goes for Double Indemnity, when scheming couple Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanywck can’t catch a break with Fred’s insurance company boss Edward G. Robinson around.

Dana Andrews as the detective who seems to be love with a portrait of a dead woman.

For me, what makes Laura such a great film noir is not about the plotting and double-crossing, it’s about the mood and characters. Frankly, I never thought there was much mystery regarding Laura’s killer. While every character in the film is crazy about lovely Laura, you wonder what she sees in them—they’re mostly a pit of vipers.

'Laura' and the men in her life: the columnist, the playboy, and the detective!

The much-imitated story revolves around Laura Hunt and her social circle after it is thought she has been shot to death, right in her beautiful face. No-nonsense detective Mark McPherson is on the case and while sifting through the evidence and Laura’s life, becomes infatuated with her. There’s also a stunning portrait of Laura over her fireplace to inspire him. Mooning over the dead beauty while sorting through the case, he falls asleep at her apartment, only to be awakened by Laura, who isn’t dead after all. The murdered woman turns out to be a co-worker, with everyone a suspect—even Laura herself. The fun isn’t in the mystery, but the motives of each character, and the detective sizing them all up, to determine whodunit.

Clifton Webb in the role that made him a star, as the aptly named Waldo Lydecker.

Clifton Webb is routinely cited as stealing Laura. A former Broadway performer, Clifton created a classic character as catty columnist Waldo Lydecker, who’s obsessed with Laura. While Webb’s way with cutting comedic lines gets most of the praise, he also gives a great dramatic performance as the older man drawn to an ideal young woman, who knows that he can’t truly have. With Laura, the acidic, flamboyant Webb became an unlikely but big movie star, moving on to dramas like The Razor's Edge as well as the classic Mr. Belvedere comedies and the family favorite, Cheaper by the Dozen.

One of the great beauties of '40s films, Gene Tierney in literally her signature role as 'Laura.' 

Gene Tierney is usually touted for her great beauty, and rightly so. During her heyday, critics weren’t often kind, and a few felt that Tierney wasn’t all that Laura was touted to be, by the other characters. Gene wasn't as dynamic of an actress, as say, Vivien Leigh. Yet, Tierney radiated class and intelligence, something that studios went to great pains to give the illusion of in many of their actresses. However, like Leigh, Gene’s picture perfect, placid beauty had an undercurrent of emotional tension, which gave an extra dimension to her performances. Both actresses had turbulent personal lives and struggled with emotional illness, and worked hard to keep an even keel. I think Gene’s background and persona made her perfect as Laura Hunt. Consider that Hedy Lamarr was an early choice for Laura, and it’s easy to see how well Gene Tierney works in the role.

Vincent Price as the weak charmer, Shelby, the type of role that made him a character star instead of a matinee idol.

Vincent Price became typecast after co-starring as Gene's smarmy, slightly campy second-string love interest in both Laura and the next year in Leave Her to Heaven. Yet, Price plays the type so well! Vincent is sly and self-deprecating as boy toy Shelby Carpenter. And Judith Anderson is both sympathetic and sinister as Ann Treadwell, Laura’s aunt and rival for Price’s Shelby.

Dana Andrews is effortlessly natural as the street-smart detective Mark McPherson.

However, the unsung hero of Laura is Dana Andrews as detective Mark McPherson. Andrew’s gumshoe is street smart and tough, but with a tender side, which causes him to fall for Laura's bewitching portrait. Dana Andrews is a bit like Humphrey Bogart, but without the more obvious mannerisms. Andrews is the perfect every man in which audiences can view lovely Laura and her circle of friends. Amidst the movie’s intrigue and baroque characters, Andrews is the movie's rock.

Movie composer David Raskin wrote Laura’s theme, a recurring refrain throughout the film, and became justifiably famous. Later, lyrics later added by the great Johnny Mercer, and became even more popular.

Azadia Newman, wife of the original director of 'Laura,'
was a portrait painter. This was her take on Joan Crawford;
her portrait of Gene Tierney as Laura was not used!

This film is so smooth and near flawless, that it’s hard to fathom that Laura had such a fraught production. Fox’s head honcho Darryl F. Zanuck first refused to let Otto Preminger direct, but only produce. Rouben Mamoulian was brought in, but nobody was happy with his vision of Laura. So Rouben was given the boot, along with his painter wife Azadia Newman’s portrait of Laura. Even with Preminger now on board, Zanuck, a notoriously “hands on” mogul in more ways than one, called for a change in Laura’s ending. That is, until he showed it to columnist pal Walter Winchell, who basically commented, “Great picture, except for the ending!” I’m giving you the Reader’s Digest version, as my Mom likes to say, because the behind the scenes drama is a movie in itself.

Dana Wynter as Laura in '55's 'Portrait of Murder.'

This sublime slice of cinema was hilariously remade as a TV movie in the 1955. Robert Stack, with his glowering eyes and otherwise stony face, plays Dana Andrews’ detective role. The future Untouchables star only demonstrates how subtle Andrews was, compared to Stack, who always sounds like a morose radio announcer. Since this was 20^th Century Fox’s foray into television, who else but Fox contract player George Sanders would do as Waldo Lydecker, right? Sadly, Sanders is on acid-tongued autopilot here and the cartoonish script has his Lydecker getting decked by the detective. Dana Wynter, a pale substitute for Tierney as Laura, comes across like a prim secretary. And since this is ‘50s TV, there’s even a wise cracking kid, who was Laura’s smitten neighbor, and says things like, “Gee, why would anyone want to kill a swell girl like Laura?”

Robert Stack and George Sanders reprised their roles a dozen years later
in yet another TV remake with Lee Radziwill as 'Laura.'

Even stranger was another TV remake over a dozen years later, in ‘68. Aging Robert Stack and George Sanders were trotted out once again as the detective and the columnist, opposite Jackie O's sister, Lee Radziwill, as Laura. Lee was getting mentored by writer/society pal Truman Capote as an actress—I’m surprised Tru didn’t suggest himself as catty scribe Waldo Lydecker! The reviews were lethal and any copies of the production are now hard to come by.

Also, did you know there was a 1962 German TV version of Laura, with Hildegard Knef as Laura? You can watch it on YouTube.

Who remembers the Carol Burnett spoof, 'Flora?'

And TV fans, do you remember Carol Burnett’s spoof of Laura, called “Flora?” I only remember Vicki Lawrence as Bessie, the hysterical maid, and Steve Lawrence as the wisecracking detective. And I’m sure Harvey Korman played the imperious Waldo Lydecker. Does that leave Lyle Waggoner as Shelby Carpenter? I’d love to find this!

So, what do I love about Laura? That it gave Gene Tierney her signature role? That it made Clifton Webb a movie star at 55? That it makes audiences appreciate the naturalistic Dana Andrews even more today? That it has one of the loveliest movie themes ever? Laura is one of those rare films where all the elements come miraculously together, despite what was going on behind the camera, to create movie magic.

1944's 'Laura' all comes together in one lovely film noir.

FYI: I put all the movie overflow on my public FB  movie page. 

Check it out & join!  https://www.facebook.com/groups/178488909366865/