Tyrone Power’s Personal Best: 'Nightmare Alley' 1947

Tyrone Power as Stan Carlisle, charismatic con man, in 1947's "Nightmare Alley."

 

Tyrone Power became an instant star at 20^th Century Fox in 1936, in Lloyd’s of London. Ty was their combination of Robert Taylor and Clark Gable. Studio head Darryl F. Zanuck considered him their golden boy, and Ty was still a top star over two decades later, when he died at 44 in 1958. At the peak of his stardom, Tyrone Power pushed to make the bleak film noir, 1947’s Nightmare Alley.

Legend has it that studio head Darryl F. Zanuck placated top star Tyrone Power
in making "Nightmare Alley," but basically dumped it upon release.

In Nightmare Alley’s opening carny scenes, Tyrone Power is slim and darkly handsome in his white tee shirts, reminiscent of another young hustler on the make, Montgomery Clift in 1951’s A Place in the Sun. Though Power was an intelligent and sensitive actor, I think Tyrone was closer to Rock Hudson in terms of image and talent. Clift played against his looks, until Monty lost them in his car accident; Power played the matinee idol, as Hudson later did.

Tyrone Power's Stan Carlisle begins as a carny sucking up to the females in "Nightmare Alley."

Yet, Power and Hudson deserve credit for rising to the occasion in later, better roles. Fox studio head Darryl F. Zanuck initially opposed Tyrone’s plan to make 1947’s Nightmare Alley; nearly two decades later, Rock Hudson was also advised against playing a fatalistic role in 1966’s dark sci-fi drama, Seconds. Interestingly, their characters pretend to be something they’re not. Both films had downbeat endings; neither film was given a great release, despite some strong reviews, and both failed at the box office. Today, they are cult classics.

Tyrone Power's "The Great Stanton" has moved up to the nightclub circuit in "Nightmare Alley."

Power’s Stan Carlisle goes from hustling carny to nightclub trickster to faux spiritualist throughout the course of Nightmare Alley. Even Stan senses at some point he's going to trip himself up, yet this slick climber just can't help himself. 

Stan's natural good looks, charm, and gift of gab are both his meal ticket and his downfall. He’s coasted on these gifts, to get him through tough times. Stan has moments of clarity when he admits that he's no good or reveals his true intentions. Then the wall of self-belief goes back up. The moments when Stan truly reveals himself are tantalizing, as they’re like a cloud that passes over his forced sunny vision that what he's doing is just fine. Tyrone Power's charm is just as effortless, yet his subtle glances let you see that Stan’s wheels are turning. Ty’s warm eyes turn hard when things aren't going the hustler’s way, or Stan’s lofty speechifying—are all excellently done. 

A telltale moment when Tyrone Power's con man shares his real ambitions. 
Also, love it when Joan Blondell puts out her cigarette on the vehicle dashboard!

Ironically, director Edmund Goulding had just directed Tyrone Power in 1946’s The Razor's Edge, where Power plays a man genuinely seeking spiritual enlightenment. In Nightmare Alley, he plays a man faking spiritual powers throughout, though he's desperately seeking something. As Tyrone Power's Stan becomes all "spiritual," his proselytizing reminds me of Ronald Reagan's speechifying! 

Love this opening shot of Joan Blondell in "Nightmare Alley": Sexy and world weary.

Joan Blondell gives a strong, natural performance as Zeena, Stan's first mark in the film. Joan was 41 when she made Nightmare Alley and there’s no attempt made to hide the fact. Joan’s slightly blowsy looking broad is contrasted by her good heart and straightforward manner, which makes her very appealing in contrast to Powers’ smoothie Stan. Blondell is effortlessly believable; Nightmare Alley and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn should have led to better roles. Instead, the studio system just considered Blondell over the hill.

Coleen Gray as naive Molly, conflicted by Stan's charm & her own common sense.

Coleen Gray goes above and beyond the typical starlet acting turn. Gray is solid and sincere as Molly, the younger carny girl with whom Stan replaces Zeena. Gray's character is decent, if a bit naive. Despite her strong arguments with Stan, Molly just can't say no to him.

Ian Keith as Pete, Zeena’s alcoholic hubby, is both pathetic and chilling in his personal decline. Taylor Holmes gets to run the gamut as the skeptic millionaire, Ezra Grindle, who eventually falls for the psychic’s scam, leading to a powerful climactic scene. The entire supporting cast is strong, playing their roles with conviction.

Tyrone Power's Stan scams rich skeptic (Taylor Holmes), in "Nightmare Alley."
Note tell-tale signs of Power's aging; compare this shot to the telling close-up at the top.

Stan really slips when he gets mixed up with supercillious shrink Lilith Ritter, played with unnerving steel by Helen Walker. The doctor seems interested in him, but Stan keeps her at arm's length, which may be partly the reason she plays him for a fool. Though Stan sees her recording patients’ sessions, he still comes to her couch to unload. That’s hella hubris on his part to think she wouldn't turn the recording table on him, just because he’s good at charming and conning.

Helen Walker had a distinctive physical presence and should have been a bigger star.
But she was one of those Hollywood starlets who flamed out. Here as the tough shrink.

This is Tyrone Power's vehicle all the way, and he's excellent in his star performance as a charismatic heel. Tyrone was at the peak of his physical beauty here and his Stan looks boyish in the beginning, sophisticated in suits and tuxes in mid-film, and then hard living as his deeds catch up to him by the finale. It makes me think that Tyrone Power might have made a marvelous Dorian Gray.

Some Ty side-eye! Power's Stan assesses his latest jam, in "Nightmare Alley."

Edmund Goulding does a great job directing. The cinematography by Lee Garmes is striking, a beautiful example of a noir nightmare, with its takes on carnival life, city nights, etc. The movie is taut, fast-paced, and adult, in great part due to Jules Furthman’s screenplay. Considering William Lindsay Gresham’s novel is much more explicit, it's amazing what made it to the screen. The ending is a bit of a cop out, but that was imposed on the project by the studio.

One of film's most handsome men, Tyrone Power could have been a perfect Dorian Gray.

I’m not much of film noir fan, with all their improbable coincidences, but Nightmare Alley is a riveting character study of a flawed man going full circle, with only himself to blame for his downward spiral and fate.

Tyrone Power's Stan at the bitter end of "Nightmare Alley."
Doesn't Ty look like George Clooney on a bender here?

Here’s my look at the other movie where Tyrone Power played a charming con man, 1957’s Witness for the Prosecution:

https://ricksrealreel.blogspot.com/2020/11/witness-for-prosecution-1957.html

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This poster for "Nightmare Alley" is much more to the point!

 

‘All That Heaven Allows’ 1955

 

Romance alternates between dreamy & nightmarish for Rock Hudson & Jane Wyman.

Magnificent Obsession made Rock Hudson a star in 1954; Giant then turned Hudson into a superstar in ‘56. All That Heaven Allows came in between, and shows Rock at his most natural. He's warm, straightforward, and his speaking voice—on which he worked hard—is soft, yet masculine, and deeply soothing.

Rock Hudson's memorable first close-up as Ron Kirby.

Ron Kirby is one of the most interesting characters that Rock Hudson ever played. His gardener turned tree farmer marches to his own drummer and doesn’t care what others think. These characteristics are not heavy-handed, just who Ron is. What a shame life couldn’t have imitated art for Rock Hudson, who was stifled by the Hollywood closet.

Rock's landscaper Ron dreams of living off the grid as a tree farmer.

With a career goal of more than the local gardener, Rock's Ron dreams of agricultural college and nurturing a tree farm. One of his last landscaping customers is Cary Scott, played by Jane Wyman. She's a well-to-do widow and pillar of the picturesque community. She’s older than Ron, as well as above his socio-economic station in life. (Wyman was actually just eight years older than Hudson.) The news of the characters’ ensuing romance runs rampant among Cary’s circle, fanned by so-called friend Mona, the malicious gossip of the group.

Jane Wyman is touching, yet restrained as Cary, a lonely widow who finds love.

I always liked Jane Wyman as an actress. Her kewpie doll looks (the snub nose, apple cheeks, and Bambi eyes) were always an intriguing contradiction to her direct acting style. I thought Jane was a bit undervalued as an actress because she didn't overact. In that respect, she reminded me a bit of Barbara Stanwyck, who was also no-nonsense in the dramatic department. But with Jane's cherub face, she usually played the wide-eyed heroine, not the gun toting villains that flinty-faced Stanwyck so often played.

Wyman's conventional matron reads up on what is essentially Ron's life philosophy.

In Heaven especially, Jane wore simple makeup, coloring within the lines, unlike other divas. Her clothes, by Bill Thomas, were chic and fit Cary’s character. Wyman never went caricature, perhaps that's why she's not as well-remembered as some of the legends. Nearly 40, Jane cuts a fine figure in a cocktail dress, still possesses an expressive, pretty face, all without bothering to try to convince audiences or herself that she's still 25.

Ron & Cary run into one another at Christmas time, after calling off their marriage. 

Wyman and Hudson have a warm, subtle rapport and both play well to the soft-spoken, gentle side of their personas. Though Magnificent Obsession is an awesome wallow, there's far more genuine romantic and social angst here in All That Heaven Allows. 

The cast is tops. Agnes Moorehead gets to play a sympathetic role as Cary’s best friend, Sara. While she’s strong-minded, Moorehead isn’t waspish, as she often was cast in later years. And Agnes, who could have easily have played vicious Mona, gets to play Cary’s one true blue friend Cary, and comes across as a complex and real. 

Agnes Moorehead is spot on as Sara, Cary's best friend who senses something's up.

William Reynolds and Gloria Talbott are perfectly obnoxious as Cary’s self-centered children. Hayden Rorke sports old-age makeup once again as the plain-spoken family doctor who tells the widow that her headaches are caused by what other people think! Virginia Grey, a favorite of Heaven producer Ross Hunter, is most appealing as Alida, from Ron’s cadre of free-spirited friends. And a special shout out to Jacqueline de Wit as Mona, the town troublemaker. She is so good, you just want to give her a swift kick in the ass!

Malicious Mona, played by Jacqueline deWit, is right in the middle of starting trouble!

Then-small studio Universal was great at creating lush production values on a modest budget. Russell Metty’s cinematography is superb, especially with the lighting. The big emotional scenes are so suffused with light that they look like dream sequences. The mix of sets, the studio back lot, and miniatures, all expertly suggest a cozy small town where life is seemingly carefree. Frank Skinner’s sound track, with inspiration from from Franz Liszt, is lovely and complements the visuals perfectly. 

Wyman's serene small town matron feels like something's missing from her life.
Hint: The Chinese Elm clippings were cut by the dreamy gardener!

Douglas Sirk’s modus operandi in a nutshell: smooth surface soap opera with an underlying subversive point of view. There were very few mainstream films questioning the post-war America way of life. Beneath this ‘50s version of a country club Lady Chatterley and her gardener with a Woody, is a woman who attempts to step out of her role in society, and a man who marches to his own beat, and the wrath they incur when they attempt to bypass convention. All this in a mid-century soap opera!

Director Douglas Sirk with the stars of "All That Heaven Allows."

The first time I watched All That Heaven Allows, I was knocked out that a mainstream '50s movie would criticize the era's bland conformity. The town gossips and selfish children are written and played as total caricatures, and Sirk enjoys skewering them. Cary’s two self-centered children, both young adults, make you wish Joan Crawford was playing Cary, so that she could give them each her trademark slap in the face. Even television takes its lumps, as Cary’s family and friends are all pestering her to buy one for companionship. She resists, but when she and Ron break up, her meddling kids console her with a TV for Christmas, with the screen reflecting Carrie's inconsolable face.

Cary's selfish brats give her a TV set as a Christmas consolation prize for breaking up her and Ron. The first time I saw this stunning scene, I wanted to throw something at MY television!

Some Douglas Sirk detractors say that he was merely a more stylish technician of cinema soaps than other studio directors. NOT true! And they totally miss what Sirk creates in his '50s films. The stylized soap is merely the surface and highly entertaining in its own right. However, nothing Douglas Sirk does is by chance or by rote. The questioning glances, such as when Agnes Moorehead's Sara takes note of Rock's Ron Kirby working in her best friend's yard. Or the scene where Cary's son Ned angrily argues with his his mother in front of a screen, that makes them look like they’re at confession. Most crucial of all, Cary's uncertainty as a woman in love again gets many subtle setups: her troubled reflection in mirrors or most touchingly, the screen of a TV set that's a sorry substitute for Ron.

One of the many strikingly lit scenes of "All That Heaven Allows."

If you don't believe me, consider the films that Ross Hunter did without Douglas Sirk: Backstreet, Portrait in Black, and especially, Madame X. They are all great fun, but with little depth or subtext. With Hunter, it’s all just suffering glamour stars. Todd Haynes tried to emulate Douglas Sirk’s stylized melodrama with subliminal social content in Far From Heaven, upping the ante by giving the unhappy heroine a BLACK gardener lover and a GAY husband! Still, this Heaven felt like an exercise in style, with little of the heartfelt style Sirk gives his lead characters in All That Heaven Allows.

Wait for my ungrateful children to call or for my outdoorsy young husband Ron to come indoors and rock my world? Tough call, Cary!

Even today, some critics and movie fans still dismiss All That Heaven Allows as a stylish but dated soap. I couldn't disagree more. This film may be my favorite of Sirk's '50s films. The message woven throughout the film is to not give in—whether to social convention, materialism, ageism, or sexism—and to thine own self be true. Heaven reminds me of Now, Voyager in its genuine uplift.

Love this movie poster for "Heaven" that looks like a juicy paperback novel cover!

All That Heaven Allows is proof that Rock Hudson could be more than a mere Hollywood heart throb. Rock was often cited as an example of the handsome hunk that was a hack. His performance in this film alone defies that stereotype. I can think of many stars, male and female, that got the big build up, and who were just glamorous mannequins. Universal's Tippi Hedren and John Gavin quickly come to mind. 

Rock & Jane flourish in Sirk's genuine romanticism of "All That Heaven Allows."

Rock was no Marlon or Monty, of course. Hudson was still more than just a pretty boy and the man had his moments during his 15 years as a top leading man. Yet, sometimes it is the stars' smaller movies, where fans can see them at their most genuine, and remind us what made them special. For me, that’s Rock Hudson as Ron Kirby in All That Heaven Allows. Rock is at his most relaxed, confident screen self, the ideal of the man Hudson might have wished to be off-screen.

Rock Hudson never forgot Jane Wyman's kindness & encouragement when he was a nervous newcomer in "Magnificent Obsession,"their first film. Thanking her, Jane told him to pass it on. Decades later, Sharon Stone landed one of her first major roles in a Hudson TV movie,
and Stone lauded his helpfulness toward her.

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Super Star Gazing in "The Mirror Crack’d" 1980

Miss Marple in "The Mirror Crack'd" turned out to be a sneak preview for
"Murder, She Wrote" and its star Angela Lansbury.

The 1980 take on the thrice-told The Mirror Crack’d looks better in retrospect than it did on release. While not in the same league as the ’74 classic, Murder on the Orient Express, this Mirror is worth a look.

Judging from reviews in recent years of The Mirror Crack’d, the film’s reputation has improved, versus the poor initial reception. When this Agatha Christie adaptation came out Christmas 1980, the response was cool, after Orient Express.1978’s Death on the Nile got a better response, though disappointing, too. When Mirror opened, without exotic locations or younger stars, Mirror’s English village and middle-aged cast seemed mild, at best.

Elizabeth Taylor and Kim Novak are dueling divas Marina and Lola, with Rock Hudson
as the poor director!

Some Agatha Christie fans have criticized this take on Mirror as unfaithful to the novel, The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side. Considering that the movie Mirror was conceived as a vehicle for the superstar cast, the streamlined version does keep the core story. The time frame is set back a decade—so what? And making Marina and Lola actress old enemies instead of casual, catty acquaintances is a brilliant way of condensing the story and heightening its tension. Even the two British TV remakes, more true to the book, lifted a few things from this film.

The Mirror Crack’d investigates several murders and further attempts that indicate someone is trying to kill the leading lady of a movie production. Luckily, the film folk are in proximity of ace amateur detective, Miss Marple!

Miss Marple, played by Angela Lansbury at 55, has the solution for every mystery.

Mirror benefited from lovely British locations and a stellar supporting cast that feel authentic to another era. Ironically, it’s the ‘50s star quartet who literally looks a bit generic. Taylor and Novak’s costumes, while flattering, don’t feel fab fifties at all. Hudson looks like ‘70s Rock, and Tony Curtis wears his usual bizarre suits that predate Prince’s one-of-a-kind duds. Novak sports her Lylah Clare wig and Elizabeth got Alexandre of Paris to recycle her spiky Boom! bouffant. The leading ladies wore their fave late ‘60s ‘dos, however, the film is set in 1953.

Kim, Rock, and ET in a candid shot promoting "The Mirror Crack'd."
Of the three, Rock looks best here, better than he did in the actual film!

Before the Internet and 24 hour news cycle, stars were not in our eyes 24/7. Post-Watergate reporting style on public figures had taken hold, but technology hadn’t—yet! So, back in 1980, it was one thing to see Elizabeth Taylor Warner as an overweight political wife in the tabloids, but quite another to see “Liz” looking “larger than life” on the big screen. Add dissipated Tony Curtis, distinctly middle-aged Rock Hudson, and a still-curvaceous but slightly drag queen-esque Kim Novak, all sharing the screen. For audiences, to watch their middle-aged idols, playing ‘50s movie folk, then deemed depressing. As time went by, Elizabeth, Rock, Kim, and Tony went from first viewed as falling stars, to a last chance to watch such Hollywood greats together. As a bonus, add Angela Lansbury, who soon became a beloved institution after Murder, She Wrote.

It's showbiz folk versus village sleuths in "The Mirror Crack'd."

The Mirror Crack’d was filmed the summer of 1980. At 48, Elizabeth Taylor had trimmed down a bit from her all-time high of 180-plus pounds as Senator Warner’s fried-chicken lovin’ wife. By next spring, Taylor would be down over 40 pounds for her Broadway debut in The Little Foxes. In Mirror, I’d say ET’s about half way there, and the extra weight shows more in her body than face.

They say film acting is all in the eyes. Well, ET knew how to wield those famous violet eyes!

The biggest departure from the Christie mystery was screenwriter Barry Sandler’s tweaking the story to “mirror” the legendary ‘50s stars. In the book, Taylor’s Marina Gregg was already a multi-married, middle-aged movie star making a comeback. Marina’s newest marriage and pastoral home are supposed to offer the star stability. All this sure sounds like Elizabeth Taylor Warner to me! What Sandler added was cracks about Marina’s weight and her abuse of pills. Though Marina’s nerves call for constant doses of “Calmo” in the novel, the film makes greater references to Marina/Elizabeth’s prodigious pill use. Was this already common knowledge in the business? I wonder, since Betty Ford was only three years away for ET.

Life imitated art when, in the film, Taylor’s star is referred to as Marina Gregg, but the credits list her as Marina Rudd, after the character’s latest husband, Jason Rudd. Off screen, Elizabeth reportedly requested to be billed as Elizabeth Taylor Warner, but was turned down by the studio. In retrospect, good call!

The recycled humor of  "The Mirror Crack'd" is hardly highbrow, but mildly amusing.

Considering Taylor’s latter day flair for bitchy comedy, Marina’s zingers are the least zesty aspect of her performance. This is partly because screenwriter Sandler’s wit is a bit wanting—it comes off like bitchy “ba-dum-tss” drag show patter. More than a few stale show biz jokes get recycled here, such as Taylor gazing in the mirror, wearily wishing: “Bags, bags, go away. Come right back on Doris Day.” The camera cuts to a mild double take of frequent Day co-star Rock Hudson. Director Guy Hamilton sets up the dramatic moments better than those with a comedic tempo, which comes across as abrupt or intrusive.

Maureen Bennett as Heather Babcock, Marina Gregg's biggest fan!

Still, Marina Gregg is one of Elizabeth’s best latter day portrayals. I read an interview with director Hamilton, who had great affection for Taylor, about the making of Mirror. Guy said that Elizabeth was indeed full-bodied, and though she was a good sport to spoof her figure, he instructed the camera man to take time to photograph her still-beautiful face for her big scenes. This wasn’t common practice once ‘70s realism came into vogue, and striking the balance between cinema verite and star vanity was just converging in the ‘80s. Taylor’s grand entrance, plus the extended scene where Marina is transfixed by what the first murder victim-to-be shared, is visually most generous toward Taylor. The violet flowered turban may be a bit much, but Taylor sported such headgear in her heyday. Elizabeth’s face is framed flatteringly here, and she knowingly raises her chin up when a local photographer requests a snap of the star. When Taylor’s Marina has her startling epiphany, Elizabeth uses those fabled eyes expertly.

Taylor's troubled star, Marina Gregg, has her big moment of revelation.

Post-murder, Inspector Craddock (Edward Fox) comes to interview Marina. This set piece offers Elizabeth Taylor a mini acting marathon. The scene begins simply, but Taylor gradually becomes hysterical. The movie fan inspector plays along for a bit, and then exposes her ruse. Marina’s recycling a dramatic moment from one of her old movies. Elizabeth’s Marina response is a raucous Taylor cackle. ET also just spoofed her own “emotional” movie image. Marina seemingly comes clean, showing the detective threats she’s received, which reminds her of a painful childhood incident. Taylor plays this scene in her most open style.

"You didn't!" ET is terrific in this extended scene, twitting the Inspector for not falling for her "act."

Kim Novak has a comic field day as Lola Brewster, a no-talent hack and tough broad, who is arch enemies with Taylor’s Marina. Novak, who made a career of being breathy, hesitant, and vulnerable, is obviously enjoying herself as the superficial Lola. It’s lucky for Joan Collins that Dynasty producers didn’t cast Kim as super bitch Alexis. It would have made Blake Carrington look a bit like John Derek, with a harem of past and present blonde wives, but Kim might have been quite marvelous! Anyway, Novak preens, parries, and thrusts that still-fabulous body, while skewering everyone in sight. First up is her reunion (next round) with Marina, with cracks about each other’s age, hair, weight, and just about everything else. Kim gets to be the comic to Taylor’s straight woman retorts. I love Kim’s line reading of this catty question to ET: “So, tell me. How does it feel to be back, after being gone for so-ooo long?”

As Lola, Kim Novak checks out her "Lylah Clare" wig, while Tony Curtis' producer makes them a drink.

Kim’s vamping and evading the detective’s questions is nearly upstaged by the pushed-up Novak knockers! Kim is again quite funny, with her husky voice pitched so low that you think she’s channeling The Legend of Lylah Clare. When the Inspector Craddock brings up an unpleasant past incident, when she fired a gun at Marina, Kim’s delivery of this line is a hoot: “So, I was a little miffed!” When Novak’s Lola isn’t sparring with Taylor’s Marina, or toying with the detective, she blasts Hudson’s director, that she could eat a can of Kodak and puke a better film! Novak and her onscreen husband, Tony Curtis’ crass producer, are both amusing caricatures. Kim’s deep voice and vamping, and Tony, dressed in black, including a fedora, remind me of Natasha and Boris Badenov!

Whatever Lola Brewster wants, Lola gets! Tony Curtis  goes gangsta as producer Marty Fenn!

Tony's inspiration?

Ruta Lee: A contender for Lola Brewster?

Kim Novak, 47 when Mirror was made, had recently wowed Oscar audiences with a trimmer than ever figure in a black sheath gown. It’s obvious from the candid shots that Kim hadn’t gone down the plastic surgery road just yet. Guy Hamilton also plays to Kim’s strengths favorably. With her favorite page boy wig, skin tight clothes, and stylized makeup, Kim came away with the kudos for her appearance in this Mirror.

What's bothering Taylor's Marina more... Novak's Lola or that painting in the background?

Rock Hudson, usually a warm, sympathetic screen presence, plays a bit of a departure here. As director Jason Rudd, Hudson’s character is challenged: directing an emotionally fragile wife trying for a comeback; keeping a voracious ex-girlfriend at arm’s length; tangling with crass producer; and keeping his secretary close, but not too close. One thing that may complicate things—is Jason the murderer? Hudson has a number of scenes where his character is distant, very effectively making you wonder if he’s more than just an unfaithful husband. As Jason Rudd, Rock has a number of scenes where he’s comically yelling on the phone or the set. When we wonder what Rock’s up to in the quiet scenes, that’s when Hudson is most effective.

Rock Hudson as Jason Rudd, director and long suffering husband of Taylor's Marina Gregg.

Tony Curtis is the natural comedian in The Mirror Crack’d, as crass, fast-talking Marty Fenn. I’ve never cared much for Curtis as a person, but admire his flair for comedy and strengths as a dramatic actor. Tony seems to be enjoying his bad self here, taking pot shots at the industry, and has a deflective one-liner for every occasion. Like Kim Novak, Tony has the cartoonish comic role, and both perform as well as they can, given the material.

Tony Curtis as slick producer Martin N. Fenn, whose middle initial stands for... Nothing!

Angela Lansbury makes a fine Miss Marple, but even she got nitpicked by some critics at the time. There were complaints that Marple got sidelined by an ankle injury was a story liability. Some considered Lansbury too young and that the old age makeup was a stunt. I think Miss Marple is integrated into the mystery and Angela’s makeup is realistic, as well. Lansbury’s scenes with Edward Fox, as her nephew Inspector Craddock, show a nice rapport, in solving the mystery together. Angela’s owlish features also lend itself to playing an older woman, and she shows a both serious and humorous side as the brilliant armchair detective. You just automatically believe Angela as Miss Marple, the grand matriarch of her village and home. There were supposed to be more Miss Marple movies with Lansbury but Mirror’s demise ended that line of thought. Still, it proved to be a great dry run for Angela Lansbury’s mid-career comeback as Jessica Fletcher.

Angela Lansbury as Miss Jane Marple, who I thought was terrific, as usual.

Geraldine Chaplin is well-cast as the neurotic, mousy secretary, having a not-so-secret affair with Marina’s husband. Chaplin gives snap to her many catty lines, most of them aimed at divas Marina and Lola. She definitely has a way with a comic delivery, never becoming tiresome. Geraldine also creates some sympathy for the character, as Ella is clearly in love with Jason, and she’s obviously just a shoulder for his ego to cry on. Again, amidst the campy humor, Geraldine Chaplin creates a real character here in Ella Zielinsky.

Along with her crisp way with a catty one liner, Geraldine Chaplin is also touching as Ella.

Edward Fox, often the villain, is endearing as the occasionally clueless Inspector Craddock. His flustered scenes with Novak’s brash Lola are funny, and Fox seems to have great fun in his big scene with Taylor’s diva, Marina.

Edward Fox is fun as the inspector who is frequently outwitted by his Aunt Jane Marple!

The Mirror Crack’d boasts a supporting cast of character actors: Margaret Courtenay as Mrs. Bantry, the pickle puss who’s given up her house to Marina and Jason; Charles Lloyd-Pack as the vicar, Maureen Bennett in her film debut as Marina Gregg’s biggest fan, Heather Babcock; Wendy Morgan as Miss Marple’s maid, Cherry; and plus great cameos from the “cast” of Murder at Midnight, the fun film-within-a-film. These actors and more bring some atmospheric heft to this lightweight mystery.

And how about Pierce Brosnan in his first role, as Marina’s Mary Queen of Scots paramour, with big ‘80s hair! Pierce later said he lost 35 pounds after seeing himself onscreen—five when he got a haircut?

The second most embarrassing moment of Pierce Brosnan's career? In his first movie,
Pierce probably made Elizabeth Taylor jealous that his hair was bigger!

Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, Kim Novak, Tony Curtis, and Angela Lansbury were at a lull in their careers when they made The Mirror Crack’d in 1980 and what came after was significant for all.

Three years after Mirror was released, Elizabeth Taylor became the first celebrity to go public about going into the Betty Ford Clinic, for severe drug and alcohol issues. Ironic, since Taylor had recently played a movie star addict Marina in Mirror and an alcoholic divorcee in ‘83’s Between Friends. Elizabeth Taylor found much needed sobriety, went on to become an AIDS activist, perfume mogul, and even tried one more marriage—and reclaimed her great beauty until old age and illness finally set in. Elizabeth died at age 79 in 2011.

Elizabeth Taylor at Cannes, 7 years after "The Mirror Crack'd,"
in 1987, at the height of her Betty Ford renaissance.

Rock Hudson, looked distinguished in his middle age here, in spite of his years of heavy drinking and smoking. In reality, Rock had only a few more years until he was diagnosed with AIDS, the first film star to admit to the disease. Less than five years after the release of Mirror, Hudson was gone, but Rock put a famous face on the AIDS epidemic. Since 1985, Hudson’s plight as an actor in the closeted era has been viewed with greater empathy, as well.

Rock Hudson's legacy runs the gamut of putting a famous face on AIDS, to classic comedies
with Doris Day, to films with Douglas Sirk, and "Giant," with BFF Elizabeth Taylor!

Like Elizabeth Taylor, Tony Curtis had yet to find sobriety, and looks much older in Mirror than fellow former Universal heartthrob Hudson. Curtis, Hudson, and Lansbury were all born in 1925, age 55 the year that Mirror was made. Tony eventually did straighten up and fly right, got plastic surgery, and his thinning, dyed black hair was replaced by a luxurious silver wig. Tony Curtis continued to work and tell tall tales about his life in show biz until his death in 2010.

Tony Curtis in "The Mirror Crack'd."

Tony, sober and silver!

At the time of Mirror, Kim Novak was considered a well-preserved, but lightweight star. A few years later, with the restoration of Vertigo and its ongoing revivals, Kim’s reputation as an actress was revitalized. As for Kim’s later cosmetic enhancements, Novak looked great without looking overdone until the last decade or so. It’s puzzling that Kim went this far, as she’s seldom acted onscreen since she left Hollywood in the mid-1960s. Novak lives in Washington, long happily married and a talented painter, too. Kim Novak has opened up over the years about her issues and seems happy today, at 86 in 2019. 

Kim Novak was in great shape at the 1980 Oscars, in a gown by Ron Talsky,
who was dating Raquel Welch at the time... he knew his curves!
Nearly 40 years later, Kim is still renowned as a classic Hitchcock blonde.

And who would guess that character actress Angela Lansbury would be the star to enjoy the greatest career renaissance. People talk, and rightly so, about Joan Collins’ huge TV comeback as Alexis Carrington on Dynasty. But even more extraordinary was Lansbury’s megahit with Murder, She Wrote. Angie’s show outlasted Dynasty by 3.5 seasons, 12 total years, plus four Jessica Fletcher TV movies after the show ended. Lansbury also had great control over the show, and her renewed stardom led to a slew of TV movies, a memorable turn as Teapot in Beauty and the Beast. When the series ended, she was an even bigger draw where she had the most success, the stage. And Angela still acts at age 95!

The financial failure of "The Mirror Crack'd" ended the idea of
more Miss Marple movies, but if only Angela Lansbury knew what lie ahead!

So, if you’re in the mood for a light, comedic take on an Agatha Christie murder mystery, enjoy some great star gazing in The Mirror Crack’d.

When Elizabeth Taylor was cast as a washed up actress, some unkind souls called it typecasting.
The next year, ET trimmed down and took on Broadway in 'The Little Foxes.'
And that was just the beginning of the last act of Elizabeth Taylor!