From RKO
Directed by Irving Pichel
Starring
Robert Young
Susan Hayward
Jane Greer
Rita Johnson
I hope I'm mistaken but I suspect this movie is largely unknown and worse yet, perhaps even by film noir fans or some Hayward fans. That seems a shame because it is quite a fine little adultery caper which feels like an homage to James Cain's work and Hitchcock as well, It is, in fact, produced by Joan Harrison, a longtime Hitchcock associate.
It opens with Young on the witness stand telling his story. He narrates it which is told, of course, in flashback until the final scene. I am not always fond of excessive flashbacks or narration but both are most effective here.
Young plays a cad who's certainly got a few wires crossed. It is not particularly apparent right away that he is a cad (likely why Young was hired). He has either married a woman (Rita Johnson) for her money and/or her money has become, after years of marriage, the only thing worth hanging on to. She is uncannily aware of his peccadilloes but goes to great lengths to hang on to him no matter what.
Young has been having a relationship with Jane Greer where they meet every Saturday afternoon. She is aware that he is married (she does, in fact, know his wife) but is tired of his empty promises to leave her and she is not feeling so good about herself so she calls quits to their illicit relationship. She will become a little disenchanted, however, how much they run into one another in the future. We are also aware she is sitting in the courtroom.
Shortly thereafter he meets a new coworker, Susan Hayward, at his brokerage firm and he is immediately entrapped in his usual romantic haze and not thinking clearly. Hayward's character is as ambitious as the actress was and she practically pulls Young around by his nose. He is certainly a passive philanderer and all three women are in charge.
The pair is travelling on a dark highway when they are hit head on by a truck. Young is thrown from the vehicle and Hayward dies. In the hospital, when he is told about her death, she is referred to as his wife. That gives him an idea. He will use that to quietly murder his wife and no one will be the wiser.
For some reason the dumb cluck doesn't consider that someone someday may wonder what happened to Hayward. Rhodes Scholars aren't usually a part of noirs.
When he returns to his ranch, he discovers that his wife has died in a horseback riding accident. Instead of her accidental death turning out to be the lynchpin he'd planned on, it begins an unraveling that takes us to his arrest... and fun for us getting there.
Playing the unchecked womanizer, Young's hiring expresses the need,,, maybe even requirement... to use an actor to play against type. It does indeed add to the mystery and the confusion which are noir staples. My confusion was how could a character as dull as Young's, without a scintilla of sexual attraction and average looks, attract the attention of women who look like Greer and Hayward. But it adds to the state of being that makers of noir are looking for with you in mind. Confuse 'em, yes, but lose 'em, no. I could never give up on a noir... I need to know how it all works out.
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| Greer, Young & Hayward in publicity shot |
With all this said, I still would have preferred another actor. Young and Fred MacMurray were the same actor. When either shared a scene with another actor, I watched the other actor. Young said that this was the only time he played someone of this type and it caused the film to bomb. He was always the dull good guy. He would next make another noir, the fabulous Crossfire, again in the least colorful role.
Hayward may have wanted to finish out her RKO contract and making They Won't Believe Me accomplished that goal.
It's the only reason I can come up with for her doing it. Not that she wasn't good... Hayward was always good... but the role could have been played by any number of others in what is actually a small role (all three female roles are small). Additionally, she was on quite a roll in the last half of the 40's while this part was more like something she did earlier in her career.
In 1947 Greer was at the height of her youthful beauty. She is dazzling to behold and little, cheapie RKO outdid themselves to dress her. She is the most decent character. Like Young, she would next go into another film noir, in this case, one of the best ever made, Out of the Past. Her Kathie is one of the great screen villainesses.
Johnson did a topnotch job as the rich wife, full of smiles and hopes while having a Machiavellian streak. The character is written with some depth. I've never known a great deal about her. I recall seeing her in Here Comes Mr. Jordan and My Friend Flicka and its sequel but that's about it. A year after making this film, a hairdryer fell on her head causing brain damage and slowing her career considerably.
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| Johnson and Young |
Likewise, I know little about director Pichel either. Three years earlier he'd directed another Hayward movie, And Now Tomorrow, which I enjoyed. Oddly, we'll be discussing it again next time.
Some, I suspect, would call the movie noir-like rather than a noir. There's no true bad girl, there's no cop in a main role, there aren't those great shadows or lighting that takes one's breath away and there's (yikes!), no violence. Still, there is that lovely, occasional confusion, melodrama, tension, flashbacks and plot twists... all usual noir staples. Something to note is that no one is murdered. The film's mainstay is to examine guilt by intention.
It deserves more respect than it has generally been given although I suspect noir enthusiasts find it a rather efficient little B noir, which is fine with me. This is a strong cast, a compelling story, told rather leisurely, with a surprise finale. Some have not liked the ending or the swiftness with which it comes, but I was taken in. I know I gasped.
It was just shown on TCM and I expect it is available to watch on YouTube. I mean, one day when you have nothing to do for 90 minutes, check it out.
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