Stage Fright * 1950
Review by Paulette Reynolds
August 11, 2024
Review by Paulette Reynolds
August 11, 2024
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Screenplay: Whitfield Cook, Alma Reville, James Bridie
(Based on Man Running by Selwyn Jepson)
Starring Jane Wyman/ Eve Gill, Marlene Dietrich/Charlotte Inwood, Michael Wilding/Wilfred “Ordinary” Smith, Richard Todd/Jonathan Cooper, Alastair Sim/Commodore Gill, Dame Sybil Thorndike/ Mrs. Gill, Kay Walsh/Nellie Goode, Joyce Grenfell/ ‘Ducks’ booth attendant, Patricia Hitchcock/Chubby Bannister.
Screenplay: Whitfield Cook, Alma Reville, James Bridie
(Based on Man Running by Selwyn Jepson)
Starring Jane Wyman/ Eve Gill, Marlene Dietrich/Charlotte Inwood, Michael Wilding/Wilfred “Ordinary” Smith, Richard Todd/Jonathan Cooper, Alastair Sim/Commodore Gill, Dame Sybil Thorndike/ Mrs. Gill, Kay Walsh/Nellie Goode, Joyce Grenfell/ ‘Ducks’ booth attendant, Patricia Hitchcock/Chubby Bannister.
Stage Fright - Spoiler Alert Warning!
Stage Fright is a film that Eddie Muller despaired over during one of his fabulous Noir Alley TCM programs as summer was winding down. The film is directed by Alfred Hitchcock, long before he became obsessed with harassing his leading ladies, and so I allow myself the pleasure of occasionally watching it (sans guilt).
Does this scene raise Stage Fright to noir status?
Released in 1950, Stage Fright is considered a film noir by some – including Muller – yet I can’t join the existential train to nowhere as this story is a crime thriller, and a classic one at that. Sure there’s a femme fatale, but it’s more of a slick Who-Done-It, presented with a major plot twist reveal at the end, (which troubled Mueller to such an extent that he became lost in a mildly acid rant). How could a traditional British mysteries like this one push Eddie over the edge?
Well, apparently the self-styled 'czar of noir' hated the leading actors Jane Wyman and Richard Todd, hated that Marlene Dietrich turned out to be innocent (well, as much as Marlene was able - she was a femme, after all), and hated the comic bits intertwined throughout.
The juxtaposition of three couples – Johnny and Marlene, Michael Wilding and Jane Wyman, Alistair Simms and Dame Sybil Thorndike - seem to rub Mueller the wrong way, yet I found it fascinating to explore their synergetic energy.
Johnny and Marlene appeared caught between a rock and a hard place, with Johnny’s tale of Charlotte’s murderous misfortune, and his desire to rescue his glamorous crush. The famed stage actress is like quicksilver - seductive and sensual - and then abruptly withdrawing, snapping blunt words.
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Quite the opposite of Michael Wilding and Jane Wyman, who resemble two turtle doves joyously discovering each other. They spent a great deal of time exchanging tender glances and meaningful moments as Wyman skillfully balanced between her amateur sleuth Doris, and suddenly shifting to a more genuine Eve.
Acting as the fulcrum between the two couples was the estranged couple Alistair Sims and Dame Sybil Thorndike. They circled each other like to wary adversaries, yet seemed unable to prevent themselves from any real physical distance. Like two rusty magnets, they shifted around each other until settling into a more familiar - and comfortable - pattern of domestic detente.
The mystery itself is rather humdrum, but it hinges on the final plot twist that no one sees coming. As a confirmed Anglophile, I appreciate Hitchcock’s love for his country of origin. The supporting cast of seasoned characters is another delight to watch, as everyone is clearly having a wonderful time portraying assorted British tropes.
The exotic Marlene and bland all-American girl Wyman feel like an oil and vinegar afterthought, but their contrasting personalities work as the fourth couple. Marlene is the epitome of the hot-house celebrity who must have her way in everything, and yet she keeps pace with Wyman’s cockney dresser, who herself becomes surprised that she falls so easily for the story’s ruse.
The exotic Marlene and bland all-American girl Wyman feel like an oil and vinegar afterthought, but their contrasting personalities work as the fourth couple. Marlene is the epitome of the hot-house celebrity who must have her way in everything, and yet she keeps pace with Wyman’s cockney dresser, who herself becomes surprised that she falls so easily for the story’s ruse.
Eddie Muller’s final dour observation is about a thorny point of editing during the beginning of Johnny and Charlotte’s scenes. In one, a short 15-second insert appears, rather choppy, supposedly to satisfy the censors (Charlotte is changing dresses and - oh no! - they’re not married!). I agree it disturbs the flow of the scene, but after watching Stage Fright, go back and study the scene again. Perhaps Hitchcock intentionally shot it that way, to indicate to us that Johnny was an unreliable narrator…
It’s okay Eddie, we all get it wrong, sometimes.
For those of you still in the dark alley of ignorance, Eddie is a dynamite writer of such noir-themed books as Dark City Dames, Dark City, Art Noir, and Noir Bar.
For those of you still in the dark alley of ignorance, Eddie is a dynamite writer of such noir-themed books as Dark City Dames, Dark City, Art Noir, and Noir Bar.
COPYRIGHT 2012/2024. Paulette Reynolds. All CineMata Movie Madness blog articles, reviews, faux interviews, commentary, and the Cine Mata character are under the sole ownership of Paulette Reynolds. All intellectual and creative rights reserved.
