writtenbymkm-583-902097 POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD. I found this film enjoyable and even suspenseful at times, but ultimately frustrating. First, the good things. Unlike some reviewers, I liked Charles Coburn's aging and ready to retire police detective (except for the weird accent). I don't think it wouldn't added much to turn him into a tough gruff cop. And he was convincingly determined to do the job. Ella Raines, as others have mentioned, was good as the two-faced wife who wanted her husband, Brian Donlevy, dead. The little trick -- spoiler alert -- of having the wife's lover try to murder her husband, only to screw it all up and get himself killed, was good. And, at the very end, Charles Coburn's detective work was enjoyable. Now, the bad things. First off, I never believed for one second that Helen Walker's wife character would be even remotely attracted to Tony Barrett's character. He came across as a sort of low-class punk, someone you'd expect to find hanging out in a cheap bar and maybe robbing booze stores. Second, the husband, Brian Donlevy, is supposed to be this tough savvy business guy, yet he doesn't immediately see though the cheap punk character passing himself off as a "cousin," even with the obvious chip on his shoulder. Third, when the "cousin" is blown up and burned "beyond recognition," why wasn't an attempt made to match up his dental records? Didn't they have dental records in the 1940s? It wasn't even mentioned. Fourth, why was I supposed to believe that husband Brian Donlevy was suddenly transformed from a white-collar business guy to a master mechanic? Did I miss something? Maybe I dozed off. Fifth, the husband's name and photograph were all over the newspapers, he was instantly recognizable to anybody who saw the papers and his photographs, yet he roams around this little town and not one single person recognizes him! "Look, it's Walter Williams, the dead guy!" Sixth, the whole way too long small-town romance thing with Brian Donlevy and the girl (Ella Raines) was boring and unbelievable. It needed MST3K bots saying, "Meanwhile, in a different movie..." Finally, I didn't believe for a minute that Brian Donlevy's husband character would suddenly agree to return to San Francisco, walk into the police station, and say, "Well, here I am, alive and well, and oh by the way, I wouldn't come sooner but I had, er, uh (spoiler) amnesia -- yeah, right. And I didn't believe for a minute that the cops and prosecutors would, instead of thoroughly investigating this amazing new development, just snap their fingers and say, "Oh, wow, okay you're under arrest for murder, somebody get his wife out of jail." So, there were way too many problems with what could've been a pretty good (but not noir) crime suspense story.

mark.waltz This is quite an exquisite example of film noir, made during a dark time in American history and during a year that several dozen were released of varying quality. It surrounds the seemingly happy marriage of industrialist Brian Donlevy and sophisticated Helen Walker, brought to its knees through her infidelity and ending up with a bump on his head, the violent death of her murderous lover and her arrest as evidence against her mounts.Where is Donlevy as all this takes place on the very naked streets of San Francisco? Hiding out in Utah, falling in love with sweet but independent Ella Raines, that's what. Charles Coburn adds his scene stealing showmanship as the detective putting all the pieces together, aided by Raines as Donlevy makes his presence known, arrested through circumstantial evidence that frees his wife, the vindictive Walker. Great location footage, fantastic sets and costumes and little twists and turns make this up there with "Laura", "Double Indemnity", "Out of the Past" and "Dark Passage" as a classic of the genre, even though it doesn't have an equal reputation as those others. An independent film that has ended up in the public domain, this has a surprisingly excellent print. The exotic Anna May Wong has a tiny bit pivotal part as a key witness. This is one I've seen several times and now consider a total sleeper worthy of further study.

wes-connors After scoring big points with his board of directors, wealthy San Francisco businessman Brian Donlevy (as Walter "Walt" Williams) plans a romantic vacation with his beautiful, well-dressed wife Helen Walker (as Irene). Unbeknownst to Mr. Donlevy, Ms. Walker has scored a big point of her own, low-life lover Tony Barrett (as James "Jim" Torrence). They've got deadly plans for Donlevy, but things don't always go according to plan. Donlevy finds female companionship with 25-year-old Mobile service station operator Ella Raines (as Marsha Peters) while "smart cookie" lieutenant Charles Coburn (as Tom Quincy) investigates...The Popkin brothers (Harry and Leo) were great at bringing suspenseful dramas to the screen; in this case, a story by Jay Dratler. This time they should have met with director Arthur Lubin to iron out some details in an otherwise fun film. We get several interesting twists and turns, but are almost derailed, due to some plot problems. There are a couple of implausible events worth mentioning. Just for starters, a character attempts to "murder" another by simply hitting him on the head; obviously, the "victim" was not dead. Also, a "victim" jumps into the back of a parked moving van instead of going up to the driver and asking for help...From the opening "board of directors" meeting to seeing Robert Warwick as a police captain, "Impact" employs several former "silent" screen players. That's not unusual, but there are a few in prominent roles. The chic maid is Anna May Wong, memorable as a sexy young Asian woman in 1920s melodramas. She participates in one of the better story sequences, a chase (photographed by Ernest Laszlo) from Jason Robards' courtroom to her apartment. The landlady who discovers Donlevy's secret is Mae Marsh, one of D.W. Griffith's most acclaimed actresses. Of the four top-billed stars, Walker gets the best out of her role.****** Impact (3/19/49) Arthur Lubin ~ Brian Donlevy, Helen Walker, Ella Raines, Charles Coburn

bob the moo I was on a noir kick recently and Impact was one of the films that came up as a recommendation that I hadn't already seen. The plot offers a tough promise of revenge, with a man set up by his wife to be killed by her lover – only for the lover to be killed and the original target to go into hiding while his wife faces suspicion from the police. The plot suggests that there will be a dark edge to the film and a story that sees revenge and justice coming as a result of the attempted murder. In reality though what we get is a dramatic opening quarter, which culminates in the death of the lover, but afterwards the film becomes about Williams settling into a new life and a potential romance for an hour until suddenly someone (presumably a writer) reminds him of the actual plot and he goes back to San Francisco just in time to trigger a courtroom finale and race against time to get to the bottom of it all.This approach wastes the potential in the plot because the darker thriller aspect is crammed into the final 30 minutes or so, even if the opening section leading up to the murder is pretty dramatic and effective. Outside of these sections though we have plenty of padding without any real impact or point; I know that the new life is the narrative trigger to the final confrontation but mostly it doesn't have a flow to it and it goes on far too long for what it is. As a result my interest had waned by the time we got back into the main plot and the courtroom action seemed a little muted, rushed and lacking in real urgency or drama. It is a real shame because the plot summary offered so much more and i'm not sure why it ignored its own strengths for so much of the film.The cast are rather stiff and so-so, although this may be in part due to the material. Donlevy does some good work but mostly he isn't allowed to feel much – Raines is cute next to him but seems far too young to be in that role. Coburn is only ever calling it in and his character lacks, well, character. Walker is, in her deeds, a cold, manipulative and disloyal woman but yet she has no edge to her at all and she is pretty dull. This is a film where none of the cast really stood out or managed to rise above the material.Overall Impact is a missed goal. It has potential but it misses it by being melodramatic, overlong and really losing its focus in regards the plot around murder and betrayal. Could have been something but wasn't.