robert-temple-1 This is a very good mystery thriller in the film noir mode, directed by the émigré German director Robert Siodmak. It is based on a novel by Cornell Woolrich. The plot may not be entirely original, but it is very effective. Alan Curtis is the leading man. He is little remembered today, partly because he died early at the age of only 43 in 1953, nine years after this film was released. Curtis is unhappily married and goes to a bar (in Manhattan) to have a drink to comfort himself. There he meets a mysterious woman in an outlandish hat, who takes a seat beside him but seems deeply preoccupied with her own troubles. Curtis has two tickets for a hit show to which he had intended to take his wife, but as she refused to go, he offers them to the woman, saying it is a shame for them to go to waste. He ends up taking the woman to the show, but she refuses to give him her name and she remains an enigma. He returns home later to find three policemen waiting for him, and his wife lying in the bedroom, having been strangled to death by one of his own ties while he was out. So we are faced with that favourite plot element of many such films, the need to find the mysterious woman who is the only person who can prove his alibi and prevent him being wrongly executed for the murder of his wife. Meanwhile, some witnesses have been bribed to lie about having seen him with the woman, and this raises sinister doubts as to what is really going on. Curtis's secretary, who secretly loves him, played by Ella Raines, sticks by him and does some detective work after he is arrested. She is determined to prove his innocence. Franchot Tone gives a chilling and convincing performance as a psychopathic killer, and the lines of dialogue given to him when he attempts to justify himself are even more chilling than his performance itself. Woolrich must have known a few crazies personally to get it so accurate. Elisha Cook Jr. has a significant role in the film, and he always lends an air of horrifying authenticity to any film noir, especially when he opens his eyes wide with terror in that special way he had. In this film, he shows that he is a good drummer in a jazz band. This is well worth watching.

srwb6 I was really looking forward to seeing this movie after reading all the positive reviews- have seen most film noirs and they are a favourite genre of mine- however fairly disappointed after watching this one- we are expected to believe that Franchot Tone's character, Jack Marlowe, murdered his best friends wife at 8 o'clock in the evening- hopped on the ship that was taking him down to South America within half an hour, got off without anyone seeing him- managed to locate Alan Curtis' character, Scott in a New York bar- follow him all evening with the lady he just happens to meet- then bribe all the people who saw this woman with $500 each to say they had never seen her! There are too many coincidences and belief is suspended just too many times for me to give this more than 5 out of 10. pluses for the movie are the lovely Ella Raines as Scott's faithful assistant and the dark New York jazz bar nightlife which creates a great film noir feel- shame the story is a little bit of a letdown.

rafael105 The wired jazz scene with Elisha Cook banging away at the mad drums is worth the whole movie. Plus, there's Ella Raines, looking lovelier than ever. This movie must have really disturbed 1944 audiences. There's a psycho murdering sculptor with strong hands and a fatal weakness. There's fat nasty policemen who breathe down everyone's necks. There's Aurora Miranda trying to steal sister Carmen's act. There's lots of sweating in the August swelter of New York. There's plenty of bad acting and bad dialogue. But, there are also some really unusual shots of street scenes during the long sequence in which Ella pursues the bartender to his death. Strong stuff, indeed. And, did I mention there's Ella Raines looking lovelier than ever? I think I'm in love.

lampic By definition film noir is a shadowy mystery/crime story and yes,there is a interesting story here - man is accused of murder and the only person who can prove that he was indeed spending that evening with her is mysterious lady in a fashionable hat, who disappears not to be seen anymore. He is imprisoned (mumbling about "lady in a funny hat") and now its up to his provincial secretary and a detective to solve the mystery. Secretary must be very provincial and in love indeed, because she puts herself into some very dangerous situations, following people she suspect are hiding the secret. The movie focuses so much on her that at certain point I wondered "hey,but where is Franchot Tone in all this?" - he, the biggest name here is finally appearing half way trough movie and in a role completely different from his usual charming smile performances (camera focuses on his hands so much that I freaked out, its very pure German expressionism). Unfortunately the mystery is solved way too soon so we already know who was the real murderer,for the rest of the movie its all about naive secretary finally discovering the truth.