secondtake The Big ClockI'm not a big fan of Ray Milland, the leading man here, but he has energy and pulls off a kind of Jimmy Stewart fellow pretty well. I am, for sure, a big fan of two other actors here, Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester, who are great, and of the cinematographer, John Seitz. It is Seitz who makes this movie launch and go far, right from the get go, with a really nice establishing shot merging into a moving camera interior scene.Milland is not bad, of course—he's better in normal dramatic roles like his most famous as an alcoholic in "The Lost Weekend"—but he lacks both the everyman ease of Stewart and the troubled dramatic noir intensity of Bogart or Mitchum. His predicament opens the movie, ominously, in classic noir fashion with voice-over, and within a heartbeat we are in a flashback getting to the backstory.The little trick of the plot (having the main characters involved in a crime solving magazine) is great fun, actually, and never seems contrived. The title however points to a weird quirk in the whole works, a highly elaborate clock that is sort of forced onto the situation, and really isn't very integral to the plot after all (even if it's used dramatically a couple of times). Mostly this is a noir about a fairly normal guy and a crime he ends up having to solve, a la Hitchcock.The femme fatale here, Maureen O'Sullivan, is great, and Laughton is his quirky self, with mustache. Look for Harry Morgan ("Dragnet" and "Mash") in a weird fun role. Mostly just enjoy a well constructed, offbeat noir-ish crime film and the great visuals throughout.

jadedalex This movie stands out for films in the genre. It's a very gimmicky tale, and a bit confusing, but it remains entertaining and by the flick's end, it asserts its own individuality.Laughton is a wonderful villain here. His performance? For the most part, lethargic would be an apt description. His one 'Mr. Hyde' moment is his brutal killing of his paramour, a very pretty Rita Johnson, which stands out, because we see the tub of lard Laughton back to his old lethargy soon afterward, as he is enjoying a massage.Featured also is a strangely sinister Henry Morgan, who of course later became the amiable character actor Harry Morgan of 'MASH' and 'Pete and Gladys' from television.Maureen O'Sullivan is given a very nominal role as Ray Milland's long-suffering wife. She actually figures into the movie's melodramatic climax, but is seen throughout the film basically nagging her husband, who is of course 'married' to the Jonith Newspaper, Jonith being Laughton's role.Farrow and his screenwriter have fashioned an unusual murder tale where we are given all of the information. We are shown the murder, and, as even Sir Alfred Hitchcock would surely appreciate, we are left to agonize over Milland's plight of easily being framed for a crime he didn't commit.Venerable character actor Lloyd Corrigan is put to good use. George Macready is wonderful playing his usual shady, snaky character. Milland's performance is spirited and the action moves fast. It's easily a film you would appreciate more the second time.In short, the film is made with the assumption that the audience has a brain and an imagination. And let's not forget the wonderfully eccentric Elsa Lanchester, perfectly cast as the down-on-her-luck painter out to profit one way or another from the scandal.

bob the moo Deciding to watch some film noirs recently this film stuck in my mind – for some reason I knew the title and was sure I must have watched it before but it didn't ring any bells. Watching it two things hit me; the first being that despite the listing here and the comments made on the boards etc, this is not a film noir by the traditional definition – it is actually a thriller with a man accused of murder trying to get out from under before everything closes in on him. This was the second thing because I realized I had heard the name of the film in connection to the Kevin Costner film "No Way Out". In that film as in this one, the main character is charged with hunting down a killer, all the time knowing that the clues will incorrectly lead to him and as a result he must find the real killer before he is caught himself.This sounds good but the film doesn't really make the most of it. The first 30 minutes are too slow and frankly unconvincing. Stroud is presented as a good family man, nicely cleancut but yet gets messed up drunk with a pretty blonde the very second he should be heading off on his honeymoon. This setup is labored and takes too long in the context of quite a short film. When the murder occurs the pace does pick up and the drama is engaging but it is delivered with a bit too much of a light touch and not enough urgency in the situation. The light comedy may appeal to some but for me it only undermined the tension and took me out of the moment – if it had done this aspect better regarding the main character then it may have worked but it was far too gentle for me. The conclusion also comes too quickly and unconvincingly even if the buildup to the specific conclusion is pretty good.The cast are solid and it is not their fault that the film doesn't really make the most of them. Milland is a decent lead but doesn't convince me about the pressure on him – I also didn't care for his character in the first 30 minutes as he seemed to be just a good haircut and cheerful outlook, nothing else. Laughton is a good presence and I would have liked to have seen more of him – the film uses him well but it could have been better again. Support is decent and includes a very young Harry Morgan.The Big Clock is a nice idea that is slow to start and, when it does get going, it just lacks a bit of oomph to really make the most of the scenario. I was looking for the film to really close in on the main character and for things to be tense and stylish but in reality it was a bit too gentle for my tastes.

vincentlynch-moonoi I give this film a "7", though it was a temptation to give it an "8", but a "7" is my highest rating, unless we are talking one of the great films of all time. And this film is not that, but it is darned good.It is darned good because it is darned different. I can't think of another film that is at all like it (except perhaps the recent remake). It's a rather unique plot with a unique character (Charles Laughton) and a unique setting.The story begins via flashback. As it unfolds, Ray Milland's character (editor-in-chief of a crime magazine) inadvertently gets tied into a murder of a woman he met...who just happened to be the girlfriend of the magazine's's owner (Charles Laughton) -- a real sleaze bag...and the real killer! All the cards are stacked against Milland, however, and his desperate task is to clear himself and implicate the real murdered (whom he thinks is Laughton's assistant). What happens in between all this is clever and different, with a host of odd characters.Milland, whom I've come to respect more lately as I've seen some films of his of which I was not previously aware, is excellent here. So is Charles Laughton, although this is another role of Laughton's where we love despising him. And incidentally, Laughton's mustache here may be one of the worst in any film in cinema history! The other main character is Maureen O'Sullivan as Milland's wife, though this is quite a step down from her as she plains a supporting, rather than a starring role. You'll recognize quite a few other characters, though none is memorable, despite each being key to the plot.The ending is a total surprise, although it happens just a tad too quickly to savor.That's all not to say that there aren't some problems here. We all have had jobs we don't like. Why exactly are this husband and wife so thrilled to be without and income? At 58 minutes into the film you can clearly see the shadow of the boom mic. Why are Elsa Lanchester's children from 3 different marriages all approximately the same age?Nevertheless, this may very well be one for your DVD shelf!