gridoon2018 "Undercurrent" is notable as Katharine Hepburn's only acting excursion into the thriller/mystery/damsel-in-distress genre; she makes an honest stab at it, but it's not really her strong suit. The script, by Edward Chodorov, is generally not predictable, but it is talky and plodding; apart from excellent use of light and shadow in some key scenes, director Vincente Minnelli doesn't do much that's outstanding. It's not a bad film, but it's not as good as you might expect from that cast, either. **1/2 out of 4.

Smyers-831-496755 This is a dreadful movie with a terrific cast. The studios probably thought they could not miss with Hepburn, Taylor, Mitchum, and, I know, let's use Minnelli to direct. Can't miss!Whatever your thoughts of Katherine Hepburn, she is wildly miscast as the simpering, cringing wife. And Mitchum? Where the heck was he for 9/10 of the movie? It's Taylor's first picture after the war. He is probably sorry the Germans surrendered so soon.This one is only interesting for the historical footnotes and the absolutely, completely awful script. No one and nothing could have saved this dog. No one.

trimpe-456-869588 I actually watched this movie 2 times, trying to make myself like it as well as understand it. Hepburn in love with a ghost (or unattainable)person? Taylor being upset because of this threat to him (Hepburn's love for him)? Much ado about nothing. Not believable. It seemed to me that there was a huge attempt at making this appear like a movie of great mystery, intrigue and suspense. And it just fell short. It never seemed to kick in/get itself going. I stuck with it to see if it was ever going to "get itself going", but unfortunately for me, it did not. I thought Jayne Meadows was brilliant in this. Wise gal, hardened and savvy. Too bad she didn't make more movies during her career. although I'm glad she found happiness with entertainer husband Steve Allen.

dougdoepke The first half-hour is quite well done. Hepburn is excellent as the plain Jane whose brave exterior hides an aching heart. That the sleekly handsome Taylor would suddenly pay her attention is almost too good to be true. For the sheltered girl, it's a Cinderella dream come true. The Washington DC party scenes are particularly well done, just the sort of thing MGM was skilled at, and watching her keep up a brave façade among the snobs while hiding deep insecurity is particularly affecting. But then the movie goes into a dark psychological phase, and it's mainly downhill from then on.There's nothing plausible about Ann's (Hepburn) obsession with a mysterious Michael (Mitchum), especially while she's married to Prince Charming Alan (Taylor). It's clearly a plot contrivance and a clumsy one, at that. And catch that sequence where Alan tries to kill Ann while they're on horseback. It's about as poorly staged and edited as any action sequence I've seen. In particular, the progression of backgrounds doesn't come close to matching, creating a rather surreal effect.In my book, LB Mayer's MGM was the wrong studio to do this kind of dark material. Too bad Mayer didn't pass the story over to a budget outfit like Columbia or RKO. They would have turned out a fast efficient little noir, which is what the material is really suited for. The trouble here is that MGM casts two of its biggest celebrity stars in the lead. Hepburn and Taylor are fine performers, but their super-star status required lots of screen time, so the movie gets padded to an often redundant two hours, which doesn't help.It's also an odd role for Mitchum given his later screen persona. Of course, it's still early in the tough guy's career, and a year away from his defining role as the noirish Jeff in Out of the Past (1947). Still, seeing him in a bland part that any number of lesser actors could have handled takes some getting used to. He's lucky he went from here to the eccentric RKO, while I'm wondering where his career would have gone had he stayed with glamorous MGM.All in all, the melodrama itself is a turgid disappointment despite the first half-hour and the amount of talent involved.