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So Dark the Night
USA 1946
produced by Ted Richmond for Larry Darmour Productions/Columbia
directed by Joseph H. Lewis
starring Steven Geray, Micheline Cheirel, Eugene Borden, Ann Codee, Egon Brecher, Helen Freeman, Brother Theodore, Gregory Gaye, Jean Del Val, Emil Rameau, Paul Marion, Louis Mercier, Frank Arnold
story by Aubrey Wisberg, screenplay by Martin Berkeley, Dwight V. Babcock, music by Hugo Friedhofer
review by Mike Haberfelner
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Available on DVD! To buy, click on link(s) below and help keep this site afloat (commissions earned) |
Always make sure of DVD-compatibility!!!
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Henri Cassin (Steven Geray) is the top detective of the French
Sûreté, so much so that he has become a minor celebrity nationwide - but
he's also on the verge of a burn-out, which is why his doctor (Egon
Brecher) advises him to take a lengthy vacation, to basically air out his
busy mind. So he moves to a small village in the countryside, taking up
residence in Pierre (Eugene Borden) and Mama Michaud's (Ann Codee)
picturesque country hotel. The Michauds' daughter soon takes a fancy in
him too - despite the age difference -, as she sees him as a man of the
world while she hardly ever gets out of her village. Henri feels flattered
of course, and soon something resembling love blossoms between the two of
them, something which Mama strongly supports while Pierre opposes it, as
at a young age, he promised her to Leon (Paul Marion), a rough but honest
local boy - who suffers from fits of jealousy. But when Leon's out for a
few days, Mama organizes an engagement party between Henri and Nanette -
which goes off the rails when Leon shows up and in a fit of rage promises
Henri to avenge himself. When he leaves again, Nanette goes after him ...
and that's the last time either of them was seen alive, they're both found
dead at Leon's farm a few days later. Of course, Henri insists to pick up
investigations himself, and there's no opposition to this at all as he is
by far the most qualified person to do so in the region. But whichever
route he takes, Henri comes up with very little, and the clues he does
come up with just refuse to fit the puzzle. And then Mama Michaud receives
threatening letters - and not long after that, she's found killed,
something that pretty much happened right under the watchful eyes of
Henri. Pierre is heartbroken and he decides to close up his hotel for good
and move away, while Henri returns to Paris, a disillusioned and broken
man. But his boss Commissioner Grande (Gregory Gaye) insists that Henri
shouldn't give up that easily, and as he and Henri play the ball back and
forward, Henri comes to a hair-raising and ridiculous solution - that he
himself has to be the culprit. He insists to be put under guard, which the
Commissioner merely agrees to do humour his best man. But when later he
finds the guard knocked out and Henri gone, he figures there might be more
to Henri's claim - and dangerously so ... Now one thing up
front: The resolution of this murder mystery isn't especially convincing
as it's based on a radical, pulp fiction-induced misunderstanding of
schizophrenia, and thus the killer feels to be very much pulled out of the
hat rather than cleverly deduced - and that's a bit of a shame, as in all
this is actually a very good movie, it's elegantly filmed, heavy on
atmosphere, makes the most of its sets, is carried by Steven Geray's very
relatable portrayal of a decidedly less than perfect character, and has
him surrounded by a solid ensemble cast. Also, the mystery as such, with
its many failures and dead ends, is pretty well constructed up to the
resolution. So in all, this is a very fine movie, and if it wasn't for
the third act it would be great - but even so, lovers of vintage mysteries
will get a kick out of this one!
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