ludivinereynaud
The movie is certainly enjoyable. However, the plot is in my opinion, lacks subtleties as there was something somewhat ludicrous about Lamarr's borderline-psychopathic femme fatale part. From the beginning to the end, the movie was generally fairly predictable.I am very fond of Lamarr, and, apart from her stunning looks (although marred by an overly heavy make-up in this particular movie), I still thought she played her part well. Add to that that this is a period drama, with stunning costumes.Having said that, once again the overall plot didn't really cut much ice with me.
krocheav
This turgid hodge podge of a movie features some good performances along the way, but Hedys'character is too often unfathomable. Could prove OK for lovers of over ripe potboilers in the Mills and Boon category.Most actors do well with their over baked rolls, and even though George Sanders is cast a little against type, he handles it well. The Kids, during the somewhat cruel opening scenes try hard, but the script is a little over the top.It's all quite lurid for its day, with B grade specialist Edgar Ulmer, giving it some dark moodiness. There's a good traveling Preacher segment with a fiery sermon waking up some guilt in Hedys'twisted persona.Offers some odd interest, especially as a comment on the dangerous levels of lawlessness in backwoods towns in the mid 1800s. But the overall effect, is one in need of better handling.
RanchoTuVu
Set in pre Civil War Maine, a young woman marries a rich older man, and then seduces his son. The relationships are established when she and the son are children, and she pushes him from a bridge into a stream and picks up again after she's married his father and he's returned from college in Boston. Between the three played by Hedy Lamar, Gene Lockhart, and Louis Hayward, I'd say best actor award would go to Lockhart, the husband, whose part gets tougher as the film goes on. Set in the timber town of Bangor, director Edgar Ulmer does it again as he presents a bizarre little society of haves and have nots. Lamar's character comes from the poorer, deprived and maybe even depraved background, with a drunk for a father, who in one scene whips her (as she's a young woman now) with his belt as she both smiles and grimaces. From this emerges this stunning beauty who unfortunately has the same qualities as a black widow spider. Having George Sanders enter later seems a bit much, as the story was piping along with Hayward eyeing Lamar and Lamar playing him along while the town's economy goes along with the loggers who come in a make a mess every pay day. The setting is a big part of this minor classic thanks to cinematographer Lucian Andriot with yet another great example of how evocative B&W photography really was.
MartinHafer
Heddy Lamarr plays a young woman who people think is sweet and innocent, but it's mostly a conniving act in order to get what she wants out of life. Again and again, she hurts people, uses people and even kills in order to get ahead in this very colorful film.This is a very fascinating film--with lots of salacious material to keep it interesting. On top of that, it's one of Lamarr's better performances--giving her a bit more emotional range than usual. In many of her films, she seems more like a runway model than an actress--with lots and lots of costume changes but very little to actually say or do. Here, she is clearly the star and does a fairly good job--even though you can detect just a hint of her native Austrian accent (and that's odd for a girl supposedly from Maine). Too bad she didn't get too many more chances with films like this one.Despite the positives, I should also point out that the film has a serious problem with maintaining the integrity of Lamarr's character. Throughout most of the film she's black hearted, conniving and without a conscience. However, rather abruptly, she develops remorse for what she's done and tries to come clean--something a sociopath like her character NEVER would have done on her own! Then, abruptly, at the end, she's back to her old evil self. All this inconsistency make the movie really hard to take at times--though it sure is interesting to watch--sort of like a guilty pleasure!
AD
