Fall has hit hard here. Mists and mellow fruitfulness abound and it is raining out the wazoo. So put on a sweater and brew a cup of something hot, because we’re going to be talking about spooky movies for a few weeks. I’m going to do shallow dives on a few of my favorite (and sometimes neglected) creepy classic films.
News/Reading
If you want more creepy classics than I provide this month, you could do worse than work your way through this list.
A review of the Blue-Ray release of The Circus, a Chaplin I have never seen. I am not a big Chaplin fan, but this makes me want to take a look.
The Self-Styled Siren has a nice review of The Big Clock, a feast of suspense and tension. There was a remake of this in 1987 (No Way Out) but accept no substitutes.
Criterion is doing a Godzilla box set. That particular monster was never really my thing, but if he’s yours, congratulations, your ship has come in!
Shallow Dive
(In which I explore a topic of the week in desultory and idiosyncratic fashion).
Let’s kick off our October spooky movie theme with a quick glance at The Uninvited (1944). Calling this a “neglected” classic might be a little unfair. It certainly isn’t neglected by classic movie fans (it had a beautiful Criterion release a few years ago), but too many members of the broader film-loving community seem unaware of its existence, so I’m going to plug it. Besides, it’s my newsletter and I can revisit a favorite if I want to. And I really want to.
(This movie is my jam. It is really my jam. Anyone who knows me would look at this picture and think “Damn, Colleen would love this movie”).
The Uninvited was based on a book by Dorothy Macardle and it is one of those (rarer than they should be) cases where the movie improves upon the book. This is not a knock on the book, and it is certainly not a knock on Macardle, a good writer and a remarkable woman who lived a remarkable life. (She is person #2120943597 about whom I would like to see a movie. Someone get on that, please).
I think the story was just inherently cinematic, and needed some visuals and some audio (creepy, creepy audio) to bring it to perfection.
The Uninvited is not a gore-fest, nor is it full of jump-out-of-your-chair startles (though there are a few of those, and they are good). Rather is a slow burn of fear and unease and a sense that all is not well. The film seeps into your bones like a British seaside fog, and it is just as chilling. This is not only a ghost story; it is also a romance and a mystery: a well-told investigation with several of the requisite twists. Indeed, The Uninvited might be called a ghost story for those who like the golden age of British crime fiction. If this sounds like your cuppa it probably is, if it doesn’t… no worries. (It is very much mine).
The story begins when a brother and sister from London, Roderick and Pamela Fitzgerald (Ray Milland and Ruth Hussey), spot a beautiful old house on the coast of Cornwall and decide to buy it. The house’s owner, an old man who lives in the local village (Donald Crisp) seems remarkably willing to sell it. The Fitzgeralds purchase the place over the objections of the old man’s granddaughter Stella (Gail Russell). It was her childhood home, and she values it as a source of connection to her beautiful, good, wronged and very dead mother Mary. No sooner do the Fitzgeralds take possession of the house, then strange things start to happen and the search for why they are happening will take us deep into Stella’s troubled family history.
So… why watch this thing? Well, let’s start with the absolutely perfect cinematography. It is established early on that the old house has not been wired for electricity (more common than you might think in mid-20th-century Britain) and the cinematographer Charles Lang Jr. makes the most of the opportunity this gives him. He isn’t afraid of believably dim shadows, his grays are lovely. Even his murk seems highly expressive, full of...something. Maybe a presence we’d rather not think about.
(Can a scene be eerie and romantic at the same time? Yes, yes it can).
The setting is pretty sweet too. I’m not sure why the coast of Cornwall should be the site of so many haunting tales (no self-respecting ghost ever haunted a beach house on the New Jersey shore) but I love them all. And actually, that isn’t a fair comparison. There is something deeply unsettling about high rocky cliffs over crashing surf no matter where it is found. You can experience the same thing along the coast of central California where, I gather, the coastal scenes of The Uninvited were actually filmed.
It’s hard to believe this was Lewis Allen’s directorial debut. (His film debut that is; he had a long string of stage productions to his credit. Yay, theatre directors). It is sure-footed, confident, and creative. I’d like to take just a moment to praise his restrained use of special effects. I gather he would have liked to have used no visual effects for the ghost whatsoever. But the wispy apparition that might possibly be a beautiful, disembodied face is just subtle enough not to be laughable (and when it changes briefly at the end, it is heart-twisting).
The score is lovely, and of course contains the wistful Stella by Starlight, which went on to have a much wider life in American music. I’m partial to this Ella Fitzgerald version.
The performances are just right. I have read a surprising number of anti-Ray Milland writings over the years, but I think he is very well-cast here. He has a self-conscious lightness to him that could be annoying, but it also makes his growing awareness that ghosts exist and he has to deal with them all the more powerful. His transformation from careless sophisticate to man of courage is a nicely plotted arc. Ruth Hussey is always a pleasure. Her Pamela is warm and smart and brave.
And then there’s Gail Russell. If you know how her life played out, seeing her here, at the birth of her career, is almost unbearably sad. But her combination of girlishness and intelligence, her stubborn courage, and her stunning beauty make her Stella a heroine who is at once both admirable and frustrating. Her obvious vulnerability raises the stakes and is a major reason why the film is so compelling.
The Uninvited was a hit when it was released, and for all sorts of reasons. The undercurrent of strong emotion in the relationship between Stella’s late mother and her girlhood friend Miss Holloway (Cornelia Otis Skinner, an amazing Renaissance woman) did not go unnoticed. See this TCM analysis for the full scoop:
I’m with Robert Osborne; objectively speaking, this is a stretch. But it did happen, and it didn’t come from nowhere. And it is a tribute to the desire of people to tell and be told meaningful stories.
As I said, there is a good Criterion release, and the film can be seen on TCM on Thursday October 17 at 8pm Eastern and that’s just as well, because The Uninvited can’t currently be streamed. If you like your October viewing to be goosebumps and gasps rather than screams, this one is for you.
If you want more, there’s a good Kitty Hollywood analysis:
And the Criterion essay is essential.
What to Watch This Weekend
(On TCM, Netflix, Amazon. All times Eastern)
TCM
If you want your heart broken, set the DVR before you leave for work today and capture Penny Serenade (1941 at 10:00am) a tear-jerking depiction of a difficult marriage, the loss of a child, and an adoption. Cary Grant has range. Irene Dunne is magnificent again. If you want to weep, you are in luck.
I would cut out of work early this evening and catch Giant (1956 at 4:30). This is an overstuffed, melodramatic, and very American family saga. It tells the story of a Virginia belle (Elizabeth Taylor) who marries a Texas rancher (Rock Hudson). Years pass, things happen to them, things happen to their children. It’s very big. If you like this sort of thing, this is the sort of thing you will like. (According to legend, James Dean died before he could finish looping his dialogue for this, so don’t blame him if he seems to mumble too much).
On Saturday afternoon, I’d do a double feature. First A Shot in the Dark (1964 at noon), The Pink Panther’s much funnier sequel. Instead of clashing with David Niven, Peter Sellers clashes with George Sanders and Herbert Lom. The result is goofy and crazy and delightful.
Then I’d stick around for Mutiny on the Bounty (1935 at 2:00). The film takes many liberties with the historical facts, but Charles Laughton is terrifying and the oppressive atmosphere on the ship is sharply drawn. Clark Gable dashes well.
At 8:00pm you can catch West Side Story (1961). Some of this feels dated, of course, and the leads are not all they could be. But the music and the dancing are so darn good.
Sunday at noon is The Curse of the Cat People (1944) which I am ashamed to say I have never seen. Might have to remedy that…
Then at 8pm there’s Laura (1944), Otto Preminger’s noir-adjacent tale of a hard-boiled policeman (Dana Andrews) who falls in love with the victim in the murder case he’s investigating. In many ways this film is a perfect American counterpart to The Uninvited (made the same year). It isn’t a ghost story per se, but it does deal with how we become haunted by the dead and it builds its creepy atmosphere (with hints of all manner of decadence just below the surface) with a similarly sure hand. Oh, it also has a great score. Yes, perfect for an October night.
Netflix
Netflix is pretty much a classic films desert at the moment. But it does have Pioneers: First Woman Filmmakers. This is a series of restored silents directed by women. Probably worth a look.
Amazon
May I recommend My Man Godfrey (1936) which is currently free on Prime? This is a classic screwball comedy starring Carole Lombard as a spoiled heiress who has to find a “forgotten man” as part of a bright young things’ scavenger hunt. The bum she picks up at the city dump (William Powell) turns out to be a lot more than he seems. The result is a romance with a little class commentary thrown in. I find this delightful, although… I recently showed the film to my husband for the first time. He enjoyed it, but he found Lombard’s character a bit unsatisfying. He argued that she hadn’t grown up enough by the end to deserve Powell. To be honest, I find that hard to argue with. But I still love the film.
Watched Recently/Quick Hits
So I did in fact watch The Thirteenth Guest (1932) on Amazon as I promised last week and to be honest… meh. It is very much a B picture, full of the hiss and crackle and sometimes clumsy camera work of the early sound era. The mystery is of only mild interest and can’t stand up to much scrutiny. Ginger Rogers always pops, however. Recommended only as a curiosity.
One Random Thing
(Something non-film related that I enjoyed this week.)
May I offer you a random P.G. Wodehouse quote generator? For all your random Wodehouse needs.
That’s all for this week. Questions, corrections, comments? Please get in touch.
Until next time,
C