Whirlpool
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Movie Reviews of Whirlpool
Movie Review: "Whirlpool (1949) ... Gene Tierney ... Otto Preminger (Director) (2005)"
Summary: 4 Stars
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation presents "WHIRLPOOL" (1949) (98 min/B&W) (Fully Restored/Dolby Digitally Remastered) --
Whirlpool is a sleek thriller about the well-to-do. Ann Sutton (Gene Tierney), the fashionable, neurotic wife of a prominent psychoanalyst, is kleptomaniac --- When she is arrested at an upscale department store for stealing a broach, she is save by Korvo (José Ferrer), an astrologer and hypnotist who specializes in separating gullible rich women from their money.
An interesting film that is well worth watching --- Jose Ferrer as Korvo is a standout but Gene Tierney seems to have lost her fire and ends up sleepwalking through the film, even when she is not hypnotized.
The shot in which Gene Tierney stands before the portrait is an obvious homage to Laura and a rare moment of self-quotation in Preminger's oeuvre. David Raksin's theme song, good but not great evokes the heroine's descent into a vortex.
Under the production staff of:
Otto Preminger [Director/Producer]
Ben Hecht [Screenplay]
Andrew Solt [Screenplay]
Guy Endore [Novel]
David Raksin [Original Music]
Arthur C. Miller [Cinematographer]
Louis R. Loeffler [Film Editor]
BIOS:
1. Otto Ludwig Preminger [Director]
Date of Birth: 5 December 1905 - Wiznitz, Bukovina, Austria-Hungary (now Wyschnyzja, Ukraine))
Date of Death: 23 April 1986 - New York City, New York
2. Gene Tierney
Date of Birth: 19 November 1920 - Brooklyn, New York
Date of Death: 6 November 1991 - Houston, Texas
3. Richard Conte
Date of Birth: 24 March 1910 - Jersey City, New Jersey
Date of Death: 15 April 1975 - Los Angeles, California
4. José Ferrer [aka: José Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintrón]
Date of Birth: 8 January 1912- Santurce, Puerto Rico
Date of Death: 26 January 1992 - Coral Gables, Florida
the cast includes:
Gene Tierney - Ann Sutton
Richard Conte - Dr. William 'Bill' Sutton
José Ferrer - David Korvo (as Jose Ferrer)
Charles Bickford - Lt. James Colton
Barbara O'Neil - Theresa Randolph
Eduard Franz - Martin Avery
Constance Collier - Tina Cosgrove
Fortunio Bonanova - Feruccio di Ravallo
Mr. Jim's Ratings:
Quality of Picture & Sound: 4 Stars
Performance: 4 Stars
Story & Screenplay: 4 Stars
Overall: 4 Stars [Original Music, Cinematography & Film Editing]
Total Time: 98 min on DVD ~ 20th Century Fox ~ (09/06/2005)
Movie Review: Shallow but Solid Mid-Century Melodrama. See It for Jose Ferrer.
Summary: 4 Stars
"Whirlpool" is sometimes labeled "film noir", but I think that's inaccurate. It's a psychological thriller in a more conventional -and more superficial- vein. It was adapted from Guy Endore's novel "Me Thinks the Lady" by Ben Hecht and Andrew Solt and directed by Otto Preminger, who manages to make a wacky plot sufficiently engaging. Ann Sutton (Gene Tierney) is an elegant, well-to-do woman married to prominent psychiatrist Dr. William Sutton (Richard Conte). Caving into emotional exhaustion one day, she shoplifts a piece of jewelry in a department store. She's saved from embarrassment by David Korvo (Jose Ferrer), a persuasive and charming man who is a practitioner of unconventional methods of psychoanalysis, including hypnotism. He recognizes Ann's kleptomania, insomnia, and headaches and offers to treat her. But Korvo is concealing other plans for Ann.
It comes down to dueling psychoanalysts: the respectable, scrupulous Dr. Sutton versus the clever but uncredentialed and sinister Korvo. It is through Ann and Theresa Randolph (Barbara O'Neil), a former patient of Korvo's, now a patient of Sutton's, that the men fight. The women are victims, though they try mightily not to be. Gene Tierney's icy aloofness works fine in this role. She only has to adore her husband and bemoan her fate. Beyond Otto Preminger, credit for the success of this preposterous plot goes to Jose Ferrer. He conjures a slick and manipulative villain whose self-conscious wit is great fun, even if he is a thieving, murdering louse. "Whirlpool" isn't a great film by any means, but it's a well-crafted mid-century melodrama. It left me wondering, though, if Preminger's long takes might have been more interesting filmed by frequent collaborator Joseph LaShelle.
The DVD (Fox 2005): Bonus features are a theatrical trailer (2 1/2 min) and an audio commentary by Richard Schickel, who discusses Preminger's "objective" style, his long takes, plot, characters, cast, relationships between characters, and does some scene analysis. The commentary is not quite constant, but gaps are not long. Subtitles are available for the film in English and Spanish.
Movie Review: Solid Mystery, if not Great Nior
Summary: 4 Stars
"Whirlpool" is a first rate murder mystery but it's debatable if it qualifies as a noir release. Silver and Ward's encyclopedic "Film Noir" does not list it, though it does mention other releases by the lading cast members. No matter, W can stand on its' own merits. As the story opens, Gene Tierney is pinched for shoplifting by the house dick at a fancy department store in LA. Quickly, perhaps a bit conveniently, GT is sprung by a smooth talking Jose Ferrer. It develops that GT is a very vulnerable young woman. Among her problems is kleptomania and JF is quick to exploit. He hypnotizes GT under the guise of "helping her sleep at night" but he has far darker motives. It seems he has bilked Barbara O'Neill out of $60Gs and O'N wants her $$ back. Soon she is found murdered-with GT at the crime scene! As many of previous reviews have revealed the resolution, this one will try to maintain an air of mystery. Will justice be done? Is GT on her way to the electric chair? Her lawyer is planning an insanity defense! What happens? My amazon friends will have to watch for themselves, but what develops is a very solid murder mystery with many more angles than mentioned here. This reviewer believes that the males carry W. Richard Conte is GT's supportive husband, capably shedding his customary tough guy role. (He is a shrink with a penchant for taping his sessions!) Charles Bickford is perfect as the gruff but patient veteran homicide detective. And Ferrer is over the top as an effete oily, smug villain with an airtight alibi. (Wasn't he flat on his back in a hospital bed the night O'N met her demise?) One wonders why he didn't play the black hat more often. With all the references to hypnosis and kleptomania W is an easy movie to over analyze. Amazoners are urged to resist this temptation and simply enjoy W on its' own terms. Watch attentively. This is a good one, noir or not.
Movie Review: An outstanding performance by Jose Ferrer, but the film falters towards the end.
Summary: 4 Stars
This review is for the 2005 Twentieth Century Fox DVD.
The story starts in an upscale department store where Ann Sutton (Gene Tierney), the wife a successful psychiatrist named Dr. William Sutton (Richard Conte), is caught shoplifting. A total stranger named David Korvo (Jose Ferrer) intercedes on her behalf and convinces the store management to let her buy the item and drop any criminal charges. But as it turns out, Korvo's successful rescue has strings attached. Initially, it appears that Korvo wants to blackmail Ann but instead Korvo reveals that he's a therapist and can help her with her apparent personal problems and its also obvious she's too ashamed to admit her problems to her husband. Finally, Korvo uses hypnosis to help her with her existing problems, but as it turns out, he uses treachery in his practices and the therapy becomes totally manipulative. This sets up the remainder of the movie where a murder is committed and Ann becomes the primary suspect.
It's actually a great film most of the way through. Jos' Ferrer, as usual, gives an outstanding performance as a despicable predator of wealthy women and Gene Tierney does a fine job as his latest victim. Unfortunately, I wasn't as impressed with Richard Conte. His performance was mechanical and boring. The film hinges on what can or cannot be done under hypnosis. If you believe anything can be done while under hypnosis, then you will probably enjoy this film more than I did. But even if you accept that premise, the ending falls apart with one of the most unimaginative climaxes I've seen in a long time.
The DVD transfer is very sharp but some tiny specs of deterioration were noticeable once in a while during the film. The sound is very good. The only bonus is optional real-time commentary by film critic Richard Schickel.
Movie: B-
DVD Quality: A-
Movie Review: Love eventually conquers all
Summary: 4 Stars
Gene Tierney stars as the young and attractive Ann Sutton, wife of a wealthy and prominent Los Angeles psychoanalyst in the worthy Otto Preminger directed tale of deceit and intrigue, "Whirlpool". Unbeknown to her husband Dr. William Sutton played by Richard Conte, Tierney had been suffering from lifelong bouts of kleptomania. She was apprehended for the theft of a broach at a chic department store. This commenced a chain of events that would drastically alter her life.
Happening to be nearby and coming to Tierney's rescue was a persuasive Jose Ferrer who convinced the store manager to drop the charges. Ferrer the star of the film played David Korvo, a suave and smooth talking charlatan and hypnotist. Ferrer eventually gained Tierney's confidence by using hypnosis to cure her sleeplessness born out of guilt about her secret afflition. When Ferrer failed to use his charm and power to seduce Tierney during their sessions he proceeded to use her as a pawn in another fantastic scheme.
Ferrer had seductively bilked a previous "patient" Theresa Randolph played by Barbara O'Neil out of $60,000. She had threatened to expose him to the police. Ferrer strangled her and then hypnotized Tierney into certain actions and being present at the crime scene to implicate her as the murderer. Ferrer had set up a very clever alibi and convincing evidence that Tierney was his lover.
A devastated Conte and a skeptical and craggy police lieutenant Colton played grumpily by Charles Bickford collaborated together to prove Tierney's innocence.
Preminger did well in setting the tone of suspense in this effective film noir based on the novel by Guy Endore. Tierney was decent as the femme fatale but the villainous Ferrer was excellent in his role aided also by the very solid performance of Bickford.