Harrison's Reports (1949)

206 HARRISON'S REPORTS December 24, 1949 "Paid in Full" with Lizabeth Scott, Robert Cummings and Diana Lynn (Paramount, no rel. date set; time, 105 min.) A moody, cheerless tear-jerker. Its appeal will probably be limited to those women who enjoy the weepy type of "soap operas" that are heard on the radio in the afternoons. The story, which is a triangle affair revolving around two sisters in love with the same man, is supposedly based on fact, but it impresses one as being incredible, particularly in its psychological aspects, which deal with the mental anguish undergone by both sisters because of their knowledge that childbirth would menace their health. Men in particular will probably be bored by the wordy, slow-moving proceedings, which are shrouded in gloom from start to finish. The players try hard to make something of their roles, but they do not succeed in making them either convincing or persuasive. The production values are very good: — Lizabeth Scott, employed in the advertising department of a swank fashion store, is secretly in love with Robert Cummings, the advertising head, but he marries Diana Lynn, her younger sister, a vain self-centered girl who was a model in the store. Bored with her marriage but jealous because Cummings" work kept him in close association with Lizabeth, Diana decides to have a child even though her medical history indicated that childbirth would menace her health. A daughter is born, and Diana, acting true to form, tries to keep the child to herself and to estrange her from Cummings. Within several years Diana takes the child and separates from him. Cummings turns to Lizabeth in his unhappiness and discovers her true meaning for him, but Lizabeth urges him to effect a reconciliation with Diana. Returning home, Diana finds Lizabeth and Cummings eating breakfast together and accuses her of infidelity. Lizabeth, humiliated, dashes out of the house and, while backing up her car, accidentally kills Diana's child. Shortly thereafter Diana divorces Cummings. He marries Lizabeth. Meanwhile the loss of her child causes Diana to have a complete physical and mental breakdown. Lizabeth embarks on a preconceived plan to have a baby, fully aware that she had little chance of coming through such an ordeal alive. It all ends with Diana making a complete recovery, and with Lizabeth sacrificing her life to have the baby, which she gives to Cummings and Diana for adoption, thus paying her debt to them. It is indicated that Cummings and Diana will become reconciled. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis and directed by William Dieterle from a screen play by Robert Blees and Charles Schnee, suggested by a story by Frederic M. Loomis, M.D. The cast includes Eve Arden, Ray Collins, Frank McHugh, Stanley Ridges and others. Strictly adult fare. "The Rugged O'Riordans" with an all-Australian cast (Univ.-Int'l, January; time, 76 min.) Made in Australia, this is a fairly interesting melodrama centering around a pioneering Irish family and their efforts to establish homesteads in the vast Australian wilderness. The story is punctuated by the many heartbreaks and disappointments encountered as they convert the foreboding wilderness into farm and pasture land, and woven into the plot is an explosive romantic triangle involving two brothers who love the same girl. It is compelling dramatic fare, well directed and acted, but it is doubtful if it will do more than mild business in this country since the players are unknown. The photography is outstanding, and the outdoor backgrounds rugged and beautiful: — The story opens with John O'Malley and his wife, Thelma Scott, settling in a fertile Australian valley along with other Irish immigrants, and eventually converting the valley into farm and pasture land by back-breaking efforts. In the passing years O'Malley finds himself with five fullgrown sons, whom he persuades to start homesteads of their own in a vast new territory offered by the government to settlers. The boys, accompanied by Robert Nelson, a neighboring widower, and by Wendy Gibb, his daughter, journey to the new territory situated atop a high plateau. The many months of hard labor required to clear the area is discouraging, but under the leadership of Michael Pate, the oldest brother, they make considerable progress. Tension mounts, however, when an intense rivalry springs up between Pate and Ken Wayne, a younger brother, for the love of Wendy. Wayne was engaged to Wendy, but he carried on with other girls in a distant village, and Pate objected to his actions. Meanwhile a deep feeling of love had grown between Wendy and Pate. The issue eventually leads to a fight in which Pate is crippled temporarily by Wayne. The boys' mother steps into the breach and, after censuring them strongly, patches up the quarrel. Wayne withdraws his claim on Wendy and, by the time Pate gets well again, Wayne and the other brothers build a home for him to share with Wendy. It was produced and directed by Charles Chauvel, from a screen play he wrote in collaboration with Elsa Chauvel and Maxwell Dunn. Suitable for the family. "Side Street" with Farley Granger, Cathy O'Donnell and Paul Kelly (MGM, February; time, 81 mm.) A tense, swift-moving crime melodrama, revolving around a basically honest young mailman who becomes involved in a web of intrigue and murder when he commits a robbery without realizing that his victims were murderous blackmailers. The action is dramatic and exciting throughout, and towards the finish there is a highly thrilling chase sequence through the streets of New York's financial district, made extremely suspenseful by the remarkable camera angles from which the chase was shot. Farley Granger, as the young would-be thief, is effective, and even though he committed a robbery he wins one's sympathy, first, because he did it in a moment of weakness and out of a desire to provide for his wife and their expected baby, and, secondly, because his conscience compels him to return the money. Cathy O'Donnell, as his loyal wife, is appealing. The workings of New York's police department are depicted in an interesting way, and the realism derived from the authentic backgrounds add much to the excitement: — Granger, a temporary mailman whose wife was expecting a baby, steals an envelope containing $30,000 from an office, which unbeknownst to him was a front for a gang of blackmailers. The money had been paid by a wealthy man to Adele Jergens, one of the gang, lest she publicize his love affair with her, after which she had been killed by her confederates to eliminate her as a partner. Granger, making a package of the money, leaves it in the care of a saloonkeeper and goes out of town to hide, informing his wife that he had obtained another job. But he becomes consciencestricken within a few days, and goes to the robbed office to confess. The wily blackmailers cleverly deny that anything had been stolen from them, confusing Granger. He goes to the saloon for the package only to learn that the saloonkeeper has absconded with it. James Craig, one of the blackmailers, kidnaps him and demands the money. Granger tells him the truth, but Craig refuses to believe him. He escapes and sets out to find the saloonkeeper, only to discover him murdered. In the complicated events that follow, Granger finds himself hunted by the police for the saloonkeeper's murder and, while trying to clear himself, he becomes involved innocently in the murder of Jean Hagen, one of Craig's girl-friends, who had trapped him into meeting Craig. Meanwhile the police, headed by Paul Kelly, become convinced that Granger was innocent of the murders. They trail Craig to his hideout, arriving just he leaves with Granger, whom he planned to kill, too. The police save Granger after a hectic chase in which they trap and kill Craig. It was produced by Sam Zimbalist and directed by Anthony Mann from a story and screen play by Sydney Boehm. Adult fare.