Ray Milland and Charles Laughton head the cast in “The Big Clock”

The Big Clock (1948) is an American film noir directed by John Farrow and starring Ray Milland and Charles Laughton. The supporting cast included Maureen O’Sullivan (Mrs. John Farrow), George Macready, Rita Johnson, Harry Morgan, and Elsa Lancaster (Mrs. Charles Laughton).

When George Stroud, editor-in-chief of Crimeways magazine, refuses to follow up on a missing person story because he wants to go on a long-postponed honeymoon with his wife, Georgette (O’Sullivan), and young son, he is fired by his boss, Earl Janoth (Laughton).

George drowns his sorrows at a bar where he meets Janoth’s mistress Pauline York (Johnson). George loses track of time and misses his train for his honeymoon. Disgusted, Georgette leaves without him. George spends more time with Pauline and he buys a painting and a sundial.

George eventually goes to Pauline’s apartment. He has no idea how this one action will change his life forever.

 

John Farrow (1904 – 1963) was an Australian film director, producer, and screenwriter. He did most of his film work in the United States. He won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for Around the World in Eighty Days and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director for Wake Island (1942). Farrow’s best success came as a contract director at Paramount Pictures. At Paramount he directed China (1943) starring Alan Ladd and Loretta Young, Two Years Before the Mast made in 1944, but released in 1946, Calcutta (1947), California (1947), and The Big Clock (1948). After he left Paramount, his directorial career was diminished and he never again had a major film success.

Ray Milland (1907 – 1986) was a Welsh-American movie star and film director. He won a Best Actor Oscar for portraying an alcoholic writer in Billy Wilder’s The Lost Weekend (1945). Milland played bit parts at M-G-M and Paramount. While at Paramount, he was loaned to Universal to for a lead in the Deanna Durbin movie Three Smart Girls (1936). The success of the film led to him being cast in leading roles. He became one of Paramount’s biggest stars, remaining there for almost 20 years. Other films starring Milland include The Major and the Minor (1942), Reap the Wild Wind (1942), where he had top billing over John Wayne, the horror classic The Uninvited (1944), The Big Clock (1948), and Dial M for Murder (1954). Later in his career, he starred as Ryan O’Neal’s father in Love Story (1970).

Charles Laughton (1899 – 1962) had a long career on the stage and in Hollywood. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Henry VIII in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) and was nominated for two other Best Actor Oscars for his performances in Mutiny on the Bounty (1933) and Witness for the Prosecution (1957). His performance in The Suspect is considered one of Laughton’s most natural screen performances, which is credited to director Siodmak, a close personal friend of the actor.

 

Ray Milland and Charles Laughton in a publicity still

The Big Clock trivia

• Earl Janoth (Charles Laughton) is based on Henry Luce, the author of the novel on which the movie is based, who worked for.
• Paramount insisted that Maureen O’Sullivan audition for the role of Georgette Stroud.
• George Stroud’s $30,000 a-year salary is equivalent to over $388,000 a year today.
• Noel Neill, played the uncredited elevator operator before she played Lois Lane on the Superman television show.
• Ray Milland, Charles Laughton, and Maureen O’Sullivan previously co-starred in Payment Deferred in 1932.

Click HERE to watch the movie on the Internet Archive.

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Rita Johnson and Ray Milland

Discussion questions

1. The Big Clock has a reputation as one of the top films noir from the 1940s. What do you think?
2. Some critics don’t consider The Big Clock a film noir. What do you think? If not a film noir, what genre would you classify it as?
3. Does the screwball humor with Elsa Lancaster add to the movie’s plot? Do you think it’s overdone or appropriate?
4. What did you think of Ray Milland’s performance? How does it compare to his performance in The Lost Weekend?
5. Were Milland and Maureen O’Sullivan believable as a married couple?
6. What about Charles Laughton's performance? Was he believable as the boss from hell? Did Meryl Streep’s character seem human compared to Earl Janoth?
7. Did John Seitz’s (Double Indemnity, Sunset Boulevard) cinematography add to the suspense of the film?
8. Was there a piece of dialogue or a particular scene that stuck out to you?

Charles Laughton, John Mills, and Brenda de Banzie star in “Hobson’s Choice”

Hobson’s Choice (1954) is a British romantic comedy film directed by David Lean and starring Charles Laughton, John Mills, and Benda de Banzie. The film is based on the play of the same name written by Harold Brighouse. The film’s setting is 1880 Salford, England.

Henry Horatio Hobson (Laughton) is the proprietor of a somewhat fancy boot shop that he runs with his three daughters. Hobson is a widower who rules his business with an iron hand. He doesn’t even pay his daughter any wages. Not only do they work for him, but they keep house for him as well.

The eldest daughter, Maggie (de Banzie) has a real head for business and at 30 years old, she’s too old for marriage, according to her father. One of his main reasons for believing this is because she’s invaluable to his business. The two younger sisters are both keeping company with young professional men but their father is against paying marriage settlements.

Maggie decides that she wants to get out from under her father’s control so she sets her sights on Will Mossop, the most talented boot maker in the city. She convinces him that they should marry and start their own boot business. At first, Will is reluctant. However, Maggie sees potential in Will and she is determined to develop it. She tutors him in writing and advises him in the ways of business.

As a married couple, Maggie and Will have managed to turn their little startup into a very profitable business.

How will this all work out with Henry Hobson who has resented his daughter’s foray into the boot business in direct completion with him?

Brenda di Banzie and John Mills

Charles Laughton (1899 – 1962) had a long career on the stage and in Hollywood. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Henry VIII in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) and was nominated for two other Best Actor Oscars for his performances in Mutiny on the Bounty (1933) and Witness for the Prosecution (1957). His performance in The Suspect is considered one of Laughton’s most natural screen performances, which is credited to director Siodmak, a close personal friend of the actor.

John Mills (1908 - 2005) was an English actor who made over 100 films in the United States and in Great Britain. He won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Ryan’s Daughter (1970). Mills worked on the stage in London in the Noel Coward revue Words and Music (1932). He made his film debut in the U.K. in 1932 and appeared with Ida Lupino in The Ghost Camera (1933). He had a supporting role in Goodbye Mr. Chips (1939) starring Robert Donat. Mills starred as Pip in Great Expectations (1946) to great acclaim and popular box office. Mills continued acting into the 2000s.

Brenda de Banzie (1909 – 1981) was a British actress of stage and screen. American film audiences may remember her as Lucy Drayton in Alfred Hitchcock’s The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), but she had many roles in British cinema. She costarred with Laurence Olivier as his wife in The Entertainer (1960). She starred with Olivier on Broadway in role she created, for which she was nominated for a Tony Award. Other film roles include The Mark (1961), and The Pink Panther (1963).

John Mills, Brenda di Banzie, and Charles Laughton

Hobson’s Choice trivia

• Charles Laughton played the role of Hobson on the stage as a teenager.
• Brenda de Banzie plays a 30-year-old in the film but was 44 at the time of filming.
• John Mills was only nine years younger than Charles Laughton and considered his role as  Will Mossop among his favorite film roles.

To watch the film on YouTube, click the link below.

 

To join the discussion on July 24, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation and a link to join the discussion on Zoom.

Discussion questions

1. What was your overall impression of the film?
2. Did you find the family relationships relatable?
3. Was the relationship between Will and Maggie believable?
4. Which role did you think was most critical to the success of the film?
5. Did anything about this film surprise you?

Robert Mitchum, Shelly Winters, and Lillian Gish star in "The Night of the Hunter"

The Night of the Hunter (1955) is an American thriller directed by Charles Laughton and starring Robert Mitchum, Shelly Winters, and Lillian Gish.

 

The supporting cast includes James Gleason, Evelyn Varden, Billy Chapin, Sally Jane Bruce, and Peter Graves. The screenplay was written by James Agee based on the novel (1953) of the same name by Davis Grub. The cinematography was by Stanley Cortez (The Magnificent Ambersons, Since You Went Away, and The Three Faces of Eve).

The Reverend Harry Powell (Mitchum) is arrested for driving a stolen car. In jail, he shares a cell with Ben Harper (Graves) who killed two men in a bank robbery. He stole $10,000 and made his children never reveal where he hid the money. Harper is hanged for the murders and the secret dies with him.

When Powell is released from jail, he visits Harper’s hometown, where he romances Harper’s widow, Willa (Winters), and marries her, all in an attempt to find the money that Ben had hidden. John Harper (Chapin) is suspicious of Powell from the start and wants nothing to do with him, while his younger sister, Pearl (Bruce) is attracted to him as a replacement for her father.

Will Powell be successful in finding the stolen money? And what will become of the children?

Charles Laughton (1899 – 1962) had a long career on the stage and in Hollywood. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Henry VIII in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) and was nominated for two other Best Actor Oscars for his performances in Mutiny on the Bounty (1933) and Witness for the Prosecution (1957). His performance in The Suspect is considered one of Laughton’s most natural screen performances, which is credited to director Robert Siodmak, a close personal friend of the actor. The Night of the Hunter is the only film Laughton directed.

Robert Mitchum (1917 - 1997) was an American film actor, director, and singer. His breakthrough came in The Story of G.I. Joe (1945) for which he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award. He later starred in the film noir classic Out of the Past (1947) Crossfire (1947), Rachel and the Stranger (1948), River of No Return (1954) The Night of the Hunter (1955) Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957), Home from the Hill (1960), Cape Fear (1962), and Ryan's Daughter (1970). Mitchum would remain busy until the late nineties. Mitchum is rated number 23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male stars of classic American cinema.

Shelley Winters (1920 - 2006) was an American actress whose career in film began in 1943 and continued into the 2000s. Some of Winters’s film roles include A Double Life (1947), The Great Gatsby (1948), Winchester 73 (1950), and A Place in the Sun (1951) for which she was nominated for a Best Actress Academy Award. Winters was in demand throughout the 1950s having four films in release in 1955 including Night of the Hunter. She won a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award for The Diary of Anne Frank (1959). She won her second Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance in A Patch of Blue (1965). Besides her film work, Winters starred on Broadway and was a frequent guest star on popular television series and made-for-TV movies.

Lillian Gish (1893 – 1993) was an American actress; her career spanned 75 years. Gish was a major movie star during the silent film era. She was called the “First Lady of American Cinema” because she is credited with developing film acting techniques when the medium was in its infancy. She had a close professional relationship with director D.W. Griffith who directed her in some of the most famous films from the silent era including The Birth of a Nation (1915), Broken Blossoms (1915), and Orphans of the Storm (1921). With the advent of sound, Gish performed on the stage and occasionally appeared in film roles. Gish’s last film appearance was in The Whales of August (1987) co-starring Bette Davis, Vincent Price, and Ann Sothern.

The Night of the Hunter trivia

• Later in his career, Robert Mitchum said that Charles Laughton was his favorite director.
• The novel and film are partially based on the life of serial killer Harry Powers (1893 - 1932).
• Elsa Lanchester suggested the casting of Lillian Gish in the role of Rachel Cooper.
• Shelly Winters said of her performance that it was “the most thoughtful and reserved performance I ever gave.”
• Charles Laughton’s first choices for the film’s male and female leads were Gary Cooper and Betty Grable but both turned it down.

To watch the movie on YouTube, click on the link below.

Discussion questions

1. I categorized this film as a thriller. Do you agree with that category? How would you classify it?
2. What did you think of the performances of the child actors? Did their performances seem natural and believable to you?
3. Robert Mitchum’s character is one of the most diabolical in all of film. What did you think of his performance? Was it Oscar-worthy?
4. Do you agree with Shelly Winter’s assessment of her performance?
5. Would you recommend this film to a friend to watch?
6. Lillian Gish is a legend among film actors. What did you think of her performance?

To join the discussion on June 5, 2023, 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation with a link to join the discussion on Zoom.

Tyrone Power heads the cast in “Witness for the Prosecution”

Witness for the Prosecution (1957) is an American mystery thriller directed by Billy Wilder and starring Tyrone Power, Marlene Dietrich, and Charles Laughton. The supporting cast includes Elsa Lanchester, John Williams, Henry Daniell, Ian Wolfe, Torin Thatcher, Norma Varen, Uno O’Connor, and Ruta Lee.

Sir Wilfrid Robarts (Laughton), a senior barrister, who is recovering from a heart attack, agrees to defend Leonard Vole against the objections of his nurse Miss Pimsoll (Lanchester). Vole has been accused of murdering Emily French, a wealthy widow with no family who had left him the bulk of her estate.

Robarts interviews Vole’s wife Christine (Dietrich) who provides her husband with an alibi. Robarts finds Christine’s testimony off somehow and is suspicious of her motives.

Will Robarts be able to defend Vole against the charge of murder or will circumstances beyond his control change everything?

Henry Daniell, Tyrone Power, and Charles Laughton

Billy Wilder (1906 - 2002) was an Austrian-born American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He won six Academy Awards for his writing and direction and was nominated twenty-one times over a career that spanned five decades. Wilder started his career as a writer, penning the screenplays for Ninotchka (1939), Ball of Fire (1942), Double Indemnity (1945), The Lost Weekend (1946), Sunset Boulevard (1951)  Boulevard (1951), Sabrina (1955), Some Like it Hot (1960), and The Apartment (1961). As a director, he won Academy Awards for directing The Lost Weekend (1946) and The Apartment (1961). Wilder directed fourteen different actors in Oscar-nominated roles. He is considered one of the most versatile directors from Hollywood’s Classical period.

Tyrone Power (1914 – 1958) was a major movie star as well as a star on stage and radio. He was one of the biggest box office draws of the 1930s and 1940s. Power was under exclusive contract to 20th Century-Fox where his image and film choices were carefully selected by studio head Zanuck. After the war, Power wanted to stretch his acting past romantic comedies and swashbuckler roles. Nightmare Alley was Power’s personal favorite of all his films. Some of Power's films include Marie Antoinette (1938), The Rains Came (1939), Jesse James (1939), The Mark of Zorro (1940), and  Blood and Sand (1941). Later in his career, he starred in Captain from Castile (1947), The Black Rose (1950), and Witness for the Prosecution (1957). Power’s favorite of all his films that he starred in was Nightmare Alley (1947) even though it was a commercial and a critical failure when first released. Its status as a classic film noir has been recently reevaluated.

Charles Laughton (1899 – 1962) had a long career on the stage and in Hollywood. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Henry VIII in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) and was nominated for two other Best Actor Oscars for his performances in Mutiny on the Bounty (1933) and Witness for the Prosecution (1957). His performance in The Suspect is considered one of Laughton’s most natural screen performances, which is credited to director Siodmak, a close personal friend of the actor.

Marlene Dietrich (1901 – 1992) was a German and American actress. Dietrich got her start in silent films in her native Germany. She was directed by Josef von Sternberg in The Blue Angel (1930) which made Dietrich an international star. Its success also earned her a contract with Paramount Pictures in Hollywood. Dietrich had her biggest successes during the 1930s in films like Morocco (1930), Shanghai Express (1932), Blonde Venus (1932), The Scarlet Empress (1934), The Devil is a Woman (1935), and Destry Rides Again (1939). After World War II, Dietrich starred in A Foreign Affair (1948), Stage Fright (1950), and Judgment at Nuremberg (1960). 

Witness for the Prosecution trivia

• Marlene Dietrich was convinced she would receive an Academy Award nomination and was crushed when she did not.
• Agatha Christie was pleased with the film version of her novel.
• This was Tyrone Power’s last completed film. He died of a heart attack on the set of Solomon and Sheba in 1959.
• William Holden was the director’s first choice to play Vole but he was unavailable. Other actors considered include Gene Kelly, Kirk Douglas, Glenn Ford, Jack Lemmon, and Roger Moore.
• Actresses considered for the role of Christine include Ava Gardner and Rita Hayworth.

To watch the movie on YouTube, click on the link below.

To join the discussion on May 29, 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation and link to join the discussion on Zoom.

Discussion questions

1. What did you think of the film's casting?
2. Some critics thought Tyrone Power looked too old to play Vole. Do you agree?
3. The cast is impressive. Did any one cast member stand out to you?
4. Was the ending a surprise to you?
5. How does this film stack up to other Billy Wilder films?

Gregory Peck tops the cast in Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Paradine Case”

The Paradine Case (1947) is an American courtroom drama directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Gregory Peck, Ann Todd, Charles Laughton, Charles Coburn, and Ethel Barrymore. The film introduced Alida Valli (billed as Valli on screen) and Louis Jourdan. The film was the last movie Hitchcock directed while under contract to David O. Selznick.

In London, Anna Paradine (Valli), a beautiful young Italian woman is accused of murdering her older, blind husband. The fact that her husband, a wealthy retired colonel cast suspicion on the enigmatic Anna. Anna’s personal lawyer, Sir Simon Flaquer (Coburn), hires Anthony Keane (Peck), a young, successful lawyer to defend her. Keane has been happily married to Gay (Todd) but he is instantly fascinated by his new client. 

Is Anna a murderer? Did she poison her husband on her own or did someone else do it? Was it the colonel’s valet (Jourdan)? Will Keane’s infatuation with Anna keep him from finding the truth and destroy his marriage in the process?

Gregory Peck and Alida Valli

Alfred Hitchcock (1899 – 1980) was an English film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is one of the most influential filmmakers of the 20th century. Hitchcock directed over 50 feature films, many are classics that have been honored and studied for years. Some of Hitchcock’s classic films include The 39 Steps (1939), Rebecca (1940), Suspicion (1941), Shadow of a Doubt (1943), Notorious (1946), Rear Window (1954), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959), and Psycho (1960).

Gregory Peck (1916 – 2002) was one of the biggest stars in Hollywood. He was nominated three times for Best Actor finally winning for his role as Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). Peck had non-exclusive contracts with David O. Selznick and Twentieth Century-Fox which gave him great flexibility in the roles he chose to play. Peck first gained prominence in The Keys of the Kingdom (1944) and he remained a major movie star through the 1960s. Some of his iconic films include Spellbound (1944), Captain Horatio Hornblower (1951), Roman Holiday (1953), and The Guns of Navarone (1961).

Ann Todd, Charles Coburn, and Gregory Peck

Ann Todd (1907 - 1993) was an English actress and singer. She started out on the London stage but ended up appearing in films, becoming a star opposite James Mason in The Seventh Veil (1945). Due to the success of that film, she was signed by producer David O. Selznick. It was reported to be the most “lucrative”film contract signed by an English actress. However, she found limited success in America. Todd was married three times. Her third husband was to film director David Lean. Together they collaborated on three films produced in England.

Charles Laughton (1899 – 1962) had a long career on the stage and in Hollywood. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Henry VIII in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) and was nominated for two other Best Actor Oscars for his performances in Mutiny on the Bounty (1933) and Witness for the Prosecution (1957). His performance in The Suspect is considered one of Laughton’s most natural screen performances, which is credited to director Siodmak, a close personal friend of the actor.

Charles Coburn (1877 – 1961) was an Academy-Award-winning character actor. Coburn was one of the most popular character actors in film during the 1940s. He was nominated for three Best Supporting Actor Academy Awards for The Devil and Miss Jones (1941), for The More the Merrier (1943)—won, and The Green Years (1946). Other classic films featuring Coburn include The Lady Eve (1941), Kings Row (1942), The Constant Nymph (1943), Monkey Business (1952), and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953).

Ethel Barrymore (1879 - 1959) was an American stage and film actress and part of the famous Barrymore family of actors. Her equally famous brothers were Lionel and John Barrymore. Barrymore got her start on the stage and she was among its brightest stars for many years. Barrymore also had a successful career on the other side of the Atlantic in London where she starred in Peter the Great. She achieved one of her biggest Broadway successes in W. Somerset Maugham’s comedy, The Constant Wife (1926). Barrymore was a popular character actress in film during the 1940s. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in None but the Lonely Heart (1944) opposite Cary Grant who played her son. Other film roles include The Spiral Staircase (1946), The Paradine Case (1947), and Pinky (1949).

Alida Valli (1921 - 2006) was an Italian actress who made films in Europe and the United States. She came to America under contract to David O. Selznick who considered her another Ingrid Bergman. Introduced as “Valli” in Alfred Hitchcock’ The Paradine Case, she never lived up to the promise Selznick had for her. Her next two films The Miracle of the Bells (1948) co-starring Fred MacMurray and Frank Sinatra and Walk Softly Stranger (1950) co-starring Joseph Cotten were box office failures. The latter film was completed in 1948 but its release was held up for two years with the hope that it would capitalize on the popularity of The Third Man (1949). Valli had much greater success in Europe where she starred in films until 2002.

Louis Jourdan (1921 - 2015) was a French film and television actor. Jourdan worked on the stage in Europe and even began working in films as early as 1939, but his film work was interrupted due to World War II. After the war, Jourdan was brought to Hollywood by producer David O. Selznick. His first film in Hollowood was Alfred Hitchcock’s The Paradine Case (1947). The next year he made Letter from an Unknown Woman, one of his most famous roles during his long career. Jourdan made movies in Europe and Hollywood and starred on Broadway in The Immoralist in 1954 co-starring with Geraldine Page and James Dean. Jourdan’s most famous and successful American film was Gigi (1958). The film cos-starred Leslie Caron and Maurice Chevalier and won nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

The Paradine Case trivia

• Alfred Hitchcock didn’t think Gregory Peck, Alida Valli, and Louis Jourdan were right for their roles and wanted Laurence Olivier or Ronald Colman as Anthony Keane, Greta Garbo as Mrs. Paradine, and Robert Newton instead of Jourdan.
• The film cost as much as Gone with the Wind (1939) due to Selznick’s insistence that Hitchcock due reshoots and his constant interference on the set.
• A replica of the Old Bailey courtroom was constructed at a cost of $400,000.
• Hitchcock makes his cameo appearance almost 40 minutes into the film.

Why watch this film?

• Watching any Alfred Hitchcock movie is always interesting.
• This is probably the largest cast of stars the director worked with at one time; Laughton, Coburn, and Barrymore were all Oscar winners at the time of the film’s release.
• The film introduced two European stars to American audiences in Louis Jourdan and Alida Valli.
• The attention to detail as far as the film’s production goes is staggering.

To watch the film on YouTube, click on the link below.

To join the discussion on June 28, 2021, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will be sent an invitation with links to the discussion on Zoom.

Discussion questions:

1. Did this seem like an Alfred Hitchcock movie to you? 
2. Do you think this movie deserves more attention from Hitchcock critics?
3. The film introduced Jourdan and Valli to American movie goers. What did you think of them?
4. Was Valli a good choice for Mrs. Paradine? Could you see another actress in the role?
5. When the film was released, Ann Todd and Joan Tetzel (Judy Flaquer and Gay’s best friend, received the best reviews. Do you think they were justified?

Charles Laughton and Maureen O’Hara check in at “Jamaica Inn”

Jamaica Inn (1939) is a British period adventure movie directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Charles Laughton, Maureen O’Hara, and Robert Newton. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Daphne du Maurier. The screenplay was written by long-time Hitchcock collaborators Sidney Gilliat, Joan Harrison, and Alma (Mrs. Hitchcock) Reville.

A modest inn in Cornwall is the headquarters for a gang of murderers and thieves. The gang plans a series of shipwrecks by extinguishing the warning lights along the coast. After the ships run aground, the gang kills the surviving crew and steals the cargo.  

Mary Yellan (O’Hara) goes to live with her Aunt Patience, her deceased mother’s sister, at Jamaica Inn. Immediately, Mary fears things are not quite right. She becomes acquainted with Sir Humphrey Pengallan (Laughton), the local squire who takes a shine to her and treats her kindly. As Mary becomes more and more suspicious of the goings-on at Jamaica Inn, she fears for her life and doesn’t know who to trust.

Alfred Hitchcock (1899 – 1980) was an English film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is one of the most influential filmmakers of the 20th century. Hitchcock directed over 50 feature films, many are classics that have been honored and studied for years. Some of Hitchcock’s classic films include The 39 Steps (1939), Rebecca (1940), Suspicion (1941), Shadow of a Doubt (1943), Notorious (1946), Rear Window (1954), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959), and Psycho (1960).

Charles Laughton (1899 – 1962) had a long career on the stage and in Hollywood. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Henry VIII in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) and was nominated for two other Best Actor Oscars for his performances in Mutiny on the Bounty (1933) and Witness for the Prosecution (1957). His performance in The Suspect is considered one of Laughton’s most natural screen performances, which is credited to director Siodmak, a close personal friend of the actor.

Maureen O’Hara (1920 - 2015) was an Irish-American actress and singer. In her native Ireland, O’Hara trained with the Abbey Theatre at age 14. She screen-tested for the role of Mary Yellan in Jamaica Inn at age 19. Director Hitchcock wasn't impressed with O’Hara’s test but Laughton persuaded him to cast her. After finishing the film, O’Hara moved to Hollywood where she was signed to contract at RKO. In 1941 she starred in How Green Was My Valley, her first collaboration with director John Ford. She starred alongside Tyrone Power in The Black Swan (1942), The Spanish Main (1945) with Paul Henreid, and Sinbad the Sailor (1947) with Douglas Fairbanks Jr. That same year she starred in the Christmas classic Miracle on 34th Street with John Payne, Edmund Gwenn, and a young Natalie Wood. Other popular films include The Quiet Man (1952), The Parent Trap (1961), and McLintock! (1963). 

Robert Newton (1905 – 1956) was a popular English actor and is probably best remembered for his role as Long John Silver in the Walt Disney version of Treasure Island (1950). His exaggerated accent in that role is credited with what we consider the “pirate voice.” Newton was a popular player in London’s West End and he also appeared on Broadway, replacing Laurence Olivier in Private Lives. He made several films in Hollywood including The Desert Rats (1953), Les Miserables (1952), Blackbeard the Pirate (1952), and The High and the Mighty (1954).

Jamaica Inn trivia:

• The first of three Hitchcock films based on the works of Daphne Du Maurier. The other two were Rebecca (1940) and The Birds (1963).
• Hitchcock did not make a cameo in the film; he made cameos in all future films.
• In interviews, Hitchcock said he was unhappy with the final results, even though the film was a big success at the box office.
• This was the last of Hitchcock’s British films.

To watch the film on YouTube click the link below.

To join the discussion of this film on April 27, 2021, at 6:30 p.m. on Zoom, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an email with an invitation and link to the meeting.

Why watch this film?

• It’s the last of director Alfred Hitchcock’s British films.
• It marks the movie debut of Maureen O’Hara.
• The film is considered a minor work by the director and is hardly ever screened or discussed.
• So-called second-rate Hitchcock is often better than first-rate anyone else.

Discussion questions:

1. What was your overall impression of the film?
2. If you didn't know beforehand, would you have suspected that this was a Hitchcock film?
3. What did you think of the performances of Laughton and O’Hara? Was this an impressive screen debut for the then nineteen-year-old female lead?
4. Why do you think this film is ignored when discussing Hitchcock’s films?

Maureen O’Hara and Robert Newton

“The Suspect”—Film Noir Set in Merry Old London

The Suspect (1944) directed by Robert Siodmak (Criss Cross) is a film noir set in London at the turn of the twentieth century. It stars Charles Laughton and Ella Raines.

The movie is set in early 20th-century London, but notice how Ella Raines is
dressed in 1940s glamor in this lobby card art.

Laughton plays Philip Marshall, a kindly gentleman married to an insufferable woman (Rosalind Ivan). So insufferable is she that their adult son leaves the house because he can’t stand living under the same roof with his own mother! After his son leaves, Philip occupies his son’s room, refusing to share space with his wife.

Marshall is a respectable accountant and well-liked by all who know him. When a young stenographer named Mary Gray (Ella Raines) comes to him looking for a job, Marshall is smitten with her. They begin a chaste affair, but this is film noir so nothing ends well, right?

Ella Raines (in period costume) with camera assistants Robert Lazlo and Frank Heisler and cinematographer Paul Ivano on the set of The Suspect

Siodmak’s direction is crisp and he gets a great performance out of Laughton and the other cast members. Laughton's character is completely sympathetic and I found myself decidedly on his side during the whole movie. Henry Daniell plays Gilbert Simmons, Marshall’s wife-beating drunkard of a neighbor, a role he plays to perfection. Daniell made a career out of playing these kinds of villainous characters. He was the evil Reverend Brocklehurst in Jane Eyre (1943) the year before.

Robert Siodmak (1900 – 1973) had a very successful career in Hollywood and is best known for his thrillers and films noir. He signed a seven-year contract with Universal and directed The Killers (1946), the film that made Ava Gardner a star. He worked with some of the top movie stars during Hollywood’s Golden Age, including Deanna Durbin, Gene Kelly, Burt Lancaster, Dorothy McGuire, Yvonne de Carlo, Olivia de Havilland, and Barbara Stanwyck. Often compared to Hitchcock in his prime, he never got the recognition that the Master of Suspense did, but most of his films hold up remarkably well and are worth watching.

Charles Laughton (1899 – 1962) had a long career on the stage and in Hollywood. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Henry VIII in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) and was nominated for two other Best Actor Oscars for his performances in Mutiny on the Bounty (1933) and Witness for the Prosecution (1957). His performance in The Suspect is considered one of Laughton’s most natural screen performances, which is credited to director Siodmak, a close personal friend of the actor.

Ella Raines (1920 – 1988) was born in Washington State where she studied drama at the University of Washington. Howard Hawks spotted her in a college production and signed her to a contract. Right out of the gate, she starred in some big movies, including Preston Sturges’s Hail the Conquering Hero and Tall in the Saddle (both 1944) where she shared equal billing with John Wayne. As her movie career declined in the 1950s, Raines worked in series television starring as Janet Dean, Registered Nurse (1954-55). She appeared on the cover of Life magazine twice, once in 1944 and in 1947.




Join us on Zoom April 14 for a discussion of The Suspect at 6:30 p.m. Central Time. Click here for details on how to participate. It’s free!

Some questions for discussion.
1. From what you know about film noir, do you think this film fits that category? Why or why not?

2. Does The Suspect have a femme fatale? If it does, who is she?

3. What is the first crime committed in the film?

4. Was the London setting believable to you? Was it important? Could it have worked set in America during the same time period?

5. What about the ending? Was it what you expected?

Here’s the press caption to the photograph above: Clark Gable came to Joan Bennett and Walter Wanger’s party at unique Sportsman’s Lodge with Ella Raines. At the table were Greer Garson and Richard Ney. The whole valley turned out for Walter’s opening of “Canyon Passage” at the Studio Theater, the biggest crowd in months, but only about 50 attended the dinner preceding the premiere.

Canyon Passage was released in 1946 starring Dana Andrews, Brian Donlevy, and Susan Hayward. It was filmed in Technicolor, which was rare in those days for a western. Producer Walter Wanger and movie star Joan Bennett were husband and wife at the time.


*Original blog post said that Ella Raines was discovered by Howard Hughes. This is incorrect, it was Howard Hawks.

Screening of "It Started with Eve" June 9 at Daystar Center

It Started with Eve (1941)

Where: Daystar Center, 1550 S. State Street

When: June 9, 2018

Time: 6:45 p.m.

Hosted by Stephen Reginald

It Started with Eve (1941) is a romantic comedy starring Deanna Durbin, Charles Laughton, and Robert Cummings. Cummings is Johnny Reynolds, the son of millionaire Jonathan Reynolds (Laughton) who is on his deathbed. Johnny’s father’s one wish is that he would get to see his son’s fiance, Gloria Pennington (Margaret Tallichet) before he dies. When Johnny discovers that Gloria and her mother are not at their hotel, he asks hatcheck girl Anne Terry (Durbin) to pretend to be his fiance for the evening. Things get complicated when the elder Reynolds has a “miraculous” recovery and Johnny scrambles to explain to his fiancee that Anne means nothing to him. Then there’s his father who has taken an immediate liking to Anne. Anne is an aspiring opera singer who hopes to get to sing at a party that Jonathan is planning to introduce his "future daughter-in-law" to his influential friends and associates. Will Johnny be able to fool his father long enough so that Anne gets her big break?

Durbin was one of the highest paid movie actress in the world when It Started with Eve was released. This film is considered one of her best, in a film career that saw the actress headline 21 movies from 1936 to 1948. New York Times critic Bosley Crowther lauded the film and the performances of Laughton and Durbin. He said, “Miss Durbin is as refreshing and pretty as she has ever been and sings three assorted songs—including a Tchaikovsky waltz—with lively charm.” Durbin and Laughton became great friends during filming. They made another movie together, Because of Him in 1946.

Deanna Durbin, Robert Cummings, and Charles Laughton

Have some Joe and Enjoy the Show!

You can bring food and beverages into the auditorium; we even have small tables set up next to some of the seats. General Admission: $5 Students and Senior Citizens: $3.

Join the Chicago Film club; join the discussion

Twice a month we screen classic films and have a brief discussion afterward. For more information, including how to join (it’s free), click here. The Venue 1550 is easily accessible by the CTA. Please visit Transit Chicago for more information on transportation options.

Stephen Reginald is a freelance writer and editor. He has worked at various positions within the publishing industry for over 25 years. Most recently he was executive editor for McGraw-Hill’s The Learning Group Division. A long-time amateur student of film, Reginald hosts “Chicago Film Club,” a monthly movie event held in the South Loop, for the past two years. Reginald has also taught several adult education film classes at Facets Film School, Chicago.

Maureen O’Hara (Finally) Gets Her Oscar

Maureen O’Hara, the star of such classic films as The Hunchback of Notre Dame, How Green Was My Valley, Sentimental Journey, The Miracle on 34th Street, The Quiet Man, and The Parent Trap, received a special honorary Academy Award. Incredibly, O’Hara, 94, was never nominated for a competitive Oscar in a career that spanned 75 years.

From left to right: John Payne, Edmund Gwenn, Natalie Wood, and O’Hara In Miracle on 34th Street

In her acceptance speech, O’Hara paid tribute to the three men who helped her career: Charles Laughton, John Wayne, and John Ford. Laughton signed O’Hara to her first film contract and costarred with her in The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Jamaica Inn, and This Land Is Mine. O’Hara costarred with Wayne in five films, including Rio Grande, The Quiet Man, McClintock!, and Big Jake. Ford directed O’Hara in How Green Was My Valley, The Quiet Man, and The Long Gray Line.

If you were to award O’Hara for one of her film performances, what would it be?