Tuesday, February 16, 2010

#64: Leave Her to Heaven (John M. Stahl, 1945)

Released: December 19, 1945

Director: John M. Stahl; Screenplay: Jo Swerling based on a story by Ben Ames Williams; Cinematography: Leon Shamroy; Music: Alfred Newman; Producer: William A. Bacher; Studio: 20th Century Fox

Cast: Gene Tierney (Ellen Berent Harland), Cornel Wilde (Richard Harland), Jeanne Crain (Ruth Berent), Vincent Price (Russell Quinton), Mary Philips (Mrs. Berent), Ray Collins (Glen Robie), Gene Lockhart (Dr. Saunders), Reed Hadley (Dr. Mason), Darryl Hickman (Danny Harland), Chill Wills (Leick Thome)

- “Ellen always wins...”

John M. Stahl, a master of melodrama in the 1930s, takes this soap opera story and infuses it with noirish themes and images. The story is told in flashback, as one resident of a lakeside community relates the plight of Richard Harland (Cornel Wilde), a man recently released from prison who is returning to the city. The man recounts how Harland met the stunningly gorgeous Ellen Berent (Gene Tierney) on a cross-country train and the two instantly hit it off. A romance quickly develops, leading to Ellen spurning her former fiancé Russell Quinton (Vincent Price), and becoming engaged to the successful writer Richard. Slowly, it begins to emerge that the root of Ellen’s obsession with Richard likely stems from the fact that he is a dead ringer for her now deceased father. She was deeply devoted to her father and it is believed that she longs for a replacement. When the two are married and move to the Harland home in Maine, Ellen’s mental instability becomes apparent. She is unbelievably possessive of her husband, even to the point of spurning his handicapped brother. Eventually, this obsession begins to lead to even darker things, including murders and mysterious accidents that eventually bring about her husband’s downfall.


This is another example of a movie that does not follow the traditional noir template. The entire story takes place in scenic mountain ranges or inside lush resorts and houses, following characters who are at home in high society circles. These are not the usual everymen or fast-talking dames that populate so many noirs. Even more noticeable is the Technicolor photography. It’s already been established in this countdown that color need not exclude a movie from being considered a noir, but it is used a bit differently here than in House of Bamboo or Niagara. In those cases, a morose atmosphere was created that equaled anything that could have been created in black-and-white. The colors here are at times vibrant, with sweeping landscape shots. The use of these vibrant colors produces such dissonance by contrasting with the incredibly dark personality and behavior of Ellen.


The most famous scene in the entire film more than earns its infamous reputation. Truth be told, the sequence in which Ellen allows Richard’s handicapped brother Danny (Darryl Hickman) to drown is as chilling as any that I have ever seen. It’s amazing that I am saying this about something filmed in 1945, when the Code certainly limited how cruel things could be portrayed. But it’s a credit to how the scene is set up by Stahl. Rather than continue with the Alfred Newman score that accompanies everything else in the film, for this sequence he cuts the music and allows only the natural sounds of the lake to be heard. You hear birds chirping, wind blowing, and the gentle ripple of the water as Danny struggles to continue swimming. You hear Danny squeal for help, begging Ellen to assist him because his injured legs are tiring. After seeing Danny’s head go under for a third time, the camera then turns to watch Ellen sit their motionless, without a hint of emotion on her face. It’s chilling, there’s no other way to describe it.


The deficiencies of the film are certainly visible – I always have trouble warming the pseudo psychology that is often found in films of the era; and the courtroom scenes are atrocious, which was typical of the times – and I definitely think that it works better in certain individual spots than as a whole. But there is too much here too appreciate for it not to be included in this countdown. Leon Shamroy’s cinematography is unique, with everything covered by the faintest orange hue, as if there is something smoldering under every action. And Gene Tierney, who was nominated for an Academy Award for her role (she lost to Joan Crawford in Mildred Pierce), gives a surprisingly nuanced performance. The all-consuming obsession that her character is known for is certainly what is most memorable, but before she is consumed by her passions, Ellen is actually sympathetic. You actually feel for her as she is devastated by the loss of her father, which makes it all the more jarring as she starts her decline into paranoia.

Oh, and anyone else agree that a case can be made for Gene Tierney being the most beautiful woman of the entire era?

12 comments:

  1. I saw Leave Her to Heaven on late night PBS a long, long time ago, when I was under the age of ten or so. Regrettably, my parents and I missed the entire first half (including the drowning sequence) and began watching from the scene where Ellen aborts her baby on the stairs. Then she commits suicide. After these two sequences, I was thinking to myself: DAMN! This movie is intense! Abortion? Suicide? MURDER? Hilariously, when I got older and saw Gone With the Wind for the first time, all of those graphic elements were in that particular film. And worse!

    Fortunately, when Ebert & Roeper first announced that Leave Her to Heaven was being released on DVD, they showed a snippet of the drowning sequence. And I was relieved when they actually revealed the film's title, which neither me nor my parents had been able to figure out when it played on PBS (we assumed it was a Hitchcock film).

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  2. I haven't seen this in awhile, but there is something wickedly wonderful about having a Stahl film on a noir countdown. The cheap psychology always bothered me too, and Gene Tierney definitely was the most beautiful woman of her era.

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  3. And I LOVE that you gave Some Came Running, one of my all-time favorites, a 10. It deserves nothing less.

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  4. Well Dave, this is another film that I saw fairly recently for the first time, and that lake scene is one of the most chilling in all of cinema. Tierney earned the Oscar nomination in a year when Joan Crawford triumphed for Mildred Pierce. And the film scowcases an exceptional Alfred Newman score. Yeah, the courtroom scenes areas bad as the ones in A PLACE IN THE SUN six years later, but this is typical of the stereotyping of the times. I had less of a problem with the psuedo-psychology, as this was an outgrowith of the melodramatics that defined this and other Stahl dramas like MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION and IMITATION OF LIFE.

    And then there's that extraordinary cinematographer Leon Shamroy, who with 18 nominations, is tied for the most in that department of all-time. And he won four times, including the win for this film, which was richly deserved. He also did great work in WILSON and CLEOPATRA (two more Oscars) and in LOVE IS A MANY-SPLENDORED THING and THE KING AND I.

    Incidentally Dave, some of the best descriptive writing on this entire countdown is on display in your coverage of the horrifying lake scene:

    "Rather than continue with the Alfred Newman score that accompanies everything else in the film, for this sequence he cuts the music and allows only the natural sounds of the lake to be heard. You hear birds chirping, wind blowing, and the gentle ripple of the water as Danny struggles to continue swimming. You hear Danny squeal for help, begging Ellen to assist him because his injured legs are tiring. After seeing Danny’s head go under for a third time, the camera then turns to watch Ellen sit their motionless, without a hint of emotion on her face. It’s chilling, there’s no other way to describe it."

    Great stuff Dave. Kudos to you.

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  5. Dave, I have off from school this week for winter break, so I will be giving the Minnelli film another look, based on your delirious praise. I've always liked the film well-enough, but I need to see if there's a re-appraisal looming.

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  6. Oh how much I wanna watch this, but it's not available in my country, helas...

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  7. Deliciously chilling scene that you rightly point is hard to phantom how it got passed the censors of the day. Have not seen this is quite a while but that lake scene just stays imbedded in your head.

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  8. The lake scene is definitely one of the most chilling sequences I have seen - murder committed with such apparent politeness. I was slightly surprised to see that you included a movie in such vivid colour in your noir countdown, but, thinking about it, take your point that the elements of noir can be there even in the full light of day!

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  9. Adam - Thanks for stopping in on the countdown. Definitely check it out in its entirety if you haven't yet.

    Doniphon - I just had to include this one, even if it doesn't have all of the typical noir elements. As for SOME CAME RUNNING, as I said at WitD, I'm still reeling from how great I thought it was. A great movie.

    Sam - Yes, Shamroy's cinematography is a treat here... that orange shade of everything looks so alluring. Tierney was a force in the 40s, that's for sure, and as I know most can guess, she will definitely be heard from again in the countdown.

    As for SOME CAME RUNNING, Sam, I'd love to hear your thoughts after you watch it again. I found everything about it outstanding -- the lead performances and especially Mannelli's direction.

    Quirky Character - That's a shame... hopefully you'll get a chance to see it at some point!

    John - Agreed, a very chilling scene. That is what struck me as well, wondering how they got it past the censors in '45.

    Judy - It definitely has the "noir feel" if it lacks the usual visuals. Tierney is a powerhouse throughout.

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  10. Wheeler Dixon in his book, Cinema of Paranoia (2009), outlines a convincing thesis on the movie's psychological underpinnings:

    "... what Ellen fears most is the loss of identity that her marriage will bring, a loss of self that matrimony anticipates in the very act of the wedding ceremony itself. Richard and Ellen’s marriage is not real, can never be real, because Ellen, a product of postwar American culture, seeks a life for herself above all other considerations and refuses to be subsumed in any relationship. Yet unable to declare her true intentions because of the social conventions of the period, Ellen must lie continually about her relationships, about her actions, and, eventually, even about the manner of her death."

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  11. Gene Tierney gave a once in a lifetime performance as the ultra jealous femme fatale in this fantastic movie.

    I have owned it for six years now, and it is hard to believe it was made in 1945. The famous scene where Ellen leads her partner's brother to his hideous death would never be allowed today. It is also good to see it has been finally acknowleged as a classic. I also agree with the remarks that Gene was an incredibly beautiful woman. It must have taken courage to play such a malignant part. She was also impressive in "Night And The City" featuring Richard Widmark.

    Another movie which should be checked out is "Nightmare Alley" with Tyrone Power, another "pretty" face who took an huge risk with one of the bleakest film noirs ever.....

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  12. Wicked blog Dave, and love your profile pic, its almost the same as mine on FB. You have reviewed so many films I have never heard of, its awesome. Just reading down these comments I feel I have to go and buy this one!

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