SUDDEN FEAR (1952)

(Week 9: Joan Crawford)

SUDDEN FEAR (1952)

Directed by David Miller

from bitlogger.blogspot.com

This film starts with a conversation about its male lead, Lester Blaine, an actor who isn't quite attractive enough to play a romantic hero. Joan Crawford's character, Myra Hudson, is the playwright who opposes to Lester's being in her play. She would soon learn that in life, unlike on stage, a man can be charming without being conventionally handsome or dreamy. 

This film could not be more perfectly cast. Jack Palance as Lester has a tremendous presence and is fantastic as a menace. Gloria Grahame plays his accomplice in a role that seems cut out for her. Crawford, by now an aging star with a struggling career, isn't taking much of a risk here but still gives a strong performance. Together they serve the story what it needs. 

And what a story it is. Lester seduces Myra, marries her and plots to murder her in order to take her money. When she accidentally finds out, Myra doesn't call the police but instead plans to murder him--obviously not your typical victim. You see her quickly transforms from a happy, somewhat saintlike woman to a terrified victim, then to a vengeful heroine. Crawford isn't afraid to get ugly here. She proves herself an authentic actress with raw emotion in a sequence where she discovers the truth. She goes from a state of bliss to heartbroken, to absolute terror. Her terrified face is candid and without composure, so unlike the elegant and pompous movie star she often appears to be.

from Mubi.com

The film is filled with suspense almost in every corner. The characters and their actions are unpredictable. Without spoiling anything, I would say that the ending surprised me, not the things that happened but how they did: I didn't expect Myra to turn out the way she did in the end, nor did I expect the moral with which the film concludes. The way the final murder is orchestrated, too, is witty and subtle.

I love a genre film that transcends its genre, and this is one of them. It proves that genre fiction can be well written, too, with substantial characters and well-developed story arcs, and is in fact more effective because of it. All these elements combined makes SUDDEN FEAR a great watch.