Vienna-born Walbrook (1900-1967) established himself as a star of stage and films in Germany and Austria before emigrating to England and becoming a Continental leading man in such films as The Red Shoes (1948) and La Ronde (1950). In the 1940s she was married for four years to the celebrated film director Carol Reed. London-born Wynyard (1906-1964) was a distinguished star of the British stage who also succeeded on Broadway and in American and English films, winning an Oscar nomination for Cavalcade (1933). Walbrook was singled out by critics of the day for particular praise as the husband, whose outward veneer of suave sophistication hides inner cruelty, greed and desperation. Bella at last finds an unlikely aide in an ex-Scotland Yard detective (Frank Pettingell) she has met socially.īoth roles offer plum parts for actors, with Wynyard delivering a convincing performance in the role that would win Bergman a Best Actress Oscar. In the British film, Walbrook plays Paul Mallen, who convinces his bride Bella (Wynyard) that she is losing her memory and indeed her mind while he searches her Victorian mansion for the rubies that had belonged to her late aunt. Luckily for film fans, the original somehow survived and may be enjoyed today.īoth versions of Gaslight were adapted from Patrick Hamilton's Angel Street, a long-running London stage mystery that also enjoyed success on Broadway in 1941 with Vincent Price and Judith Evans in the leading roles. Indeed, many critics still feel that the British version is superior, portraying as it does the casual cruelty of the English class system. Because the original had won high critical praise, the studio hoped in this manner to avoid unfavorable comparisons to the lavishly produced remake. When MGM bought the rights to remake this Victorian mystery-thriller with Charles Boyer and Ingrid Bergman in the leading roles, it ordered all copies of the British film destroyed. The original stars Anton Walbrook as the villainous husband in search of a fortune in rubies and Diana Wynyard as the unfortunate wife who is almost driven insane by his devious ways. This movie is highly recommended to fans of noir film, particularly those who've seen the more-famous 1944 Hollywood version.The British version of Gaslight (1940), also known in England as A Strange Case of Murder, preceded its American remake by four years. Walbrook, who by that time had been in motion pictures for 25 years, is perfect as the sly, debonair, and viciously evil Mallen Wynyard exudes vulnerability and panic her Bella is terrified that she might be quite sincerely insane, vacillating from dignified serenity to sheer panic. But where it draws most of its strength is from the two leads. It's remarkably well lit, too, typical for movies of the period. ![]() What's Mallen's angle? Unlike its remake, this earlier version is delightfully understated - and bereft of stars whose names would be recognizable in the United States. Is he just playing with her? Does he merely delight in her anguish? He even deliberately keeps her from her cousin, a man who'd stood against their marriage at the wedding ceremony. ![]() Mallen uses trick after psychological trick against his wife, although it's unclear to the audience what his motives are. And those wags are right Bella is constantly accused by her husband of stealing things from him, although she has no recollection of the events. Mallen is quickly the talk of the neighborhood - she's a little off, they say. Years later, Paul Mallen (Anton Walbrook), a debonair society lord in London, moves with his wife Bella (Diana Wynyard) to the posh Pimlico Square, directly below the apartment of the murdered. (Apparently, when MGM bought the rights to the story, based on a play by Patrick Hamilton, the studio attempted to destroy all existing prints of the earlier version, but they weren't successful.) In the opening scene, an old woman is strangled to death, and her killer ransacks her apartment in search of. But the movie wasn't an MGM original by any means its antecedent was a much-lesser-known 1940 British film by the same name. ![]() The movie was called Gaslight, and it starred Charles Boyer and Ingrid Bergman. Gaslight (1940) In 1944, MGM released a movie about a thief who slowly tries to drive his wife insane in order to find out the location of some jewels.
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