Black Widow (1954 film)
| Black Widow | |
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 DVD cover |
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| Directed by | Nunnally Johnson |
| Produced by | Nunnally Johnson |
| Screenplay by | Nunnally Johnson |
| Story by | Hugh Wheeler |
| Starring | Van Heflin Ginger Rogers Gene Tierney George Raft |
| Music by | Leigh Harline |
| Cinematography | Charles G. Clarke |
| Editing by | Dorothy Spencer |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | October 28, 1954 (United States) |
| Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Black Widow is a 1954 mystery color film noir, written, produced and directed by Nunnally Johnson and starring Van Heflin, Ginger Rogers, Gene Tierney, and George Raft.[1]
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[edit] Plot
Nancy Ordway (Peggy Ann Garner) is an aspiring writer hoping to make it big in New York at the expense of everyone around her, including Broadway producer Peter Denver (Van Heflin), who reluctantly lets her use his apartment to work during the day. When Peter's wife Iris (Gene Tierney) comes home from a trip to find Nancy dead in the bathroom, the assigned detective, Lt. Bruce (George Raft), soon realizes this assumed suicide is more likely a murder. Everyone Ordway knew is suddenly a suspect while a series of flashbacks reveal the plan she was weaving to climb the social ladder.
[edit] Cast
- Van Heflin as Peter Denver
- Ginger Rogers as Carlotta 'Lottie' Marin
- Gene Tierney as Iris Denver
- George Raft as Detective Lt. C. A. Bruce
- Peggy Ann Garner as Nancy Ordway
- Reginald Gardiner as Brian Mullen
- Virginia Leith as Claire Amberly
- Otto Kruger as Gordon Ling
- Cathleen Nesbitt as Mrs. Lucia Colletti
- Skip Homeier as John Amberly
- Hilda Simms as Anne
- Harry Carter as Police Sergeant Welch
- Geraldine Wall as Miss Gwen Mills
- Richard H. Cutting as Police Sergeant Owens
- Mabel Albertson as Sylvia
[edit] Reception
[edit] Critical response
When the film was released The New York Times film critic panned the screenplay and the actors, writing, "...Black Widow, which was discovered at the Roxy yesterday, bears little or no resemblance to the recent local spider scourge, except that it is moderately intriguing and considerably overplayed. It is merely an average whodunnit, stretched out on the CinemaScope screen and performed by a fancy cast of actors so that it looks more important than it is...The major fly in the ointment—or, should we say, in the web—is Peggy Ann Garner, playing the little Southern girl. Miss Garner's endeavors to give out with a rush of peach-blossom charm are beclouded with affectation. And the idea that she could be the greedy and ruthless little vixen that is finally revealed is hard to believe...And, finally, the shrill and shoddy character that Ginger Rogers plays—a poison-tongued Broadway actress—is indifferently written and performed. It is asking a lot of an audience to believe that she could display anything but clothes. George Raft as a poker-faced detective acts with flat-toned indifference, too, and Gene Tierney and Reginald Gardiner barely manage to live through their roles."[2]
In a recent review, film critic Dennis Schwartz also panned the film, writing, "It's a flimsy story that is apathetically written, poorly paced and overacted with shrill performances by both Ginger Rogers and Peggy Ann Garner. The B-film crime drama might have been better served as a cheapie production, with some of its filler scenes lopped off."[3]
[edit] References
- ^ Black Widow at the Internet Movie Database
- ^ Crowther, Bosley. The New York Times, film review, October 28, 1954. Last accessed: February 9, 2011.
- ^ Schwartz, Dennis. Ozus' World Movie Reviews, film review, July 5, 2008. Last accessed: February 9, 2011.
[edit] External links
- Black Widow at the Internet Movie Database
- Black Widow at the TCM Movie Database
- Black Widow at DVD Beaver (includes images)
- Black Widow film clip (the crime scene)
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