Experiment Perilous
| Experiment Perilous | |
|---|---|
 U.S. Theatrical Poster |
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| Directed by | Jacques Tourneur |
| Produced by | Warren Duff |
| Written by | Warren Duff |
| Based on | the novel by Margaret Carpenter |
| Starring | Hedy Lamarr George Brent Paul Lukas Albert Dekker Carl Esmond |
| Music by | Roy Webb |
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
| Release date(s) |
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| Running time | 91 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Experiment Perilous (1944) is a melodrama set at the turn of the 20th century. The film is based on a 1943 novel by Margaret Carpenter and directed by Jacques Tourneur. Albert S. D'Agostino, Jack Okey, Darrell Silvera, and Claude E. Carpenter were nominated for an Academy Award for Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Black-and-White.[1] Hedy Lamarr's singing voice was dubbed by Paula Raymond.
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Plot [edit]
The story takes place in 1903. During a train trip, psychiatrist Dr. Huntington Bailey (George Brent) meets a friendly older lady (Olive Blakeney). She tells him that she is going to visit her brother Nick and his lovely young wife Allida. Once in New York, Bailey hears that his train companion suddenly died. Shortly afterward, he meets the strange couple and becomes suspicious of Nick's treatment of his wife. Nick (Paul Lukas) keeps Allida (Hedy Lamarr), whom he is trying to pass off as crazy, a virtual prisoner in their London town house [a New York brownstone in the film], cutting off all contact with the outside world. The kindly Bailey takes it upon himself to attempt to free his new love Allida from the control of the insanely jealous Nick.
A frenzied gun battle in their home features the destruction of several large aquariums, replete with shattered glass, gushing water and floundering fish may be the most memorable (and most often imitated) scene in the film.
Cast [edit]
- Hedy Lamarr as Allida Bederaux
- George Brent as Dr. Huntington Bailey
- Paul Lukas as Nick Bederaux
Production notes [edit]
- Production Dates: 12 Jul-early Oct 1944
- According to pre-production news items in Hollywood Reporter, this film was originally to be produced by David Hempstead and star Cary Grant. After Hempstead terminated his contract with RKO, Grant dropped out of the project and Robert Fellows was assigned to produce it. Gregory Peck was then slated to star in the male lead, but a prior commitment to David O. Selznick productions forced him to bow.
- To create the snow storm sequence, the studio used one hundred tons of ice and six wind machines
- George Brent reprised his role in a Lux Radio Theatre broadcast on September 10, 1945, co-starring Virginia Bruce.
References [edit]
- ^ "NY Times: Experiment Perilous". NY Times. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
External links [edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Experiment Perilous (film) |
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