SORRY WRONG NUMBER - #851
[FOX Classics] [Anatole Litvak 1948]
2/5
Synopsis:
Bed-ridden hypochondriac Barbara Stanwyck attempts to contact her husband and instead overhears a phone conversation of two people plotting a murder that night.
Opinion:
A film based on a radio play by Lucille Fletcher, plays out better on radio than it does on screen. There is nothing wrong with Barbara Stanwyck, she manages to competently protray the defenseless, innocent lady, destined to discover the murderous plot, but the suspense itself is all but eroded until the last 2 minutes.
Stanwyck herself received the last of her 4 Oscar nominations in her career (Stella Dallas, Ball of Fire, Double Indemnity + Sorry Wrong Number) and maintained a strong presence throughout this film.
I was surprised at the number of flashbacks used in this film to tell the backstory of the characters and their motiviation. Whilst it is imperative to the plot, it diminishes any terror one feels at both the start and the end.
It almost feels that the film fails to reach its 89 minutes, as some of the subplots lumber on and cause confusion amongst the viewer and the film tends to drag in the middle. Stanwyck basically controls this film in the present, whilst Burt Lancaster is the focal point of the flashback.
This film is disappointing, and is such a waste of a brilliant concept. Stanwyck is convincing and in most cases warrants her Oscar Nomincation for Best Actress for that year, and the final two minutes of the film are chilling, terrifying and memorable. But the rest of the film is a shame.
2/5
Synopsis:
Bed-ridden hypochondriac Barbara Stanwyck attempts to contact her husband and instead overhears a phone conversation of two people plotting a murder that night.
Opinion:
A film based on a radio play by Lucille Fletcher, plays out better on radio than it does on screen. There is nothing wrong with Barbara Stanwyck, she manages to competently protray the defenseless, innocent lady, destined to discover the murderous plot, but the suspense itself is all but eroded until the last 2 minutes.
Stanwyck herself received the last of her 4 Oscar nominations in her career (Stella Dallas, Ball of Fire, Double Indemnity + Sorry Wrong Number) and maintained a strong presence throughout this film.
I was surprised at the number of flashbacks used in this film to tell the backstory of the characters and their motiviation. Whilst it is imperative to the plot, it diminishes any terror one feels at both the start and the end.
It almost feels that the film fails to reach its 89 minutes, as some of the subplots lumber on and cause confusion amongst the viewer and the film tends to drag in the middle. Stanwyck basically controls this film in the present, whilst Burt Lancaster is the focal point of the flashback.
This film is disappointing, and is such a waste of a brilliant concept. Stanwyck is convincing and in most cases warrants her Oscar Nomincation for Best Actress for that year, and the final two minutes of the film are chilling, terrifying and memorable. But the rest of the film is a shame.
posted by Rhett (rhettrospective@hotmail.com) at 7:58 PM
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