Dragonwyck (1946)
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MovieGal had highlighted this film in the "What are you watching tonight" thread. I was intrigued, so we fired it up last night. Memory fails if I've ever seen this before.
Despite having a heavyweight production team: Darryl Zanuck, Joseph Mankiewicz, score by Alfred Newman; and a heavyweight cast of Gene Tierney, Vincent Price, Walter Huston, and a smaller part for Jessica Tandy, the film did not rise up to its load of talent.
The movie seemed like it wanted to be another
Rebecca, of which there were a dozen or so in the 1940s: innocent young woman is introduced into a mansion with an overbearing master and/or housekeeper; the two get involved, and X happens.
If you like melodrama, this is a prime example. The picture is really all Vincent Price's. Price of course had been a stage and screen star long before he became known almost exclusively for horror movies during the 1960s. He had a chance to exhibit many different emotions, and he was first rate.
Gene Tierney OTOH seemed to rather walk through the part. She did a journeyman's job, but nothing memorable. Tierney was such a strange beauty, with her luminescent eyes, that she perfectly fit the dream-like quality of the story.
There were enjoyable parts from the veteran Walter Huston, Spring Byington; and a very tasty performance by the inestimable Jessica Tandy.
The film got more interesting as it went on, but was a little uneven. Still, it's worth it to see Price's work.
Doc's rating: 6/10