'Marked Woman' was most interesting to see acting legends Bette Davis and Humphrey Bogart together and in early roles against type. Before their careers properly took off, so a large part of me was really interested in seeing how they would fare. Seeing as when somebody does something different from the moment, it can either be great or out of their depth-like. The idea for the film, actually based upon a true story, sounded great and gave the impression that it would be an intriguing and investable film.
It was to my relief that 'Marked Woman' works well as a film. Neither Davis and Bogart deliver work that is among their best and both went on to much better things, the best of which iconic work in film history. This is before either of them, well certainly Bogart as Davis was already showing some versatility if not quite had perfected it, had properly found their footing and found what they were best at in terms of namely types of roles. That is not to say that 'Marked Woman' is a bad film, in my view it is an interesting and good one that packs a punch, and Davis is served well.
For my tastes though, in an atypically non-gritty role with the gritty type of roles being one that he would embody later, Bogart is a little too subdued (one of the exceptions though being the closing speech which is very powerful) and doesn't seem as fully engaged. He is still watchable and the dynamic presence with Davis works very nicely.
Perhaps at times, 'Marked Woman' is a bit slow in the early stages with the set up taking a little too long to do so. The prison scene with Davis and Eduardo Ciannelli was a slight missed opportunity, that could have been a scene that wrenched the gut and chilled if it stayed with the film's overall uncompromising approach. But it took too much of an easy way out and censorship restrictions may have played some part in this.
However, Davis goes full throttle and gives a performance of intensity and poignancy. Ciannelli is persuasively sinister, while Isabell Jewel lives up to her surname and Allan Jenkins has a fun small role that doesn't jar. The production values are not audacious but to me they weren't that cheap, while the film is beautifully directed, never going too heavy handed or trivialising the subject. The music is haunting without being melodramatic.
The script is taut and thoughtful, also remarkably explicit for back then and not that tame now. Bogart's dialogue towards the end is quite powerful. The story is always absorbing, exploring a bold topic not covered to this much an extent at this particular time in a pulling no punches way. Did appreciate that there wasn't a romance as such, that may have had potential of slowing the film down and taking away from the tautness. When 'Marked Woman' gets going, it is swift in pace.
Summing up, very well done on the whole. 7/10
It was to my relief that 'Marked Woman' works well as a film. Neither Davis and Bogart deliver work that is among their best and both went on to much better things, the best of which iconic work in film history. This is before either of them, well certainly Bogart as Davis was already showing some versatility if not quite had perfected it, had properly found their footing and found what they were best at in terms of namely types of roles. That is not to say that 'Marked Woman' is a bad film, in my view it is an interesting and good one that packs a punch, and Davis is served well.
For my tastes though, in an atypically non-gritty role with the gritty type of roles being one that he would embody later, Bogart is a little too subdued (one of the exceptions though being the closing speech which is very powerful) and doesn't seem as fully engaged. He is still watchable and the dynamic presence with Davis works very nicely.
Perhaps at times, 'Marked Woman' is a bit slow in the early stages with the set up taking a little too long to do so. The prison scene with Davis and Eduardo Ciannelli was a slight missed opportunity, that could have been a scene that wrenched the gut and chilled if it stayed with the film's overall uncompromising approach. But it took too much of an easy way out and censorship restrictions may have played some part in this.
However, Davis goes full throttle and gives a performance of intensity and poignancy. Ciannelli is persuasively sinister, while Isabell Jewel lives up to her surname and Allan Jenkins has a fun small role that doesn't jar. The production values are not audacious but to me they weren't that cheap, while the film is beautifully directed, never going too heavy handed or trivialising the subject. The music is haunting without being melodramatic.
The script is taut and thoughtful, also remarkably explicit for back then and not that tame now. Bogart's dialogue towards the end is quite powerful. The story is always absorbing, exploring a bold topic not covered to this much an extent at this particular time in a pulling no punches way. Did appreciate that there wasn't a romance as such, that may have had potential of slowing the film down and taking away from the tautness. When 'Marked Woman' gets going, it is swift in pace.
Summing up, very well done on the whole. 7/10