An artist forms an attachment with a woman on holiday in the country. As the relationship develops, his behavior and information about his past cause her increasing concern.An artist forms an attachment with a woman on holiday in the country. As the relationship develops, his behavior and information about his past cause her increasing concern.An artist forms an attachment with a woman on holiday in the country. As the relationship develops, his behavior and information about his past cause her increasing concern.
Patrick O'Moore
- Charles Pennington
- (as Pat O'Moore)
Anita Sharp-Bolster
- Christine
- (as Anita Bolster)
William A. Boardway
- Racetrack Patron
- (uncredited)
Colin Campbell
- MacGregor
- (uncredited)
Peter Godfrey
- First Tout
- (uncredited)
Creighton Hale
- Second Tout
- (uncredited)
Leyland Hodgson
- Inspector
- (uncredited)
Sammy Shack
- Racetrack Patron
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaHumphrey Bogart and Barbara Stanwyck had a friendly relationship on set. Producer Mark Hellinger, whom Bogart liked very much, agreed that Bogart would not be seen in any painter's wardrobe which would conflict with the tough guy image he had cultivated. When a painter's smock and beret with a tassel showed up on his wardrobe clothes rack one day, the actor was furious. The smock and beret were a joke perpetrated by Stanwyck, and the two performers had a good laugh afterward.
- GoofsWhen Sally throws the poisoned milk out the window, most of the milk appears to go out the window, with only a small amount landing on the windowsill and none on the floor. When Geoffrey discovers the spilled milk, there is a large amount on the windowsill and an almost equal amount on the floor.
- Quotes
Geoffrey Carroll: Y'know, I have the strangest feeling that this is the beginning of a beautiful hatred.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Barbara Stanwyck: Fire and Desire (1991)
- SoundtracksSweet Lass of Richmond Hill
(uncredited)
Traditional
Sung at the beginning
Featured review
The Two Mrs. Carrolls is directed by Peter Godfrey and adapted to the screen by Thomas Job from the Martin Vale play. It stars Humphrey Bogart, Barbara Stanwyck, Alexis Smith, Nigel Bruce, Ann Carter and Patrick O'Moore. Music is by Franz Waxman and cinematography by Peverell Marley.
Completed in 1945 but not released till 1947, The Two Mrs. Carrolls is one of those films that has an abundance of stories to match the abundance of divisive reviews. Various biographers and cinema writers tell a different story about stuff like what Bogart and Stanwyck thought of the movie, why they did it and so on. It's now hard to know exactly what the truth is anymore! So what about the film on its own terms then?
Undeniably the critics of the time were right to point out the similarity of The Two Mrs. Carrolls to such fine movies of the time like Gaslight, Suspicion and Rebecca, in fact the delayed release is thought to be because of Gaslight's success in 1944, while there's even a slice of Dorian Gray about it as well. Having these massively popular films as benchmarks has kind of crippled "Carrolls" reputation, because quite frankly it's not close to being in the same league. However, if one can judge it on its own terms, this is very good Gothic thriller entertainment.
Plot is essentially Sally Morton Carroll (Stanwyck) as a newly wedded wife who comes to realise her husband, Geoffrey (Bogart), is not the charming loving man she thought he was. He's the tortured artist type, who needs his muse to be kinked to produce his best work, thus the thriller conventions do proceed as Sally unearths dark truths and becomes a woman in peril. Various colourful characters are added to the mix; Smith's head turning sex bomb, Bruce's alcoholic doctor, Moore's lovelorn ex boyfriend and Carter's sprightly young daughter.
The Carroll house is filled with many Gothic textures, marking it out as place ripe for dark deeds and the unfurling of sinister secrets. Godfrey, though guilty of letting the pace sag all too often, does insert some great mood accentuating scenes. Episodes with the fearsome paintings strike a chilly chord, a raging storm unloading as the curtains billow has the requisite haunting feel, and Geoffrey finally going over the edge produces a superb crash – bang – wallop scene. Marley's photography is suitably shadowy via lighting techniques, and Waxman provides a typically genre compliant musical score.
On the acting front there's not a great deal to write home about, Stanwyck isn't stretched beyond being just professional, and as committed as Bogart is, he's an odd choice for this type of role. Bruce is typecast as another Dr. Watson character, while Smith is badly underused. The latter a shame as she leaves a favourable mark slinking about like a leopard, in fact it's probably no coincidence that she shows up late in the film wearing a leopard skin scarf! All told it's a little draggy in places and often shows its stage origins, but when it hits Gothic stride it's worthy of viewing investment. And yes, even if Bogart doing Bluebeard isn't the right fit. 7/10
Completed in 1945 but not released till 1947, The Two Mrs. Carrolls is one of those films that has an abundance of stories to match the abundance of divisive reviews. Various biographers and cinema writers tell a different story about stuff like what Bogart and Stanwyck thought of the movie, why they did it and so on. It's now hard to know exactly what the truth is anymore! So what about the film on its own terms then?
Undeniably the critics of the time were right to point out the similarity of The Two Mrs. Carrolls to such fine movies of the time like Gaslight, Suspicion and Rebecca, in fact the delayed release is thought to be because of Gaslight's success in 1944, while there's even a slice of Dorian Gray about it as well. Having these massively popular films as benchmarks has kind of crippled "Carrolls" reputation, because quite frankly it's not close to being in the same league. However, if one can judge it on its own terms, this is very good Gothic thriller entertainment.
Plot is essentially Sally Morton Carroll (Stanwyck) as a newly wedded wife who comes to realise her husband, Geoffrey (Bogart), is not the charming loving man she thought he was. He's the tortured artist type, who needs his muse to be kinked to produce his best work, thus the thriller conventions do proceed as Sally unearths dark truths and becomes a woman in peril. Various colourful characters are added to the mix; Smith's head turning sex bomb, Bruce's alcoholic doctor, Moore's lovelorn ex boyfriend and Carter's sprightly young daughter.
The Carroll house is filled with many Gothic textures, marking it out as place ripe for dark deeds and the unfurling of sinister secrets. Godfrey, though guilty of letting the pace sag all too often, does insert some great mood accentuating scenes. Episodes with the fearsome paintings strike a chilly chord, a raging storm unloading as the curtains billow has the requisite haunting feel, and Geoffrey finally going over the edge produces a superb crash – bang – wallop scene. Marley's photography is suitably shadowy via lighting techniques, and Waxman provides a typically genre compliant musical score.
On the acting front there's not a great deal to write home about, Stanwyck isn't stretched beyond being just professional, and as committed as Bogart is, he's an odd choice for this type of role. Bruce is typecast as another Dr. Watson character, while Smith is badly underused. The latter a shame as she leaves a favourable mark slinking about like a leopard, in fact it's probably no coincidence that she shows up late in the film wearing a leopard skin scarf! All told it's a little draggy in places and often shows its stage origins, but when it hits Gothic stride it's worthy of viewing investment. And yes, even if Bogart doing Bluebeard isn't the right fit. 7/10
- hitchcockthelegend
- Jun 26, 2014
- Permalink
- How long is The Two Mrs. Carrolls?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Runtime1 hour 39 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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