When Strangers Marry (1944)

Director:

William Castle

Writers:

Dennis J. Cooper (writer)
William K. Howard (story)

Release Date:

21 August 1944 (USA)

Genre:

Film-Noir | Mystery

Tagline:

DYNAMIC! (original print ad - caps only)

Plot:

A naive small-town girl comes to New York City to meet her husband, and discovers that he may be a murderer. |

Plot Keywords:

New York City | New York | Waitress | Postal Worker | Strangling

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Dean Jagger	...	Paul Baxter
Kim Hunter	...	Millie Baxter
Robert Mitchum	...	Fred Graham
Neil Hamilton	...	Det. Lt. Blake
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Dick Elliott	...	Sam Prescott
Edward Keane	...	Middle-aged man
Milton Kibbee	...	Charlie, Hotel Desk Clerk
Lou Lubin	...	Jacob Houser
Dewey Robinson	...	News vendor
Virginia Sale	...	Chambermaid
Lee 'Lasses' White	...	Old man
Claire Whitney	...	Middle-aged woman

Also Known As:

"Betrayed" - USA (reissue title)

Runtime:

67 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Company:

King Brothers Productions

Trivia:

There is a scene where we see a framed photo of a man on a mantle. The photo is of director William Castle. Another scene features a man named "Mr. King" being paged; the producers of the film are both named King.

Much more than I bargained for

I wouldn't have believed that this film could run barely over an hour in length; in the course of its 67 minutes, it crams in more plot twists, emotional punch and sheer tension than recent blockbusters can manage in 200 or more, with never a wasted moment... but no lack, either, of aching silences and endless hours at night. As the innocent, idealistic young wife adrift in a city and world utterly alien to her, Kim Hunter carries the whole film with a performance of breathtaking conviction. She is scarcely off-screen from start to finish, as the character grows and matures both in confidence and desperation, and our assumptions about the outcome shift off-balance from one moment to the next. 'When Strangers Marry' is without a doubt her film. It's also an emotional roller-coaster, a gripping piece of noir -- and, unbelievably, a no-budget miracle shot in just seven days.

Robert Mitchum, in an early role, is a little wooden but crucially effective in the part of the former suitor who provides a steady shoulder for his one-time fiancée to lean on, and Dean Jagger is suitably elusive as the longed-for husband who is all but a stranger, but it is Hunter who really stands out here. I wasn't expecting much from this film but was absolutely swept away by it: an example above all of how to do a Hitchcock on Poverty Row.