Strange Illusion (1945)

Director:

Edgar G. Ulmer

Writers:

Adele Comandini (screenplay)
Fritz Rotter (original story)

Release Date:

31 March 1945 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Mystery

Plot:

Paul, a young man whose father was once lieutenant Governor of California before his untimely death...

Plot Keywords:

Dream | Maniac | Homicidal Maniac | Accident | California

Cast

Jimmy Lydon	...	Paul Cartwright (as James Lydon)
Warren William	...	Brett Curtis
Sally Eilers	...	Virginia Cartwright
Regis Toomey	...	Dr. Vincent
Charles Arnt	...	Professor Muhlbach
George Reed	...	Benjamin (as George H. Reed)
Jayne Hazard	...	Dorothy Cartwright
Jimmy Clark	...	George
Mary McLeod	...	Lydia
Pierre Watkin	...	Armstrong
Sonia Sorel	...	Ms. Farber
Victor Potel	...	Mac - Game Warden (as Vic Potel)
George Sherwood	...	Langdon
Gene Roth	...	Sparky (as Gene Stutenroth)
John Hamilton	...	Mr. Allen

Also Known As:

First Illusion (USA) (working title)
Out of the Night (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #10544) | Sweden:15

Company:

Producers Releasing Corporation

Morbidly interesting thriller focused on precognitive dreams.

Much has been made of Mr. Ulmer's talent, and here, he makes good use of it. While someone on the order of a brooding Farley Granger, for example, would have been preferable as the lead, James Lydon, nonetheless, turns in a commendable job as Paul Cartwright, a college student haunted by prophetic dreams. It's genuinely refreshing for a change, to look back upon a time, when teen-agers were still presented in a wholesome and appealing light. And, Mr. Lydon, movieland's "Henry Aldrich" certainly had the credentials for those traits. But, here, Lydon is caught in a story of deathly threats, with implications far more threatening, than the "Golly--Gee!" consequences of smashing his date's corsage for the Senior Prom.

As for the plot, Paul, manages to prevent his wealthy widowed mother from marrying a male gold-digger, with a string of unsolved murders in his past. Naturally, Paul has to undergo any number of travails before the violent denouement, including amateur "detective" work that triggers both a feigned and a near real nervous collapse. He is even "voluntarily" committed to an asylum where further sinister developments befall him. The ending, cleverly finds him lost in an unconscious dream state again, but now enjoying a vision of a liberated and happy future.

Mr. Lydon was "slumming" at PRC, on loan from Paramount, and preparatory to his turns with glamorous Elizabeth Taylor in "Life With Father" and "Cynthia" both glossy, expensive, mainline productions.

Nonetheless, this PRC production possesses relatively handsome art direction and production values, given that, based on production files with the American Film Institute, it was actually shot in just 15 days, (as opposed to the erroneous oft-cited 6 day schedule.) By the way, take a good, hard, look at the exteriors of the Lydon family chateau in this. Look familiar? Yes, it's the same house used as Robert Walker's home in "Strangers on a Train" and June Lockhart's in "Bury Me Dead."

All told, if you enjoy crime stories focused on young people trapped in traumatic circumstances, it's definately worth a look.