Shock (1946)

A psychologically distraught woman is committed to a private sanitarium by the man whom she witnessed commit a murder.

Director:

Alfred L. Werker

Writers:

Eugene Ling (screenplay), Albert DeMond (story),

Stars:

Vincent Price, Lynn Bari, Frank Latimore

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Vincent Price	...	Dr. Richard Cross
Lynn Bari	...	Nurse Elaine Jordan
Frank Latimore	...	Lt. Paul Stewart
Anabel Shaw	...	Mrs. Janet Stewart
Stephen Dunne	...	Dr. Stevens (as Michael Dunne)
Reed Hadley	...	District Attorney O'Neill
Renee Carson	...	Miss Hatfield - Head Nurse
Charles Trowbridge	...	Dr. H.J. Harvey

Storyline

Dr. Cross, a psychiatrist, is treating a young woman, Janet Stewart, who is in a coma-state, brought on when she heard loud arguing, went to her window and saw a man strike his wife with a candlestick and kill her. As she comes out of her shock, she recognizes Dr. Cross as the killer. He takes her to his sanitarium and urged by his nurse/lover, Elaine Jordan, gives Janet an overdose of insulin. But he can't bring himself to murder her in cold blood and asks Elaine to get the medicine to save her. She refuses, they argue, and he strangles her. He saves Janet's life, but now faces two murder charges.

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Plot Keywords:

murder | sanitarium | psychiatrist | hotel | insulin | 

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Genres:

Film-Noir | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 February 1946 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Morte Veste-se de Branco

Filming Locations:

Backlot, 20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$375,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Shot in 19 days.

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Quotes

Lt. Paul Stewart: Well, if you give Janet this insulin, how certain can you be it'll help her?
Dr. Richard Cross: I'm neither a miracle man nor a prophet, Lieutenant. If medicine were an exact science, not an art, I might be able to tell you.

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Connections

Edited into Schlock! (2009)

User Reviews

A Little Anticlimactic

I've always enjoyed Vincent Price's sad expressions and gentle voice. It's full of threat and pity. He is one of a kind. His savoir faire and manners are right at the top. In this one he commits a murder he really didn't wish to and then must use some pretty extreme measures to cover his tracks and get together with his ruthless lover. The victim is an unstable young woman who has a nervous breakdown when she witnesses the murder. The doctor, one of the top in his field, is constantly pulled between evil actions and the good that is in him. He comes to realize he is wrong and that he has been led astray, but it is too late now. Viewing this in the year 2007, it is filled with some pretty questionable tactics and oversights. What they do to this girl would require a lot of documentation. The sad part isn't the aged quality of the social setting. It's that at some point it all seems to become rather dull. Once they are on to Price's character, the story just falls into a voluble anticlimax. Enjoy watching Vincent Price. Otherwise it is pretty pedestrian.