The Man with a Cloak (1951)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Fletcher Markle

Writers:

John Dickson Carr (story)
Frank Fenton (writer)

Release Date:

8 September 1952 (Sweden)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Plot:

In 1848, a young Frenchwoman, Madeline Minot, goes to New York City to see Thevenet, the grandfather of her fiance...

Plot Keywords:

Butler | Old Man | New York City | Housekeeper | Maid

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Joseph Cotten	...	Dupin
Barbara Stanwyck	...	Lorna Bounty
Louis Calhern	...	Charles Theverner
Leslie Caron	...	Madeline Minot
Joe De Santis	...	Martin, the butler
Jim Backus	...	Flaherty
Margaret Wycherly	...	Mrs. Flynn, the housekeeper
Richard Hale	...	Durand, the lawyer
Nicholas Joy	...	Dr. Roland
Roy Roberts	...	Policeman
Mitchell Lewis	...	Zack, the waiter

Runtime:

84 min | USA:81 min (Turner library print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:S | Sweden:15 | Australia:PG

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Quotes:

Lorna Bounty: You know it's the first of the month.
Dupin: I can understand you excitement, it only comes once every thirty days.

Soundtrack:

Another Yesterday

Victorian Film-Noir?

Barbara Stanwyck, running the household for wealthy French ex-patriot Louis Calhern, is waiting with the rest of the staff for the old man to die while perhaps helping to speed things up a little. Things get complicated when the grandson's fiance (Leslie Caron) shows up expressing need for the old man's money. It doesn't take long for mysterious stranger Joseph Cotten to get involved. An erudite alcoholic with no money but clearly superior breeding, he takes the young woman's side and proves to be a formidable match for the devious household.

The movie appears to be uniquely conceived as a film-noir mystery put into a Victorian time frame. The opening scenes, the plot structure, and the character conflicts all clearly fit the film-noir style, and this is further enhanced by putting Stanwyck in a familiar role as the femme fatale. Aside from an embarrassing few minutes of singing, she is as excellent as her somewhat limited role allows her to be, and the rest of the cast performs excellently as well.

Unfortunately, the story turns out to be not as much of a mystery as it could be and the film-noir stylings are greatly watered down in order to create the type of Victorian atmosphere which would meet the expectations of most of the viewers. It's an enjoyable, well-made film, but it definitely lacks the bite it might otherwise have had.