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Allotment Wives

  • 19451945
  • PassedPassed
  • 1h 20m
IMDb RATING
6.0/10
524
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
131,704
2,565
Kay Francis in Allotment Wives (1945)
CrimeDramaFilm-Noir
Story of women who marry GIs just so they can receive the soldiers' pay and their life insurance if they are killed in action.Story of women who marry GIs just so they can receive the soldiers' pay and their life insurance if they are killed in action.Story of women who marry GIs just so they can receive the soldiers' pay and their life insurance if they are killed in action.
IMDb RATING
6.0/10
524
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
131,704
2,565
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • William Nigh
    • Writers
      • Harvey Gates(screenplay)
      • Sidney Sutherland(screenplay)
    • Stars
      • Kay Francis
      • Paul Kelly
      • Otto Kruger
    Top credits
    • Director
      • William Nigh
    • Writers
      • Harvey Gates(screenplay)
      • Sidney Sutherland(screenplay)
    • Stars
      • Kay Francis
      • Paul Kelly
      • Otto Kruger
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 20User reviews
    • 8Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • Photos

    Kay Francis and Teala Loring in Allotment Wives (1945)
    Kay Francis and Doris Lloyd in Allotment Wives (1945)
    Kay Francis, Paul Kelly, Reid Kilpatrick, and Wheeler Oakman in Allotment Wives (1945)
    Add photo

    Top cast

    Edit
    Kay Francis
    Kay Francis
    • Sheila Seymour
    Paul Kelly
    Paul Kelly
    • Col. Pete Martin
    Otto Kruger
    Otto Kruger
    • Whitey Colton
    Gertrude Michael
    Gertrude Michael
    • Gladys Smith
    Teala Loring
    Teala Loring
    • Connie Seymour
    Bernard Nedell
    Bernard Nedell
    • Spike Malone
    Anthony Warde
    Anthony Warde
    • Joe Agnew
    Matty Fain
    Matty Fain
    • Louie Moranto
    Jonathan Hale
    Jonathan Hale
    • Brig. Gen. H.N. Gilbert
    Selmer Jackson
    Selmer Jackson
    • Deacon Sam
    Terry Frost
    Terry Frost
    • George Shields
    Reid Kilpatrick
    Reid Kilpatrick
    • Philip Van Brook
    Doris Lloyd
    Doris Lloyd
    • Alice Van Brook
    Marcelle Corday
    Marcelle Corday
    • Madame Gaston
    Evelyn Eaton
    • Ann Farley
    Michael Browne
    • Grey
    Elizabeth Wright
    • Helen Keefe
    Sarah Edwards
    Sarah Edwards
    • Sadie
    • Director
      • William Nigh
    • Writers
      • Harvey Gates(screenplay)
      • Sidney Sutherland(screenplay) (story)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Penultimate theatrical film appearance for Kay Francis.
    • Quotes

      Sheila Seymour: Maybe I better cultivate him. Might be amusing. And, might help our information file.

      Whitey Colton: Might help his too. You're a fool if you go sticking your pretty neck out.

      Sheila Seymour: I'm never a fool. And only geese stick their necks out.

    User reviews20

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Down and Dirty Poverty Row Noir from...KAY FRANCIS!!
    There is great cause for celebration among fans of obscure and esoteric films because ALLOTMENT WIVES (1945), a provocative and tremendously fascinating example of poverty row noir finally premieres on Turner Classic Movies on September 26. Produced as part of a three picture deal between star / producer Kay Francis and Monogram Pictures, this peculiar trilogy served as Miss Francis' Hollywood swan song. The other two films, DIVORCE (1945) and WIFE WANTED (1946) are both well-produced, better than average melodramas, but nowhere near as ambitious or entertaining as ALLOTMENT WIVES.

    What this film might lack in customary Hollywood sophistication it more than makes up for in gnarly pulp energy. Francis plays Sheila Seymour, a sleek and stylish society gal who in reality is the head of a noxious crime syndicate that preys mercilessly on returning World War II servicemen. They zero in on impressionable and lonely vets and before long they're engaged to one of Sheila's "girls." After pocketing the GI's allotment pay, the gals are soon on their way to their next mark, leaving a trail of devastated saps strewn along the post-war landscape. Things become emotionally complicated when Sheila's beautiful young daughter Corrine (Teala Loring) arrives home from her swanky boarding school (she's been oblivious to Mom's business dealings) and slowly begins to unravel the sordid details of her mother's dreadful criminal activities. Also in the cast are the wonderfully creepy Otto Kruger as Francis' odious partner in crime, the equally creepy Paul Kelly as a military investigator and the always menacing Gertrude Michael as one of Francis' old racket rivals who's out for a little revenge.

    In many ways this film bears more than a passing resemblance to the much tonier and more famous MILDRED PIERCE, released by Warner Bros the same year. But ALLOTMENT WIVES gets the nasty tone of noir's tawdrier aspects better than Michael Curtiz' glossy soap opera. In fact, the crucial showdown scene between mother and daughter at the climax of ALLOTMENT WIVES plays out much more dramatically and, more importantly, realistically than the overwrought scenes between Joan Crawford and Ann Blyth.

    For those who enjoy their film noir a bit on the exotic side, ALLOTMENT WIVES is must viewing, especially for those with a predisposition for down and dirty, unpretentious poverty row entertainment.
    helpful•29
    3
    • Dewey1960
    • Sep 13, 2008

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 8, 1945 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Allotment Wives, Inc.
    • Filming locations
      • 213 Washington Street, Newark, New Jersey, USA
    • Production company
      • Monogram Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 20 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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