Lured (1947)

A serial killer in London is murdering young women he meets through the personal columns of newspapers. He announces each of his murders to the police by sending them a cryptic poem. After ... See full summary »

Director:

Douglas Sirk

Writers:

Leo Rosten (screenplay), Jacques Companéez (from a story by) (as Jacques Companeez)

Stars:

George Sanders, Lucille Ball, Charles Coburn

Cast

Credited cast:
George Sanders	...	Robert Fleming
Lucille Ball	...	Sandra Carpenter
Charles Coburn	...	Inspector Harley Temple
Boris Karloff	...	Charles van Druten
Cedric Hardwicke	...	Julian Wilde (as Sir Cedric Hardwicke)
Joseph Calleia	...	Dr. Nicholas Moryani
Alan Mowbray	...	Lyle Maxwell
George Zucco	...	Officer H. R. Barrett
Robert Coote	...	Detective
Alan Napier	...	Detective Gordon
Tanis Chandler	...	Lucy Barnard
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Annette Warren	...	Blonde Nightclub Singer (singing voice)

Storyline

A serial killer in London is murdering young women he meets through the personal columns of newspapers. He announces each of his murders to the police by sending them a cryptic poem. After a dancer disappears, the police enlist an American friend of hers, Sandra Carpenter, to answer advertisements in the personal columns, and lure the killer.

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Plot Keywords:

serial murder | psychotronic film | personals column | pearl necklace | brandy | 

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Taglines:

Don't answer this ad... Don't... don't... don't...

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Genres:

Crime | Film-Noir | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 September 1947 (USA)

Also Known As:

Acechada

Filming Locations:

General Service Studios - 1040 N. Las Palmas, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hunt Stromberg Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sandra's police identification card states she weighs 8 stone and 2 pounds - which equates to 114 pounds, and that she's 5 feet 6 inches in height.

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Goofs

When Julian tell Sandra "...he chose death", Sandra silently says the line with him.

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Quotes

Inspector Harley Temple: There's a homicidal maniac loose somewhere in the vast honeycomb of London. A maniac with a weakness for young, pretty girls and not a thing we've done has brought us one inch nearer his apprehension.

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Crazy Credits

Instead of 'The End' the film finishes with 'Fin'.

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Connections

Features Murder in the Night (1939)

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Soundtracks

Symphony No. 8 in B minor (Unfinished)
(uncredited)
Music by Franz Schubert
Played by the orchestra at the concert hall

User Reviews

Split Personality

A killer lures lonely young women via the "personals" column in a London newspaper. A friend of one of the victims, an attractive dancer named Sandra Carpenter (Lucille Ball), acts as bait to catch the killer, under direction of Police Inspector Temple (Charles Coburn). One of the suspects is Robert Fleming (George Sanders) who may, or may not, be the killer. Fleming, suave and sophisticated, charms Carpenter into romantic complications.

The whodunit element of "Lured" gets off to a strong start, with good direction, some spooky lighting at the beginning, and an assortment of interesting suspects. But, as the film progresses, the whodunit element gets undercut by the developing romance between Carpenter and Fleming. The upbeat "All For Love" musical score, combined with elegant costumes, reinforce the romantic theme. The whodunit element sputters out about two-thirds through the film.

My impression is that the screenplay for this film was adapted from "Pieges", a 1939 French film (which I have not seen), billed as a romantic thriller. In "Lured", we certainly have a romantic theme; thrills maybe, depending on how you define "thrills". You get the feeling that the film's director (Douglas Sirk) started with the intention of making a whodunit, but later changed his mind and decided to make a romantic melodrama. The film's split personality may also be the result of the casting of two strong lead actors (Ball and Sanders), whom we do not usually associate with murder mysteries.

"Lured" certainly has entertainment value. I love Lucy no matter what role she plays. Coburn and Sanders are nearly always engaging. The film has good B&W cinematography. The dialogue is crisp. And the film provides some great nostalgia, via 1940's clothes, hairstyles, and music. Overall, "Lured" has a great cast and some wonderful atmosphere. But, when I want to watch a murder mystery from the 30's or 40's, I will be more inclined to watch a film whose sole aim is to present a whodunit puzzle, such as, for example, a good old fashion Charlie Chan film with Sidney Toler ... romance be damned.