The 3rd Voice (1960)

Marion Forbes is the secretary, the lover and the creator of the financial fortunes of Harry Chapman, but Chapman falls in love with Francis and decides to marry her. The revenge of Marion ... See full summary »

Director:

Hubert Cornfield

Writers:

Hubert Cornfield, Charles Williams (novel)

Stars:

Edmond O'Brien, Julie London, Laraine Day

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Edmond O'Brien	...	The Voice (voice)
Julie London	...	Corey Scott
Laraine Day	...	Marian Forbes
Olga San Juan	...	Blonde Prostitute
George Eldredge	...	Judge Kendall
Tom Hernández	...	Desk Clerk
Abel Franco	...	Police Inspector
Edward Colmans	...	Carreras
Tom Daly	...	Tourist at Bar
Ralph Brooks	...	Harris Chapman
Lucille Curtis	...	Mrs. Kendall
Shirley O'Hara	...	Carreras' Secretary
Raoul De Leon	...	Bank Official
Sylvia Ray	...	Hotel Miramar Cashier
Roque Ybarra	...	Fisherman

Storyline

Marion Forbes is the secretary, the lover and the creator of the financial fortunes of Harry Chapman, but Chapman falls in love with Francis and decides to marry her. The revenge of Marion is terrible. With the help of the third voice she kills Harry who is then impersonated by the third voice. All of this to steal $600,000.

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Plot Keywords:

secretary | embezzlement | double cross | based on novel | telegram | 

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Taglines:

Spurned, she became mistress of the double-double-cross !

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

June 1960 (Austria)

Also Known As:

The Third Voice

Filming Locations:

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

Company Credits

Production Co:

Associated Producers (API), Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

79 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Joseph Cotten, Alan Ladd and William Powell were all considered for the Edmond O'Brien role, but they all passed.

User Reviews

Neat Little Suspenser

Plot-- Edmond O'Brien (he has no movie name) collaborates with his lover Marian (Day) to impersonate her wealthy boss in order to collect a quarter-million dollars. The ruse, however, involves more telephone calls than AT&T, hence the title "The Third Voice".

For a brief time it looked like writer-director Cornfield would follow in Stanley Kubrick's footsteps with his intricately plotted, stylishly filmed Plunder Road (1957), a caper movie in the mode of Kubrick's classic The Killing (1956). For some reason, however, Cornfield's career petered out, especially following a feud with Marlon Brando on the set of The Night of the Following Day (1968), another caper film.

Looks like Cornfield worked best with small-scale b&w movies like this one, his follow-up to Plunder Road. The Third Voice is an imaginative, low-budget variation on the caper film that makes good use of a veteran cast, including a sultry Julie London. But it's really a showcase for that icon of film noir Edmond O'Brien, who runs up a monumental phone bill, that is, when not changing hotels like some modern-day Gypsy.

There're several episodes of good suspense, especially the pins & needles of wondering whether an accountant will follow protocol or not. Also, catch that sweaty hang up with the incriminating boat. The climax itself amounts to a neat, ironical twist in a hotel room that I didn't see coming. I'm just sorry Cornfield's career, for whatever reason, didn't match the early promise of this nifty little suspenser.