Dalbert Pringle Actually - I think that a more appropriate title for this dizzy, 1957, crime-clunker would have been "Crime of Stupidity" - 'Cause, believe me, that's exactly what this idiotic film's storyline amounted to being - pure stupidity (as only Hollywood could possibly deliver it).You know - I can't imagine how anyone in the cast of this utterly implausible movie-nonsense could've ever kept a straight face, spewing out the totally awful dialogue that they did, and behaving like absolute brain-dead buffoons throughout.Personally, I think that that big, dull oaf, Sterling Hayden was one of the most insincere and unconvincing character actors of his generation, bar none.And, finally - Speaking about actress, Barbara Stanwyck - (At 50 years old here) - She was, in my opinion, absolute light years away from being believable, at all, as the irresistibly alluring business woman. She really was.

meaninglessname Hard-boiled LAPD detective Royal Dano, tracking a fugitive in San Francisco, rubs local reporters the wrong way with his failure to communicate, none more so than fiercely independent Barbara Stanwyck, whom he advises to go home and make dinner for her husband. She doesn't have one, of course, but she soon does after falling in lust with Dano's stolid but hunky sidekick Sterling Hayden.Marry in haste, repent at leisure. The dullest audience member can see this is a bad idea. After the life of a suburban LA housewife has driven her literally to tears, Stanwyck devotes her Lady Macbethian wiles to advancing her hubby's career ahead of that of his superior officer. These machinations involve police commissioner Raymond Burr and his wife Fay Wray. Yes, Kong's crush is now married to Perry Mason.Needless to say, all does not end well here. The cast alone would make this film worth a look, but it has many other virtues, including a slick professionalism and enough twists and turns to keep things moving along without any filler or padding. Although feminism and women's liberation were not in the general public's consciousness until the 60s, one can see their roots in many 50s films. If there is a Film Studies course somewhere entitled Proto-feminism in Film Noir, and there probably is, this would be right up there as subject matter along with various other films featuring Stanwyck, Joan Crawford, Ida Lupino et al. Not that it preaches about it, just something there as a springboard for Stanwyck's actions.

dougdoepke Feisty newspaper columnist Kathy falls for LA cop Doyle and marries him. Trouble is she bridles at dull suburban life and his complaisant attitude. Thus she begins scheming to raise his place in the detective bureau, leading to unforeseen consequences.As a crime drama the movie never really gels. There's no tension, while the only suspense comes at the end. As a vehicle for aging diva Stanwyck, she's a bit over-age for the irresistible wife and other-woman parts. The romantic scenes try hard but are none too persuasive.Where the movie succeeds is in its iconoclastic view of 1950's middle-class conformity. At a time when movies and TV were saturated with images of suburban bliss, a sub-plot here dares suggesting gender role-playing in the suburbs can be emptying. The housewives silly conversations (everything's "wonderful") are spread on pretty thick, still we get the idea. At this point, it becomes a stretch to see the dynamic Kathy (Stanwyck) stay with a boring marriage since we know she has a real independent streak.Fortunately, director Oswald manages the erratic material in smooth fashion. He's definitely an underrated helmsman from that period, as his half-masterpiece A Kiss Before Dying (1956) demonstrates. Catch some of his good touches such as the lit candle fadeout punctuating Kathy and Doyle's kindled attraction. Hayden too, is coming off an iconic role as the gang leader in Kubrick's breakthrough caper film The Killing (1956). As a cop here, the towering Hayden's excellent, but as Stanwyck's devoted husband and lover, he strikes me as miscast.Overall, the film's too erratic to register as anything more than a time-passer. But it is good to note that Stanwyck soon adjusted to more appropriate matriarchal roles than that of a middle-age temptress.

bob the moo Crime of Passion sees ambitious journalist Kathy fall for and marry the simple cop Bill Doyle and move into a world of settled domesticity. Her ambitions however are not satisfied and as she tries to manipulate her way up the social and career ladder for her and Bill, she loses sight of what is important and things start to go wrong.With Stanwyck, Burr and Hayden in the cast I was looking forward to this film and on that front I was happy enough because the cast were as solid as those names would suggest. The problem is not with them but rather with a plot that moves too quickly, doesn't always ring true and is tidied up too easily. We meet Kathy as an aspiring journalist who has ambitions but within a few scenes she has settled down with Bill – a man that one key scene in their new home tells us, that she really doesn't know at all but it is clear to the viewer that the life models for these two don't align. Suddenly we have personal ambitions replaced with ambitions for Bill's career and from there things go wrong in ways that don't really ring true either. I liked Kathy as a character but her frustrations are all over the place – she hates the domestic life of the housewife circle but yet her attempts at betterment are focused on Bill, not herself. Her relationship with Tony Pope is also out of nowhere and again doesn't convince. From here things move very quickly to a conclusion that is far too tidy for its own good and doesn't satisfy as it should.The delivery of the situations always feels rushed and although it pushes a dark tone, it doesn't support it with the material. The cast do all they can though and indeed it is Stanwyck that makes the difference as she sells her character the best she can. Her driven and frustrated performance makes the unconvincing narrative a little less unconvincing. Hayden is solid as you expect and I liked this naïve, rather plain- living character. Burr is a decent presence but he is a narrative device rather than a character – he serves this function well but nothing more.Crime of Passion should have been a much stronger film but instead the narrative is unconvincing and jumps events without making good connections. The cast help cover for this and give good turns but the film is not really deserving of their efforts.