vincentlynch-moonoi I think this is one of the creepiest thrillers you will find from the 1940s-1950s. And why? Because it shows how fragile every day life can be when just one little occurrence can bring one's life tumbling down! While it is an excellent story, it's the cast that makes it shine. There was always something special about Ethel Barrymore in a film, and here she really shines! I won't say it's her best film role (that may be "Pinky"), but this is so very good. I was never very impressed with Maurice Evans; he probably thought more of himself than others thought of him, in terms of acting. But he does very nicely here as the villain...not overplaying it, which some actors might have done. This is not a very impressive role for Angela Lansbury, but she's good in it as another of the thieves. Likewise, Keenan Wynn does nicely as another thief, not overplaying the role at all, but just being slightly menacing. John Williams to the rescue! A venerable character actor who never disappoints. Doris Lloyd is pleasant as the servant.This is a neat thriller, a bit chilling in an old-fashioned way, and worth the mere 77 minutes of screen time! It's a gem.

jarrodmcdonald-1 Ethel Barrymore defies Hollywood ageism by taking the lead role in this thriller from MGM, and quite frankly, with the exception of her work in None But the Lonely Heart, it is one of her best on-screen performances. MGM previously filmed this story in 1935 with Aline MacMahon. Miss MacMahon excelled at the role of a recluse whose life is now at the mercy of a group of con artists. But Barrymore imbues it with more authenticity and the right amount of wisdom and shrewdness that comes with being the exact age of the character, not dressing up in old woman's clothes and applying gobs of make-up like a much younger Miss McMahon did in the first filmed production. This remake also benefits from a stellar supporting cast, the likes of which include MGM contract player Angela Lansbury and Lansbury's real-life mother Moyna Macgill in a small role. Miss Barrymore's best is brought out in spades by costar Maurice Evans, the slickest con in the bunch, who dazzles the kind lady as a smooth-talking rogue while avoiding the pitfalls of scene chewing. As a result, we are kept enthralled right up to the story's denouement. The ending certainly does not disappoint and reaffirms our belief in the justice of this world.

JohnHowardReid The stage play opened at the Booth on 23 April 1935 and ran a successful 99 performances. Grace George played the spinster and Henry Daniell the sinister fortune-hunter. H.C. Potter directed. M-G-M acquired the rights and made the first film version in 1935 with Aline MacMahon and Basil Rathbone. This second version was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Costume Design in black-and-white, losing to Edith Head's "A Place in the Sun".Although produced on a "B" budget, this is a solidly engrossing movie thanks to a charismatically sympathetic performance by Ethel Barrymore and solid support from the likes of Betsy Blair, Angela Lansbury and Keenan Wynn. As the instigator of the sting, Maurice Evans has been taken to task for being a little too gentlemanly in his approach, but that that surely is a virtue rather than a fault. We, the audience, join Ethel Barrymore's ultra-sympathetic Mary Herries as innocent victims of his surprising duplicity. Assisted by Joseph Ruttenberg's superlatively moody photography, director John Sturges conjures up a tingling atmosphere throughout with a sure hand, extracting every bit of tension from a script that gradually turns the screws and adroitly piles suspense on suspense right up to the unnerving fade-out.

edwagreen Maurice Evans has a field day as a supposed artist who tricks his way into the home of dowager Ethel Barrymore and then with the aid of Keenan Wynn and Angela Lansbury, hold her hostage in her own home. They try to make others believe that Barrymore has gone insane and proceed to sell her belongings along with the house.George Sanders would have had great fun in the Evans part but the latter is convincing as the vicious con artist. Betsy Blair is appealing in the small role of his disturbed wife. Wynn and Lansbury have what it take as the evil co-conspirators.The trio almost pull it off but we know that they will not. Utterly engaging and exciting.