Alex da Silva Artist Humphrey Bogart (Geoffrey) and Barbara Stanwyck (Sally) are in love but there is a big obstacle in the way in the form of Bogart's wife. So, the solution is to remove the obstacle and paint her portrait while he's in the mindset. We get the same situation when stuck-up socialite Alexis Smith (Cecily) enters the scene, only this time it's Babsy Stanwyck who's in danger and getting the portrait treatment. Can Bogey carry through his plan? The story is fine but the acting and characters are a bit weak so I have to mark the film down for this. Bogart isn't really artist material and pulls out a comedy ending. Stanwyck's character is a bit of a wet fish and will have you shaking your head in annoyance at the film's end scene when she gets the upper hand on Bogey. Aha, finally we get the strong Stanwyck personality we have been waiting for. But, hold on…….what on earth is she doing? Doh!! Nigel Bruce turns up as a doctor and just plays his usual bumbling oaf comedy character – also annoying. And I just have no idea what Bogey's daughter Ann Carter (Bea) is doing. Anybody know? She is either some sort of evil genius child or just completely terrible and unrealistic in everything she says. I have no idea which it is. Alexis Smith (Cecily) who plays the 'other woman' and housemaid Anita Sharp-Bolster (Christine) are the best in the cast.The film isn't bad, there are a few good scenes, and there is a frightening moment a la "Picture of Dorian Grey". The music gets seriously cranked up for melodrama so you know what emotions you are meant to be feeling.

preppy-3 Humphrey Boart plays Jeffrey Carroll--a painter whose wife died. He meets lovely Sally (Barbara Stanwyck) and falls in love. They get married but then she gets suspicions that he may have poisoned his first wife to marry her. This grows when he becomes attracted to Cecily (Alexis Smith). It all leads to a finale on a dark and stormy night.First the good things about this. The script is not bad--there are plenty of cute lines. Stanwyck is wonderful in her role. The movie LOOKS beautiful and Smith is lovely. However Bogart is seriously miscast in this. Even worse he knows it and the panic in his face is uncomfortable to watch. The movie moves slowly too. And the finale is WAY over the top to a ridiculous degree. It was unintentionally hilarious! I actually broke out laughing at the overdone melodramatics that were on screen. This was shot in 1945 but held back from release (for good reason) for two years. This was a serious misstep for Stanwyck and Bogart but it didn't affect their careers too much. Almost worth seeing for the hilarious ending. Almost.

jarrodmcdonald-1 Humphrey Bogart and Barbara Stanwyck excel in THE TWO MRS. CARROLLS. The plot is clichéd and has been done to greater effect in REBECCA (the idea of a tormented second wife); in SUSPICION (the poisoned milk); and in DRAGONWYCK (the drawn out death of a wife). But there is enough variation here to keep it interesting. And the acting of both stars keeps it entertaining, right up till the end. But there are a few problems with the film. In the beginning, Stanwyck's lack of screen time is a drawback. After the racetrack sequence, she gets to repeat herself in one scene after another while her character is bedridden. But we do know that Stanwyck would not take a part if the script didn't call for something truly exciting to perform. And the last thirty or forty minutes, the show picks up considerable speed when the character she plays starts to realize a sweet-faced husband (Bogart) may very well be trying to kill her. Watch for the scene where she throws the milk out the window.

JohnHowardReid Although credits are top-draw, production values are very moderate. Peter Godfrey's direction is also a mite disappointing. Neither he nor screenplay writer Thomas Job have made much attempt to open up the stage play. Instant information dialogue is put across with a disconcerting lack of subtlety in both writing and delivery. Ann Carter's unrealistically precocious child and Nigel Bruce's blustering, stereotyped doctor are the worst offenders. Bogart himself delivers another of his very capable studies in psychopathology. Barbara Stanwyck is also cast strictly to type, but she too comes across effectively. Both she and Bogart give seemingly effortless portrayals as they both have parts they can play standing on their heads. Alexis Smith makes a strong impression in an unsympathetic part. On the other hand, Patrick O'Moore makes a wet, colorless hero. In the support cast, Anita Bolster (looking rather like Margaret Hamilton) gives an audience-pleasing portrait of a cynical servant. Godfrey himself does a brief and amusing cameo as a race-track con man. Barry Bernard registers as the blackmailing Blagdon, while Isobel Elsom delivers her usual capable rendition of a high society lady. Godfrey's direction is at its best in the climax with the camera tracking across the room with Bogart as he makes his preparations. It must be admitted that Godfrey sees the action from a cinematic rather than a stage audiences' point-of-view, but his approach is often unimaginatively routine. All the same, certain sequences do have power (the murder, the climax, the discovery of the portrait), but thanks as much to deft film editing and atmospheric photography by Peverell Marley (who lights Miss Stanwyck most attractively) as anything else. Stanwyck is also most attractively costumed and made up. Alert music scoring effectively mirrors every cue in the dialogue.