... and a great showplace for Rosalind Russell's talents. Roz plays Harriet Craig, married to a well to do man, who apparently cares for nobody and nothing but the maintenance of her position in society and the orderliness of her large house.
Now maybe people were just supposed to see this as the just downfall of a greedy cold woman. But there is much more to the story than that. Harriet Craig is, maybe unconsciously, crying out for help. Why else would she just blurt out her battle plan to her niece whom she barely knows? Why would she talk about her mother being two timed by her father who mortgaged their house for his kept woman, then jettisoned her altogether and left her to die broke and of a broken heart? Her compulsive control of her husband and her household is a product of her NOT wanting to end up like mom at any price. And yet in the end she is all alone.
It is a bit too much to think that all of this just came crashing down on Harriet's head within basically a 24 hour period. Some people complain about the Passmore murder mystery basically diverting from the plot, but it is ironic that this obscure event, and Harriet's compulsive need to know what her husband is up to while not yet knowing about the murder, would precipitate her comeuppance.
John Boles is believable in an unbelievable role - that of a husband who cannot see that his wife sees him of little to no emotional value in two years of marriage yet who comes to an epiphany overnight after one conversation with his aunt and one issue over a phone call. Jane Darwell is great as the maid and cook who sees Harriett for what she is, but stays as long as she does because "you won't find better pay or better food in town". During the Depression that counted for something. With interior design of "the house" by William Haines who was a legend in the field after leaving an acting career, this is a short one but a good one.
I wonder why the camera made an issue out the younger maid, who was fired by Harriet for standing up or her beau, removing a photo of Gary Cooper from her wall before she left? Gary Cooper never even worked at Columbia! Highly recommended.
Now maybe people were just supposed to see this as the just downfall of a greedy cold woman. But there is much more to the story than that. Harriet Craig is, maybe unconsciously, crying out for help. Why else would she just blurt out her battle plan to her niece whom she barely knows? Why would she talk about her mother being two timed by her father who mortgaged their house for his kept woman, then jettisoned her altogether and left her to die broke and of a broken heart? Her compulsive control of her husband and her household is a product of her NOT wanting to end up like mom at any price. And yet in the end she is all alone.
It is a bit too much to think that all of this just came crashing down on Harriet's head within basically a 24 hour period. Some people complain about the Passmore murder mystery basically diverting from the plot, but it is ironic that this obscure event, and Harriet's compulsive need to know what her husband is up to while not yet knowing about the murder, would precipitate her comeuppance.
John Boles is believable in an unbelievable role - that of a husband who cannot see that his wife sees him of little to no emotional value in two years of marriage yet who comes to an epiphany overnight after one conversation with his aunt and one issue over a phone call. Jane Darwell is great as the maid and cook who sees Harriett for what she is, but stays as long as she does because "you won't find better pay or better food in town". During the Depression that counted for something. With interior design of "the house" by William Haines who was a legend in the field after leaving an acting career, this is a short one but a good one.
I wonder why the camera made an issue out the younger maid, who was fired by Harriet for standing up or her beau, removing a photo of Gary Cooper from her wall before she left? Gary Cooper never even worked at Columbia! Highly recommended.