The Chase (1946)

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Movie
Original title The Chase
Country of production United States
original language English
Spanish
Publishing year 1946
length 86 minutes
Rod
Director Arthur Ripley
(as Arthur D. Ripley)
script Philip Yordan
production Seymour minor number
(as Seymour minor)
music Michel Michelet
camera Franz Planer
(as Frank F. Planer)
cut Edward Mann
occupation

The Chase is in black and white twisted American film noir from the year 1946 . It was based on the novel The Black Path of Fear by Cornell Woolrich .

action

The penniless war returnees, suffering from anxiety disorders , finds a lost wallet in Miami and brings it to the property of the owner, Eddie Roman. Eddie turns out to be a sadistic gangster, who takes pleasure in the shy and honest Chuck. He hires Chuck as a chauffeur, much to the displeasure of his assistant Gino. Lorna, Eddie's unhappy wife, regularly lets Chuck drive her to the beach, where she gazes out to sea for hours. One evening Lorna begs Chuck to help her escape to Cuba . Chuck does her the favor she wants to pay him generously and organizes two tickets for the crossing. Chuck and Lorna arrange to meet in the evening to drive Eddie's car to the harbor, where the ship is supposed to leave at 11 p.m. The plan succeeds, and during the crossing, Chuck and Lorna fall in love. In Havana, they visit a bar after the driver of their carriage refuses to transport them. Lorna is stabbed from behind in the bar. Chuck becomes the police's prime suspect after a saleswoman who allegedly bought the murder weapon charges him with her testimony. He manages to escape, but all witnesses who could exonerate him are murdered. Finally he meets Gino, who shoots Chuck in cold blood.

Chuck wakes up drenched in sweat in his room in Eddie's mansion. It is the evening of the planned escape, his and Lorna's murders were a dream. Since he cannot remember how he got into the room he is in, he visits the Army doctor Davidson. Davidson tries to calm Chuck down and accompanies him to a bar where Eddie and Gino happen to be. At the sight of the two, Chuck's memory comes back. He visits Eddie's property again, frees Lorna locked in her room and rushes with her to the port to take the ship to Cuba. Eddie and Gino drive after the two of them, but have an accident on the way with the car. Chuck and Lorna cross over to Cuba by ship. In Havana, they take a carriage that stops in front of the bar from Chuck's dream.

background

The Chase opened in American theaters on November 22, 1946. In 1947 the film was shown in competition at the 2nd Cannes International Film Festival . In Germany , he did not reach the performance.

criticism

“[ The Chase is] tight as spring steel for the first 75 minutes, only to sink limply back into the banal. [...] Robert Cummings does his job well, but, although he leads the cast, is overshadowed by the dominant personality and appearance of newcomer Steve Cochran [...] Michèle Morgan [...] has nothing more to do than a few fashionable clothes to demonstrate. "

“With the exception of Witness Wanted , The Chase is the best cinematic equivalent to the dark, oppressive atmosphere that characterizes the majority of Cornell Woolrich's best books. [...] The excellent visual quality could in large part be due to the chance creative synthesis of producer, director and the rich visual structure of Woolrich's work, which was masterfully photographed by Franz Planer . "

- Alain Silver and Elizabeth Ward, Film Noir

Web links

literature

  • Cornell Woolrich: The Black Path of Fear. Doubleday, Doran, New York 1944 (EA)
  • Cornell Woolrich: The Dark Path of Fear. German by Daisy Remus. Heyne, Munich 1980 (EA)
  • Cornell Woolrich: The Black Path. Novel. From the American by Daisy Remus. Diogenes, Zurich 1988 ["This edition follows the first German translation and has been heavily revised"]. ISBN 3-257-21627-0 .

Individual evidence

  1. Alain Silver, Elizabeth Ward (Ed.): Film Noir. An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style, Third Edition. Overlook / Duckworth, New York / Woodstock / London 1992, ISBN 978-0-87951-479-2 , p. 55.
  2. ^ The Chase on Festival-cannes.com, accessed February 25, 2013.
  3. "The Chase is a meller that's taut as sprung steel for 75 minutes of its running time then slackens limply into the commonplace. […] Robert Cummings handles himself nicely but, though he tops the cast, is over-shadowed by the dominating personality and looks of a newcomer, Steve Cochran […] Michele Morgan registers nicely, although she isn't given much to do besides modeling a few flashy gowns. “- Review  ( page no longer available , search in web archivesInfo: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in Variety for 1946 (no specific date), accessed February 25, 2013.@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.variety.com  
  4. " Phantom Lady excepted, The Chase is the best cinematic equivalent of the dark, oppressive atmosphere did characterizes most of Cornell Woolrich's best fiction. [...] Its fine pictorial quality may be largely the result of a fortuitous creative synthesis of producer, director, and the rich visual texture of Woolrich's fiction, which was expertly photographed by Franz Planer [...] "- Alain Silver, Elizabeth Ward (ed .): Film Noir. An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style, Third Edition. Overlook / Duckworth, New York / Woodstock / London 1992, ISBN 978-0-87951-479-2 , p. 55.