Main Cast: Maureen O'Hara, Melvyn Douglas, Gloria Grahame, Bill Williams, Victor Jory
Release Year: 1949
Country: US
Run Time: 85 minutes
MPAA Rating: NR
Plot
Screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz adopts the same prismatic-flashback technique he'd used so well in Citizen Kane for the 1949 filmic soap opera A Woman's Secret. Based on a novel by Vicki (Grand Hotel) Baum, the film begins with the shooting of nightclub singer Susan Caldwell (Gloria Grahame). Marian Washburn (Maureen O'Hara), who'd coached Susan into the Big Time, confesses to the shooting. Neither Marian's piano-player friend Luke Jordan (Melvyn Douglas) nor police inspector Fowler (Jay C. Flippen) completely buy her story, and it is their probing investigation of the facts that sparks the flashback parade. The film details in sometimes clever, sometimes maudlin fashion the perils of living one's life vicariously through the accomplishments of others. Though filmed before director Nicholas Ray's "official" debut feature They Live by Night, A Woman's Secret was released afterward. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
A very uneven little mystery flick, A Woman's Secret has so much going for it that it's a shame it can't keep from stumbling as often as it does. Let's start with Herman Mankiewicz's tasty dialogue, which comes in several flavors. Some of it is tart and tangy, especially when Gloria Graham is feeling feisty. Some is an intriguing mixture of world weary flippancy and gung ho enthusiasm, often courtesy of Melvyn Douglas. There's some silliness, some cynicism, some hardboiled -- a nice little smorgasbord. Mankiewicz's structure is a smorgasbord, too; that eventually becomes a problem, as the complexity of the plot sets up an expectation for a smash-band ending. Instead, we get a "that's IT?" resolution, and never do understand why Maureen O'Hara tells the lie that she does. Graham's character also doesn't come across clearly; she's two different people, and it feels as if a scene is missing that ties the two pieces together. And Nicholas Ray's direction is uneven, excellent in places, but disinterested in others. O'Hara also struggles a bit; she looks gorgeous, but she seems uncomfortable at times. Grahame does very well, even if she can't reconcile the two halves of her character, and Douglas is aces all the way. Throw in some nice work by Jay C. Flippen and Mary Philips, and there's plenty here to make Secret worth watching -- and to make you wish it was as good overall as it is at its best. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Jay C. Flippen - Det. Fowler; Mary Philips - Mrs. Fowler; Robert Warwick - Roberts; Curt Conway - Doctor; Ann Shoemaker - Mrs. Matthews; Virginia Farmer - Mollie; Ellen Corby - Nurse; Emory Parnell - Desk Sergeant; Conrad Binyon - Messenger Boy; Oliver Blake - Mr. Pierson; Raymond Bond - Dr. Ferris; Eddie Borden - Waiter; George Douglas - Policeman; Paul Guilfoyle - Moderator; Alvin Hammer - Fred; Robert Malcolm - Bit; Rory Mallinson - Benson; Frank Marlowe - Whitey; Alphonse Martell - Waiter; Ralph Montgomery - Photographer; Forbes Murray - Mr. Emory; John Parrish - Prof. Camelli; Lee Phelps - Policeman; Mickey Simpson - Policeman; Charles Wagenheim - Piano player; Lynn Whitney - Actress; John W. Goldsworthy - Harold; Guy Beach - Policeman; Tom Coleman - Policeman; Bert Davidson - Radio Director; Dan Foster - Stage Manager; Frederic Nay - Master of Ceremonies; Norman Nesbitt - Announcer; Ralph Stein - Mr. Harris; Evelyn Underwood - Girl; Lorelei Vitek - Waitress; John Laing - Radio Announcer
Credit
Carroll Clark - Art Director, Albert S. D'Agostino - Art Director, Edward Stevenson - Costume Designer, Nicholas Ray - Director, Sherman Todd - Editor, Frederick Hollander - Composer (Music Score), Constantin Bakaleinikoff - Musical Direction/Supervision, Gordon Clifford - Songwriter, Nacio Herb Brown - Songwriter, Gordon Bau - Makeup, George E. Diskant - Cinematographer, Harry J. Wild - Cinematographer, Herman Mankiewicz - Producer, Darrell Silvera - Set Designer, Harley Miller - Set Designer, Russell A. Cully - Special Effects, A. Earl Wolcott - Sound/Sound Designer, Clem Portman - Sound/Sound Designer, Frank Sarver - Sound/Sound Designer, Herman Mankiewicz - Screenwriter, Vicki Baum - Book Author
In a story told in a series of flashbacks, singer Marian Washburn (Maureen O'Hara) loses her voice. Aided by her piano player, Luke Jordan (Melvyn Douglas), they promote a young singer Susan Caldwell (Gloria Grahame). When Susan decides to quit the business, she is shot and seriously wounded. Marian is charged.
