Main Cast: Robert Young, Susan Hayward, Rita Johnson, Tom Powers, George Tyne
Release Year: 1947
Country: US
Run Time: 95 minutes
MPAA Rating: NR
Plot
Irving Pichel's They Won't Believe Me is the flashback unfolding of Larry Ballentine's (Robert Young) witness-stand testimony in his trial for the murder of girlfriend Verna Carlson (Susan Hayward). Larry is the first to admit he's a parasitic heel, cheating on his rich wife Gretta (Rita Johnson) first with magazine writer Janice Bell (Jane Greer) and then with Verna. Though aware of Larry's affairs, Gretta cannot manage to leave him; rather, she uses her money to keep him in tow. She foils his attempt to run off with Janice by buying him a partnership in a brokerage firm. When she discovers his plan to flee with Verna, she sells her interest, leaving Larry unemployed and penniless. The lovers run off nonetheless, but Verna is killed when a truck crashes into their car. When the authorities assume the charred victim is his wife, Larry gets a sinister idea. He returns home to kill Gretta, but she is already dead, so all he has to do is hide the body. Unfortunately for him, the police come looking for the missing Verna, who they suspect was blackmailing him. They find Gretta's unrecognizable corpse, think it's Verna's, and arrest Larry. The flashback structure of this suspenseful film noir effectively creates a foreboding tension that mounts to a powerful final scene. ~ Steve Press, All Movie Guide
Review
While it contains a few too many echoes of true film noir masterpieces, especially Double Indemnity, They Won't Believe Me is a very satisfying crime thriller in its own right. It's heavily plot-dependent (not unusual for the genre), and that is both its blessing and its curse -- the twists and turns the plot takes are intriguing, but they're also somewhat contrived, and their artificiality will turn off some viewers. Some might also be bothered by the lead character, an amoral, self-centered, greedy bounder, but others will find his flaws quite interesting, especially in a film from this era. He's well played by a cast-against-type Robert Young, who delivers an extremely effective performance. He's matched by his trio of leading ladies, with Susan Hayward in especially fine form as the most fatale-ish of the group. Some will wonder what this group of ladies finds so irresistible in Young, who lacks the overt hardboiled sexuality and/or raffish charm of many noir leading men, yet that air of mystery hints that, in bed, Young has, shall we say, hidden depths that censors of the time wouldn't have allowed to be seen. Irving Pichel directs with surprising style and shows an affinity for the genre. They Won't Believe Me is especially recommended for noir enthusiasts who have exhausted the "big guns" and are looking for lesser-known titles. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Frank Ferguson - Cahill; Jean Andren - Maid; Polly Bailey - Untidy Woman; Don Beddoe - Thomason; Nina Borget - Mrs. Roberts; Lovyss Bradley - Miss Jordan; Lillian Bronson - Mrs. Hines; Anthony Caruso - Tough Patient; Ellen Corby - Screaming Woman; Anne Cornwall - Screaming Woman; Dot Farley - Emma; Charles Flynn - Masseur; Byron Foulger - Mortician; Lee Frederick - Detective; Jack Gargan - Bartender; William Gillespie - Waiter; Sol (Saul) Gorss - Gus; Wilton Graff - Patrick Gold; Fred Graham - Deputy Sheriff; Jane Greer - Janice Bell; Harry Harvey - Judge Fletcher; Herbert Heywood - Sheriff; Carl Kent - Chauffeur; Perc Launders - Police Stenographer; Paul Maxey - Mr. Bowman; Matt McHugh - Tiny Old Man; Netta Packer - Spinster; Milton Parsons - Court Clerk; Lee Phelps - Bailiff; Jack Rice - Tour Conductor; Hector V. Sarno - Nick; Janet Shaw - Susan Haines; George Sherwood - Highway Cop; Harry Strang - Ryan; Irene Tedrow - 1st Woman; Bob Thom - Hotel Clerk; Martin Wilkins - Sailor; Bud Wolfe - Driver; Robert Thom - Hotel Clerk; Frank Pharr - Patrick Collins; George Morrell - Rancher; Harry Gillespie - Waiter; Ivan Browning - Bartender; Helen Dickson - Woman; Bert LeBaron - Joe Pots; Robert Peyton - Detective; Bob Pepper - Officer Guarding Larry; Elena Warren - Mrs. Bowman; Ira Buck Woods - Waiter
Credit
Robert F. Boyle - Art Director, Albert S. D'Agostino - Art Director, William Magginetti - Art Director, Edward Stevenson - Costume Designer, Irving Pichel - Director, Elmo Williams - Editor, Jack J. Gross - Executive Producer, Roy Webb - Composer (Music Score), Constantin Bakaleinikoff - Musical Direction/Supervision, Gordon Bau - Makeup, Harry J. Wild - Cinematographer, Joan Harrison - Producer, Darrell Silvera - Set Designer, William Magginetti - Set Designer, Russell A. Cully - Special Effects, Clem Portman - Sound/Sound Designer, John E. Tribby - Sound/Sound Designer, Jonathan Latimer - Screenwriter, Gordon McDonnell - Short Story Author
