Introduction
Welcome to my corner! Last week, I shared my thoughts on the film It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. This week, I'm sharing my thoughts on the film The Two Mrs. Carrolls.
The TCM television channel played The Two Mrs. Carrolls as part of their 'Director Peter Godfrey' lineup on June 9. Enjoy!
The Two Mrs. Carrolls
The Two Mrs. Carrolls is a 1947 American mystery film noir directed by Peter Godfrey and starring Humphrey Bogart, Barbara Stanwyck, and Alexis Smith. It was produced by Mark Hellinger from a screenplay by Thomas Job, based on the 1935 play of the same name by Martin Vale (a pseudonym of Marguerite Vale Veiller).
Plot: Geoffrey Carroll (Humphrey Bogart) is a married artist who meets the lovely Sally Morton (Barbara Stanwyck) while on vacation. Hiding his marital status from Sally, Geoffrey goes on to paint a foreboding portrait of his spouse and then kills her by gradually slipping her poison. Before long, Geoffrey woos and marries Sally, but eventually he begins an eerie painting of her, as his attention shifts to the beautiful Cecily Latham (Alexis Smith). Will the deranged Geoffrey murder again?
Acting: The more and more of these columns I write, the more I understand that I've not very good at commenting on the actors' performances, unless they aren't good. I hope my dear readers don't mind this too much.
Humphrey Bogart played Geoffrey Carroll. A pretty recognizable name I'd say. Although I don't think I've seen many of his films. His four most notable films are: Casablanca, The African Queen, The Maltese Falcon, and To Have and Have Not. He was a big actor in noir films, a genre which I don't particularly care for.
Barbara Stanwyck played Sally Morton Carroll. I really enjoy watching Stanwyck on the screen. I've seen a good deal of her films up to this point. Her four most notable films are: Double Indemnity, The Lady Eve, Sorry, Wrong Number, and Ball of Fire. My favorite Stanwyck film so far is Lady of Burlesque.
Ann Carter played Beatrice "Bea" Carroll, Geoffrey's daughter. The four films she's known for are: Blondie Hits the Jackpot, The Curse of the Cat People, The Searching Wind, and The North. I knew I recognized her face and voice! I'ave seen The Curse of the Cat People, a sequel (sort of ) to Cat People, which I've also seen. Carter appeared in less than 20 films in her short career.
Technical Aspects: "Martin Vale" w as a pseudonym of Marguerite Vale Veiller, the wife of writer Bayard Veiller. Her play, The Two Mrs. Carrolls, opened in London in 1935, and, rewritten, moved to Broadway in 1943, where it was a minor hit.
In the summer of 1944, Warner Brothers paid $225,000 for the film rights to the play. Before a screenwriter had even been assigned to the project, Warners announced that Bette Davis would star as Sally Carroll, and Jesse L. Lasky would produce. Meanwhile, Warners also purchased the rights to the Ayn Rand novel The Fountainhead, and announced Mervyn LeRoy would direct the film adaptation, and Humphrey Bogart and Barbara Stanwyck would star in it.
The Two Mrs. Carrolls was significantly altered for the film. In the play, the first Mrs. Carroll is not murdered in the first act, but, rather, lives (off-stage) until the third act, and telephones Sally to warn her that Geoffrey is attempting to poison her. This provides a major shock to the audience, which had no reason to suspect Geoffrey. In the screenplay, the first Mrs. Carroll dies (off-screen) minutes into the film, and suspense replaces shock, as Sally slowly begins to suspect her husband of murder.
According to Stanwyck biographer Axel Madsen, Stanwyck agreed to do the film out of boredom, as her husband, Robert Taylor, was serving in the U.S. military in World War II, and, although the war in Europe was clearly ending, she knew he would not return to the United States for many months. Another reason Stanwyck agreed to do the film is that she had become close friends with director Peter Godfrey after working with him on the Christmas comedy Christmas in Connecticut, which was filmed in 1944. Stanwyck biographer Dan Callahan has argued that Stanwyck's friendship with Godfrey blinded her to his shortcomings as a director, which were significant. Film historian Edmund Bansak notes that The Two Mrs. Carrolls was written as a vehicle for Stanwyck, which may also explain her willingness to star in the picture, but Bogart biographer Richard Gehman challenges this claim, saying the rights to the play were purchased so Bogart could star in the film adaptation.
Although the studio assigned a B movie director and producer to the film, it hired A-list stars, and the film had an A-list budget. Filming lasted from April to June 1945, with a brief hiatus in the production to accommodate the honeymoon of Bogart, who married Laurin Bacall on May 21. Almost all of the filming took place at the Warner Bros. studio on sets designed by Warners' veteran set designer Anton Grot. Painter John Decker produced the two portraits seen in the film.
Bogart and Stanwyck had a friendly relationship on set. Producer Mark Hellinger, whom Bogart liked very much, announced that Bogart would not be seen in any painter's outfits that would appear un-masculine, so, when a painter's smock and beret with a tassel showed up on his wardrobe rack one day, the actor was furious. It turned out that the smock and beret were a joke perpetrated by Stanwyck, and the two performers had a good laugh afterword. (Good gravy...)
Warner Bros. did not immediately release The Two Mrs. Carrolls after it was completed, and there were different theories about the reason for the delay. Turner Classic Movies stated it was because of the film's strong similarity to the 1944 film Gaslight, but film historian Richard Schnickel has said it was because Warners hoped Bogart's rising popularity as a Hollywood star would help overcome his awful performance in the film. (I didn't think his acting was that bad.) Then, the song "Open the Door, Richard" became popular, with five versions being released in 1946 and 1947. The studio reportedly considered cutting or re-filming the scene in which Bogart pounds on Stanwyck's bedroom door, demanding that she open it, but ultimately left it unchanged.
The Two Mrs. Carrolls was finally released in the United States on March 4, 1947. Warners had a relatively poor marketing campaign for the picture. Theater owners were asked to promote the film by holding contests in which female patrons were to decide whether they looked more like Barbara Stanwyck or Alexis Smith.
Final Thoughts: I really enjoyed watching The Two Mrs. Carrolls. I'm finding that I like the old suspenseful movies. I also enjoy watching Barbara Stanwyck movies. She's fun to watch. As long as you're not easily spooked, I think anyone would enjoy this movie.
Where to watch it: According to Google, The Two Mrs. Carrolls is currently available to watch on Hulu, Sling TV, and YouTube TV with premium subscriptions. Or, you can purchase or rent a digital copy for a few dollars. I've also donated a DVD copy of the film to the Emil M. Larson Library in Clark for you all to enjoy if you choose to.
That's it for this week! What were your thoughts? Feel free to share them with us! You can call us, email us, visit us at the office, leave us a comment or message on Facebook, or even mail us something. Keep the comments, suggestions, questions, submissions, etc. coming our way! We'd love to hear from you!
