Gaslight (1944)

Touches You

To me, this movie is perfection.

It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

Back in 1940, an exceptional movie, "Murder in Thornton Square", was made in the UK. Just a few years later, Hollywood wanted to do a remake and did something unusual...they bought up every copy of the original picture that they could find in the hope that folks wouldn't realize that "Gaslight" was not an original picture. It worked, as "Gaslight" went on to win two academy awards, including one for Best Actress. I have seen both films and strongly recommend you do the same...since the original should also be considered a classic.When the film begins, there's been a murder in a home on fashionable Thornton Square. The lady of the house was killed and her young niece, Paula (Ingrid Bergman) discovered the body. Years pass and Paula seems like a normal woman. She's met Gregory (Charles Boyer) and he romances her quite vigorously. They marry and he talks about wanting to move with her to London. Well, Paula owns the home where her aunt was killed and suggests they go there. The house holds some frightful memories...but she wants to make Gregory happy. At first things seem ideal, but over time there is a change in Gregory. He no longer seems so thoughtful and kind but has become distance and sullen. He also begins insisting that Paula is stealing things and hiding them...though she has no recollection of any of this. Is she losing her mind? After all, she now seems emotionally fragile and weak. Or, is this all some elaborate plot to drive her out of her mind?"Gaslight" is an exquisite film with an exciting script. Good enough to nearly earn a 10. But since it is a remake, it cannot in my eyes deserve a 10. Well worth seeing.

George Cuckor became famous for his portrays of female characters and 'Gaslight' is no exception. Paola starts by being a shadow of her aunt mysteriously killed at her house in London. She seems destined to follow on her steps, even accepting to move back to the place where the murder happened. She then convinces herself she has lost her mind and finally turns around to find herself and see reality as it is. This process is brilliantly and subtly conducted by Cuckor, making the best use of Ingrid Bergman's talent, who gives the performance of a lifetime. 'Gaslight' is in many ways a display of Hollywood golden age, with a good script being served by a solid director and an all-star cast.

This drama turned out to be a really good Gothic psychological thriller. It's worthwhile watching if you like these kinds of films. In short: It's about a man who murdered an opera singer over the rubies she is said to own, he searches for them but doesn't find them. Years later Gregory meets Paula, the niece of the woman he killed years ago, and she accidentally uncovers his real identity so he decides to drive her mad to have her locked away while looking for her aunt's rubies. Paula is just lucky that a snoop is interested in what goes on in number 12. The film is pretty dramatic, starts slow while it takes time for the tension to build. It's beautifully filmed, well acted out and a story of madness, murder and crime. 8/10

An often fog-bound mansion in Victorian London is the setting for this tense psychological thriller which begins during the aftermath of a murder and develops into a husband's sustained plot to convince his wife (and everyone else) that she's insane. The villain's diabolical scheme is cruel, manipulative and interesting to watch as it shows how the victim's confidence is gradually undermined by a series of deceptions and the type of controlling behaviour that leaves her isolated, confused and genuinely doubting her own sanity.The action takes place in an increasingly sinister atmosphere and the mansion provides a wonderfully claustrophobic location for most of what transpires. The property's cluttered walls and over-furnished rooms make the victim's surroundings seem cramped and camera angles that bring the ceiling into view re-emphasise this impression. Furthermore, the streets around the mansion are mostly seen at night when the darkness and the fog considerably reduce what can be seen. These visual features contribute strongly to the mood of the piece and also emphasise the victim's strong feelings of being trapped.Paula Alquist (Ingrid Bergman) is a girl who'd been brought up by her aunt (who was a famous opera singer) since her mother's death. After a break-in at her home during which her aunt is strangled to death, the killer escapes and the traumatised Paula is sent to Italy to recover and study to also become an opera singer. Many years later, she falls in love with her piano accompanist and after a very short courtship and a honeymoon at Lake Como, her new husband, Gregory Anton (Charles Boyer) persuades her to move back to her previous home that she'd inherited from her aunt and which had remained unoccupied since the time she'd left London.Back at her childhood home, Gregory decides to move all her aunt's possessions up into the attic so that Paula won't be upset by their presence and then boards up the attic door. From this point onwards, he starts to make remarks about Paula's apparent forgetfulness and inclination to lose things. Her fragile confidence is then undermined further as he belittles her in front of the servants, openly flirts with the housemaid and forbids her to leave the house or receive any guests. Things then get even more troubling when she starts to hear sounds from the attic that no-one else hears and becomes alarmed by the gaslights which dim periodically for no apparent reason.Brian Cameron (Joseph Cotten) is a Scotland Yard detective who'd been a great admirer of Paula's aunt. After seeing the opera singer's home occupied again, he takes a growing interest in what's happening there and reviews the police records relating to the unsolved murder. Eventually, after some difficulties, he manages to meet Paula and win her confidence and this proves to be a turning point in her struggle to rationalise what had been happening to her since her return to No 9 Thornton Square."Gaslight" is well directed and features some top class performances. Angela Lansbury (in her first movie role) is terrific as the bad mannered and disrespectful maid and Charles Boyer is equally convincing, initially as the debonair and very attentive lover and later as the domineering sadist who tries to get his wife committed to an insane asylum. Ingrid Bergman really stands out in her Oscar-winning role as a woman who'd experienced the childhood traumas of being orphaned at a young age and later having to cope with the shock of her guardian's very sudden and violent death. Her sensitive interpretation of her character's ordeal is magnificent as she conveys her vulnerability so effectively without resorting to the exaggerated histrionics that many lesser actresses may well have employed.