Portrait in Black (1960)

Good start, but then it gets ruined

A Masterpiece!

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

"Portrait in Black" is one of the worst and most laughable melodramas that I have seen in years. One should not expect too much from a motion picture in which the name of gown designer Jean Louis appears bigger than cinematographer Russell Metty's. But that's the way it is, and to make sure there is absolutely no doubt about it in a production from Ross Hunter (the man behind "Imitation of Life", "All That Heaven Allows", and "Pillow Talk"), when Lana Turner has to go out incognito to get rid of a dead body, she chooses a sequined coat that matches the glittering black dress that Jean Louis designed for the occasion. Based on a stage play by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts that combines James M. Cain's material with Alfred Hitchcock's strategies, I would not know how to classify this melodrama without seeming rude, but this "portrait in black" is more a "Portrait in Heat", because there is not much beyond sexual obsession. A married woman (Turner) and the family doctor (Anthony Quinn) who want to have sex and little else, have never managed to be intimate as old as they are (thanks to the Hays code and prudish dramaturgy). The only way out they imagine is to kill her husband, so they can fulfill their most basic objective. As Turner and Quinn look the age they had when making the film (40 and 45), and there is not a trace of love but plain fixation, the whole mess becomes extremely ridicule, getting no help from Richard Basehart, Sandra Dee, John Saxon, Lloyd Nolan or Ray Walston. Only Anna May Wong and Virginia Grey bring a bit of distinction and dignity, "in the Hunter style".

Ms. Turner, enjoying a career renaissance kicked off by the combination of her Oscar-nominated role in "Peyton Place," the Stompanato murder case and the extraordinary success of "Imitation of Life," reteamed with producer Ross Hunter here as another well-to-do beauty suffering great duress. She plays the wife of cantankerous Nolan (who was the noble doctor in "Peyton Place"), a successful shipping magnate confined to a mechanical bed. His inherent bitterness leads him to lash out at Turner, who turns to his handsome doctor Quinn for comfort. When it becomes clear that they can never truly be together as a couple, they decide to relieve Nolan of his pain for good, but soon after they begin to get letters that hint of blackmail. Before long, they are faced with the prospect of committing a second murder in order to protect their secret. Meanwhile, shifty Basehart is running the company and eyeing Turner and Nolan's daughter Dee (who was Turner's daughter in "Imitation of Life") is carrying on with low-rung tugboat owner Saxon. Also, sneaky chauffeur Walston and vaguely threatening housekeeper Wong lurk around every other corner. Turner looks terrific throughout most of the film, being saddled with a couple of ugly hats here and there (and :::gasp::: wearing one outfit twice!), but generally looking fantastic. She was perfect at these types of glossy, over-the-top melodramas and this is among the best. The story (riddled with contrivance and preposterousness) reaches a fever pitch several times and overwrought Lana is right there to help serve it up at its best. Quinn seems a tad out of place, but it's nice to see him in a film from this period that didn't have him playing an Indian, a slave, a fisherman or some other type of earthy character. Basehart is remarkably slimy, Dee a bit more mature than she had been in previous films, yet still unable to shake off her squeaky-clean image and Saxon gritting his teeth in outrage when he isn't trying to canoodle with Dee. Walston gives an appropriately mysterious performance while silent film legend Wong is mostly relegated to stern stares and curt comments. Grey has a supporting role as Nolan's beleaguered secretary, while fairly grating child actor Kohler plays Turner's inquisitive son. Based on a short-running Broadway play from the 40's, but slathered over with the customary Hunter lavishness, this slightly overlong film is a glimmering camp hoot today. As if the overheated acting, silly script and glitzy décor weren't enough, there is a deliriously insane Frank Skinner score punctuating every "nuance" of the plot. At least there is some very creative, for the time, lighting and camera-work in evidence, giving the picture a nourish feel at times (which is quite an accomplishment considering all the gloss in view.) Highlights of the film include: Turner running open-armed to Quinn in his apartment, Turner, decked out in a purposefully drab gown, watching Quinn enter the house to kill Nolan, Turner running around the house and up and down stairs in her snug skirt, turning off lights and panicking and, most especially, Turner confessing that she can't drive and then being forced to operate an unfamiliar car on the Pacific Coast Highway during a hysterical rainstorm! Yes, it's basically her show all the way right up to the closing frames.

The plot outline of PORTRAIT OF BLACK makes it sound like it would have been a great '40s melodrama for someone like Barbara Stanwyck, who might have given it the grittier touch it needs to succeed as a suspenseful piece about blackmail and murder. But Ross Hunter has given it a luxurious look, filling it with lavish sets and some stunning costumes for LANA TURNER to wear as she and ANTHONY QUINN conspire to kill her obnoxious husband LLOYD NOLAN.The cast too is full of glamorous Hollywood names--SANDRA DEE, JOHN SAXON, RICHARD BASEHART, VIRGINIA GREY, RAY WALSTON and ANNA MAY WONG. No expense has been spared to give the story whatever production values Hunter could throw at it, including a score by Frank Skinner (who did the music for Turner's MADAME X). But nothing hides the fact that it's just a routine tale of a plan to commit the perfect murder that backfires in time for the sort of ending Hollywood demanded for its killers, even if they were stars of Turner's caliber.Lana did better work earlier in her career than she does here, but she looks gorgeous and SANDRA DEE (as her step-daughter) gets to wear some nifty outfits too. It's eye candy for Turner fans, but if it's solid entertainment you're looking for, this is only passable. Even ANTHONY QUINN looks a bit uncomfortable in his underwritten role.

This is another one of my favorite camp movies, though I'm sure Ross Hunter didn't intend that. It's an opulent, big budget soaper with Lana Turner rich and glamorous in the lead, which guarantees us some nice clothes anyway. Her husband is the sickly Lloyd Nolan, and his doctor is Lana's boyfriend, played by Anthony Quinn. Quinn is just aching to put an air bubble in that hypodermic and knock off Nolan. The next thing you know, we're at Lloyd's funeral.Of course, as soon as she's a widow, Lana has another gentleman caller, played by Richard Basehart, and she starts getting blackmail notes. Someone knows that Lloyd had some help going into the great beyond. Soon it's time for another murder...Portrait in Black has some really funny scenes and situations in it. My favorite is when Lana's character, who never got her driver's license, has to drive 25 miles on the Pacific Coast Highway in the rain. It's a riot! John Saxon, Sandra Dee, Ray Walston, Anna Mae Wong, and Virginia Gregg are along for support. Dee plays Turner's daughter, which is good casting. If you like this kind of big-budget potboiler, don't miss Portrait in Black.