Dark Delusion (1947)

Simply A Masterpiece

Fresh and Exciting

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

In New York's Blair General Hospital, workplace of writer Max Brand's famous "Dr. Kildare", handsome recruit James Craig (as Tommy Coalt) is adored by young nurses, but has trouble getting along with his patients. There have been several complaints about Mr. Craig's poor bedside manner. Patients send protests to wise hospital head Lionel Barrymore (as Leonard Gillespie) regarding the new doctor's brash attitude. Craig is basically a good doctor – but he's a little bull-headed. When a nearby hospital asks Barrymore to "loan out" a surgeon for six weeks, he sends Craig. On the road, Craig meets a melancholy woman. Later, he discovers she is one of his new patients. Craig is immediately asked to co-sign papers committing gloomy Lucille Bremer (as Cynthia Grace) to a sanitarium. However, Craig has a feeling Ms. Bremer is more pretty than insane. He refuses to co-sign commitment papers...MGM looks to have been setting up an additional spin-off series with this entry, but this was the last of their "Kildare/Gillespie" films – which lost Lew Ayres in the leading role, years ago. Van Johnson' "Dr. Adams" replaced "Dr. Kildare" as the young surgeon, but checked out after becoming a major box-office star. "Dark Delusion" did feature Barrymore and the staff, but took the story to another hospital. The tone is morose, with both the hospital and Ms. Bremer photographed in sinister shadows. A couple years later, Mr. Ayres returned as "Dr. Kildare" in a radio series. By the 1960s, the doctor got a big shot in the arm on TV, in a popular series starring Richard Chamberlain. The highlights in "Dark Delusion" are Barrymore acting up his usual storm, Bremer's pointedly tight party dress, and the telephone chase scene wherein series regular Keye Luke "diagnoses" Warner Anderson's heart condition...Finally, there must be special mention of how director Willis Goldbeck and/or photographer Charles Rosher handle Craig and Bremer's climactic kissing scene – by spurting water in the lower left hand corner of your screen.**** Dark Delusion (6/25/47) Willis Goldbeck ~ James Craig, Lionel Barrymore, Lucille Bremer, Keye Luke

The last (and least) of the Dr. Gillespie series focuses on a young doctor played by James Craig. He's a jerk who keeps ticking off patients. So Gillespie sends him to a small town hoping that might improve his bedside manner. It doesn't really because Craig spends the whole movie investigating a schizophrenia case. He even commits crimes that would lose any real doctor his license and probably see him serving time in prison. So the initial premise isn't even followed up on. I'm not a big fan of Craig so you can imagine how I feel about a movie where he gets 3/4 of the screen time. I did enjoy Keye Luke, though. This is a lackluster end to the Dr. Gillespie series, which was originally the Dr. Kildare series. The first and possibly only movie to feature a wedding where the bride is in an iron lung. So there's that.

The last of the highly successful Dr. Kildare/Dr. Gillespie series which foreshadowed the later popularity of medical shows on TV, "Dark Delusion" has its moments, though overall routine with the psychological mumbo jumbo at times unintentionally humorous. The most entertaining scenes are the ones with veteran character actor Keye Luke as Dr. Lee Wong How, especially the part where he tries to convince a heart patient that he really isn't a heart patient; and the teasing confrontations between Dr. Gillespie (Lionel Barrymore) and Nurse 'Nosey' Parker--almost a comic version of Nurse Ratched before her time. The character of Napoleon portrayed by Ben Lessy is fun to watch, in particular his final appearance.The story centers as always on the medical staff and patients of Blair General Hospital. This time a new doctor, Dr. Tommy Coalt (played by the somewhat bland James Craig), is having serious bedside-manners problems since he always tells the truth the way he sees it to patients and staff alike. How do you get rid of an unwanted employee without causing an unnecessary blowup? Either promote him to a higher level bureaucratic position where he becomes nothing more than a highly paid pencil pusher or send him to a nowhere place such as Bayhurst where nobody cares, just thankful there's a physician in town.But Dr. Coalt is still an unruly colt. This time he takes on the entire medical profession by becoming involved with a young lady, Cynthia Grace (Lucille Bremer),who has been diagnosed as having a mental problem. Dr. Coalt is determined to cure her without confining her to an institution the way her family doctor has advised. Cynthia's father has also been persuaded to institutionalize his daughter. Sent by Dr. Gellispie to appraise the situation, Dr. Lee Wong How (Luke) reports back by telephone, "The good news is Dr. Coalt is not in jail yet." The acting is mixed. Barrymore, Luke, and Jayne Meadows give the best performances. Why Jayne Meadows couldn't make it as a viable screen personality is a mystery. Perhaps she reminded the movie goers of too many other actresses in comparable roles.If you're a fan of the series, then "Dark Delusion" will be enjoyed. For others, the going may be rough in spots but the high points will still be high points.

(Some Spoilers) The last of the MGM Dr. Kildare series without Dr. Kildare has to do with Kildare's replacement at Blair General Hospital Dr. Tommy Coalt, James Craig. Dr. Coalt a bit unorthodox in his methods in treating patients, one where he has a paralyzed bride recover from her deep depression by having her attend her own wedding in an iron lung with Dr. Coalt acting as the best man.Having numerous complaints and threats of law suits against his hospital because of the bullheaded Dr. Coalt the big boss Dr. Gillespie, Lionel Barrymore, has him farmed out to the out of the way place in the country called Bayhurst feeling that he can't do any damage there, or so her thought. With one of the towns doctor Dr. Burson, Art Baker, going on a two month vacation to war ravaged Europe Dr. Coalt is immediately put in charge of his practice and his star patience Bayhurst socialite Cyntaia. Cynthia had been declared insane by the Grace family doctor Dr. Biddle, Henry Stephson, and what was needed was Dr. Coalt to do the same thing, in writing, to put her way in a sanitarium until she recovers which probably would be never.Dr. Coalt refuses to sign the papers declaring Cynthia mentally unstable until he gives her a complete examination. This her father Mr. Wyndham Grace, Lester Matthews,throw a fit feeling that there's more going on between his daughter and Dr. Coalt then a doctor patient relationship and threaten to have him disbarred. As you would expect from the previous actions of Dr. Coalt he's not at all intimidated by Mr. Grace and his political connections in and out of Bayhurst and as usual does "his thing" instead regardless of the consequences.Still having Cynthia under his care, Mr. Grace had since cooled down a bit, Dr. Coalt starts to backtrack and finds out the truth about the reason for her mental condition. It leads to when she fell on her head from a fall off a horse she was riding. This was all accomplished with the help of Dr. Gillsepie, who showed up unexpectedly, and a dose of truth serum as well as putting a confused Cynthia under hypnosis.Realizing the delicate and dangerous condition that Cynthia was suffering from, a blood clot on the brain, Dr.Coalt had her virtually kidnapped taking Cynthia to to an obscure hospital in Brooklyn where he operated on her removing the blood clot and bringing Cynthia back to normal. Both the operation and flight out of town wasn't as easy as it looked taking some two months. This made Dr. Coalt a fugitive from the law facing at least 20 years for kidnapping as well as losing his license to practice medicine.Showing up back in Bayhurst Dr. Coalt has a big surprise for the very distraught, and about to belt him in his mouth, Mr. Grace and he shows him his daughter in perfect health as a normal person instead of having to be committed for life in a sanitarium as Mr. Grace was about to have done to Cynthia.In the end everyone is happy with Dr. Coalt taking over Dr.Burson's, who retired to Florida to go fishing, practice at Bayhurst with Cynthia completely overcoming both her illness and psychosis. The best thing,, besides Cynthias miraculously recovery, to happen in the film is old Dr. Gillespie finally hitting it big with a one million dollar contribution for his hospital. The donor being one of his most famous and eccentric admirers a little guy, Ben Lessy, who thinks that he's Napoleon Bonaparte! Like they say anything is possible in the movies.