Ein Fremder ruft an

Phone Call from a Stranger (1952)

Well, the studio system is crumbling, and the great Golden Age stars like Bette Davis are finding new kinds of roles, but veteran directors like Jean Negulesco are still able to use all the great talents of Hollywood to put together what is a classic kind of movie. It's not a great movie at all, but it's tightly constructed, filled with twists, is dramatic and poignant in turns (and funny, too), and all in all makes for an entertaining and interesting movie.

Not mind-blowing adjectives, I know, but appropriate.

The key player here is a strong and silent type, Gary Merrill, a really steady and impressive actor every time I've seen him, though he usually plays secondary roles. But he calmly holds together a series of stories (there are four main threads here, with a unifying link that is quite a surprise). All the other actors have brief roles, as the movie is really broken into sections a little like A Letter to Three Wives from three years earlier (a better movie, but sharing a nice sense of interweaving stories). But this means Bette Davis, whose name appears in big letters as a star, appears fairly briefly. But she's fabulous, even in this limited role.

There a some odd flaws, like an odd shift to soft focus on an actress for some close-ups of but not others. And the story for all its strengths feels a little forced, too, which you just go along with. But if you are glass half full person you'll see the strengths of acting and filming here (cinematographer Milton Krasner is among the best) as well as the music (Franz Waxman), and you'll really enjoy it start to finish.

This is an interesting story with a great cast. The survivor of a plane crash meets the other people in the lives of those he met on the plane before the crash. This framework provides a fascinating study in conscience and human nature.

Various passengers (Shelley Winters , Gary Merrill , Keenan Wynn, Michael Rennie) meet at an airport and all of them make friendship. Having survived an air crash , one of the survivors visits the bereaved families of three fellow passengers with whom he had become friendly during the fateful flight . Five great stars in a masterpiece of bold and beloved emotions !

An interesting and decent but hardly ever outstanding dramatic compendium , dealing with a simple and plain plot about a survivor after a plane accident visits the families of three of the victims whom he met during the flight , being paced in good sense , sensibility and with plenty of emotion . Maudlin and adorable film with emotion , deep feeling and and intense drama . Compellingly performed by a nice main cast as Gary Merrill , Shelley Winters , Michael Rennie and Keenan Wynn .These great stars being well accompanied by a good support cast , such as : Evelyn Varden , Warren Stevens, Beatrice Straight , Craig Stevens , John Doucette , Nestor Paiva and Helen Westcott . Brief appearance by George Nader as a pilot and Bette Davis , then Gary Merrill's wife, shows up in a subordinate role as Keenan Wynn's spouse and moves things up a gear or two .

Being well written and produced by Nunnally Johnson. Displaying a stirring and memorable musical score by classic composer Franz Waxman . Equally , an atmospheric and evocative cinematography by Milton R. Krasner. This agreeable and sentimental weepie was competently directed by Jean Negulesco . This classy Hollywood director Jean Negulesco was an elegant and brilliant filmmaker who made notorious films with penchant for Musical, Comedy and Drama, such as : The invincible six, The best everything, Daddy long legs, Three coins in the fountain, How to marry a millionaire, Titanic, Phone call from a stranger, A woman's world, Three came home , Road house, Humoresque, among others. And of course his successful Belinda with the Oscarized Jane Wyman. Phone Call from a Stranger (1952) rating : 7.5/10. Better than average.

Gary Merrill's plane is delayed by weather, and he waits in a small airport terminal with three strangers: Shelley Winters, Michael Rennie, and Keenan Wynn. All four have complex pasts, and, over the course of the night, they become friends and share secrets. A tragic crash leaves only one of the four alive, Gary Merrill, which is no spoiler because the advertising blurb reveals that plot point. Thus, Gary makes the "Phone Call from a Stranger" to the families of the three friends who died. Although a clever and engaging story device, the disparate stories tidy up a bit too quickly and neatly. However, the cast is entertaining, and the film is engaging throughout its 96-minute running time.

Merrill is solid as David Trask, a lawyer with his own issues, who links the stories. Shelley Winters shines as Binky Gay, an entertainer who never quite made the big time and lives in the shadow of her celebrity husband and mother-in-law. Winters's role is showy, and she plays both her character and Trask's enhanced version of her character with panache. Keenan Wynn is the perpetual clown, who grows tiresome to his friends and eventually to the audience. Beyond the four central characters, even the small parts are big in this film. A young Beatrice Straight plays Michael Rennie's wife; Evelyn Varden is Sally Carr, an aging nightclub headliner; and Bette Davis appears near the end to show her then husband, Merrill, how to face his own character's crisis.

"Phone Call from a Stranger" is not a classic, but rather a solid programmer from the early 1950's with an above-average cast and some good performances. While the film does not merit repeat viewings, except perhaps to appreciate a little known Bette Davis role, the story is told with a good pace, and any time spent in the company of these fine actors is well spent.

While Gary Merrill's main claim to fame was his brief marriage to Bette Davis, he was a minor Hollywood star on his own--playing a variety of bit parts. However, this film features him as a survivor of a plane crash who seeks out family members of victims he met on the trip. And, he does a competent job and proves he really could act. Unfortunately, he was far from a handsome leading man and once he was divorced from Ms. Davis, his career pretty much disappeared.

In addition to his excellent performance, the movie is so well-written. The vignettes where he meets the families are very touching and sometimes very ironic (such as the one he plays with Ms. Davis). It is a strange but well-executed film that deserves to be remembered.