Ich heiratete einen Kommunisten

THE WOMAN ON PIER 13 is probably the most anti-Communist film that came out of Hollywood. It seems to have been made purely by Howard Hughes in order to score political points, and the original title (I MARRIED A COMMUNIST) is telling in itself. That it nevertheless turns out to be an atmospheric little film noir all by itself is a testament to the director, who lifts laughable source material out of the gutter.

The film's setting is familiar from ON THE WATERFRONT, except this time the threat doesn't come from gangsters but rather secret Communists who use murder and extortion to achieve their aims. Robert Ryan is typically dependable as the conflicted hero, but it's the heavies who work really well here: a debuting William Talman, a larger-than-life Thomas Gomez. The real star, though, is director Robert Stevenson (of Orson Welles's JANE EYRE), who brings the murky waterways to life and makes the film look as good as it can get.

I have just watched my second Robert Ryan movie of the week, and it was another goodie. The movie in question was 1950's "I Married a Communist," which was later given the more meaningless title "The Woman on Pier 13." In the film, Ryan stars as a successful San Francisco shipping executive who has just been married to Laraine Day. As a youth, he had briefly belonged to the Communist Party, and now, the thugs and goons from the party have returned to blackmail him and coerce him to do their bidding. They send a very attractive blonde member to corrupt his brother-in-law (John Agar, in one of his earliest roles), and things get very nasty before the film's taut 73 minutes are done. Thomas Gomez and William Talman add effortless slimy support as the Commie cell leader and hit-man, respectively, and director Robert Stevenson keeps things moving crisply. (Hard to believe that Stevenson later went on to direct such kiddie fare as "The Absent-Minded Professor," "Son of Flubber," "Mary Poppins," "That Darn Cat" and "The Love Bug," given the nature of this film!) The picture is beautifully, noirishly shot and features some surprisingly effective bursts of violence. My stomach was in knots with this one, I must tell you; it is a very effective exercise in suspense. Yes, the Commies ARE represented as ridiculously slimy hoods, but one must remember the time period in which this thing was created, by ardent Commie hater Howard Hughes. In all, a pretty underrated entertainment, and much recommended!

The Woman on Pier 13 (AKA: I Married a Communist) is directed by Robert Stevenson and collectively written by Charles Grayson, Robert Hardy Andrews, George W. George and George F. Slavin. It stars Robert Ryan, Laraine Day, John Agar, Thomas Gomez, Janis Carter, Richard Rober and William Talman. Music is by Leigh Harline and cinematography by Nicholas Musuraca.

Brad Collins (Ryan) was a one time member of the communist party. Now married and thriving in business, his world is turned upside down when the CPUSA come to seek him out for influential favours.

It wasn't easy for director Stevenson, what with RKO mogul Howard Hughes interfering as he forced home his anti-communist slant, so much so the whole pic comes off as an almost there type of piece. Casting aside that it's all a bit daft these days, with its red hysteria leanings (though it serves as a most interesting social document of the era), there's a number of tight scenes and enough moody atmospherics to keep this out of basement hell.

Characterisations are rich in noir traditions, a protag whose past is back to bite him, a slinky femme fatale, a dutiful wife in the dark, and villains of substance. Be it Gomez's weasel Commie boss stomping around like a malevolent tyrant or Talman's fairground working hit- man for hire, the latter with a dress code as mirthful as it is strangely unnerving, the baddies offer up some sort of balance in a screenplay that's not sure where it ideally stands. The violence hits hard, with shocking deaths, and in good dark noir style the finale holds court for the right reasons.

Add in a cast who don't let anyone down and the great Musuraca showing his photographic skills (though not as much as we would like), then it's a more than decent viewing experience. But the proviso is that you do have to let the propaganda go above your head to get to those decent rewards. 6/10

By today's standards it seems quite dated, but back in 1950, the possibility of this happening seemed very real. The performances of the stars (Robert Ryan and Laraine Day) are solid and the supporting cast is great (especially Janis Carter and William Talman, who is wearing the craziest suit jacket I've every seen!!). The style is very film noir...close ups of faces showing over the top expression, jerky body movements, and odd, minimalist lighting techniques. Remember too, that it's 1950 and acting styles today seem far less "dramatic".

The subject matter seems paranoid, but for those of us old enough to remember the Cold War, the fear of what the "commies" were up to was VERY, VERY real. I remember "duck and cover" and "...we will bury you!". Some of us might still associate communism with the labor unions (which is the salient point of the plot). As silly as this movie will seem to younger people, try to remember from a historical perspective that it was only five years from the end of World War II, and herein were the first clashes of the two "great ideologies". At the time it was either freedom or subjugation (democracy or communism). Subtle, this movie is not...

There are better examples of film noir, but this a very good example. It's not the worst way to blow 70 plus minutes of your day and just for the historical (not hysterical) panorama, it is worth a look.

It has just recently been showing on Turner Classic Movies as "Woman on Pier 13"...that title is much better. Under either title, give it a chance and enjoy an example of a time and film style gone by.

Considering what was happening on the world stage at the time this movie was made (i.e., The Berlin Airlift), it was becoming unfortunately clear that the Soviet Union was not an ally anymore and RKO probably thought this a timely subject. The cast is first rate and I found the narrative interesting. A couple of corrections from other postings: Lorraine Day was not lent out by MGM. Her contract ended in 1945 and she signed with RKO (on a non-exclusive basis)which was fortunate as it allowed her to illustrate her abilities as an actress in a much wider range of movie: "The Locket," "Tycoon," "My Dear Secretary," and this movie. The second correction is that this was not a "B" movie. It seems that a few reviewers confuse what they consider "B" content with how a movie is advertised/presented in its theater engagements; this was not a second feature. I also believe that RKO was every bit as proficient, stylish and accomplished in the movies they chose to make as was MGM. As for Robert Ryan, what can one say about this great actor that has not been said before.