Impacto

Impact (1949)

An underrated, understated, nicely stylized, and tightly constructed film noir. The director, Arthur Lubin, is a B-movie figure (with a lot of films to his name), and I'm going to guess just from this one that there are others in the history that are very good. This has been running the noir circuits for a long time, and is especially noteworthy. The photography by Ernst Laszlo is especially helpful, and with some smart editing it makes for a visually terrific movie.

But the acting is great, too. Yes, everyone fills some familiar roles for this kind of upper crust murder and cover up, but it's tightly done, convincing throughout. Brian Donlevy is a fabulous (and typically Donlevy) industrialist who has to take on a second identity for part of the film, and it's a great surprise. The two lead women, both the same age (29), and both with short careers, play two very different types of women that the industrialist bounces between. The first, Helen Walker, is the clever, rich wife. The second, Ella Rains, is the homespun girl who wants only for everything to turn out okay. (Rains was a Howard Hawks discovery, and with her classic clean cut looks, even made it on the cover of Life Magazine twice, on February 28, 1944 and August 11, 1947.)

One other character whose performance is sterling is Charles Coburn, playing the aging detective. A lesser role, but from a remarkable actress, is the maid, played by Anna May Wong (who got stereotyped in the movies but who is now increasingly appreciated as the first major Chinese-American actress).

Yes, this is a great film for film buffs, and a really good story for everyone. Make sure you have a clean DVD transfer to appreciate the photography (see http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDCompare10/impact_.htm for some info on that kind of thing).

Too bad the movie's a disappointing crime thriller after a promising start. Brian Donlevy plays a high-powered corporate executive with a lavish apartment and a silken wife (Helen Walker). Trouble is the doe-eyed Walker has teamed up with a low-class lover (Tony Barrett) to plot Donlevy's murder. When that fails, Donlevy finds himself stranded in a small Idaho town where he settles in with new girl friend Ella Raines. However, police are still trying to unravel what happened at failed murder site, so an unresolved cloud hangs over both Donlevy and wife Walker.

Strong opening that nicely sets up the melodrama and Donlevy's betrayal. Middle part is unusual for crime drama since it celebrates virtues of small town life. Yet, it does so fairly effectively, such that even a hard-charging executive like Donlevy would find welcome escape from city life and a faithless wife. Last third, however, settles into routine suspenser as Raines seeks evidence to clear Donlevy.

Though movie contains noirish elements, particularly spider-woman Walker and destiny-crossed Donlevy, director Lubin films in flat, uninspired fashion that adds nothing to the script. In fact, his approach tends to drain excitement from those parts that should have impact. For example, the business around the doomed car needs a few emotional close-ups to emphasize the cat-and-mouse stalking going on. Instead, Lubin's camera remains at an impersonal distance as if it's a family outing being filmed. The movie's entire texture appears better suited to a police docu-drama than that of a man menaced by unseen forces.

Casting too, amounts to a problem. Donlevy's a fine character actor who could bring off authority figures with real conviction. As a high-powered executive, he's excellent; as a romantic figure, he's about 10 years too old and not much good at softer emotions. Then too, having the comely and much younger Ella Raines quickly fall for him is something of a stretch. A bigger problem lies in framing Walker's lover as something of a low-life, without the charm or polish that would naturally attract a high-class woman of her social standing. The script would have been wise to imply that Walker is just using him to get rid of her husband. Just as unpersuasive is the casting of a geriatric (72 year-old) Charles Coburn as a cop, even if he does manage some finesse. All in all, the oddball casting just doesn't work.

An exception is Helen Walker who's perfectly suited to her role as the devious woman. Watch her array of expressions as the cops close in. Her career was unfortunately slowed down by a debilitating accident and she died much too early . Though largely forgotten today because of her few credits, once you see her, you don't forget her with her "upside down" eyes, statuesque bearing, and unforced beauty. She's unforgettable as Tyrone Power's scheming nemesis in Nightmare Alley and could do comedy equally well, as in the hilarious Murder, He Says (1945). In my little book, she could easily qualify as an actress with a cult following.

Too bad that an Anthony Mann, Robert Siodmak, or Andre deToth didn't get hold of the material before the pedestrian Lubin. The premise is prime material for noir treatment, and with more astute casting, might have become a classic.

Although the final third gets in the way and is finally disappointing,it does not keep "impact" from being absorbing and entertaining.One of the rare film noirs -maybe the only one - which takes a look on the brighter side of the road:sandwiched between two very dark parts,the second one has Capra accents:the country town is some Shangri-la where time stood still ,with its very nice people ,the girl who owns a garage but of course does not know anything about mechanics(woman's lib supporters will cringe),the young father proud of his new-born son ,the Sunday service,the old lady cooking tasty little dishes.All of this is unusual in a film noir.Some might say that "shadow of a doubt"(1942) had already that ,but evil could enter this world,as the heroine 's uncle came to town.Here,the evil is elsewhere ,in San Francisco.Only in San Francisco.Or on the dark road where anything can happen:first part is effective,and shows some "Postman always rings twice" (1946) influence.

I imagine there will be many who dispute the characterization of "Impact" as film noir, and I can't blame them. It's not photographed in typical noir fashion, to be sure, but its themes are definitely in the noir neighborhood. There is a stark contrast between the murderous doings in San Francisco (and on the road), and the pastoral joys of Larkspur, Idaho--a contrast that is emphasized by the score, which favors harp and flute for Larkspur and dramatic strings, or even complete silence, for the rest of the film.

Brian Donlevy turns in a solid performance as the loving husband and successful industrialist who discovers his beloved wife is scheming with a lover to kill him; the scene where he breaks down after realizing this is more than solid, and reveals a depth of emotional understanding that Donlevy rarely showed, or at least got the chance to show. Helen Walker is just tremendous as the scheming wife, whose lightning-fast wit helps her transfer the murder rap from herself to her husband, despite her surprise at his being alive at all.

Charles Coburn slips in and out of an Irish brogue as the detective who suspects Walker and supports Donlevy, even at the expense of undercutting the D.A.'s case. Anna May Wong has a small role that emphasizes how the years have worn on her since her beautiful turn in "Shanghai Express." Philip Ahn has an even smaller role as Wong's uncle, who responds to Coburn's condescending query, "You savvy English?" with an urbane "Yes. Also French, Italian, and Hebrew" (reminiscent of his character years earlier in "Something to Sing About").

The plot gets a little convoluted, and the triumphant ending may seem like a bit of an anticlimax, but "Impact" should still be better known than it is.

The silvery Packard convertible Brian Donlevy drives is one of the most beautiful cars I've ever seen. It's basically all I'd remembered from years ago when a local a cable channel that no longer shows old movies ran a bad print of this from time to time.

Donlevy is not an exciting actor but he is fine. He plays an industrialist madly in love with his wife, who is not worthy of his devotion (to say the least.) She is played by Helen Walker, a specialist at cold, intelligent, sleek women. (She's the best part of "Nightmare Alley.") We also have Charles Coburn as a detective and Ella Raines as a girl who wants to help cuckolded Donlevy out of a predicament I can't reveal. (But remember: This is a film noir.) In her early scenes, Raines smiles too much and looks like an ad for gum. (And speaking of ads, yikes! This has one of the earliest examples of product placement: Someone offers Donlevy a Coke and for quite a while, in the foreground, is a Coca-Cola machine!) Also on hand is Mae Marsh as Walker's mother. She looks great and is very good. And Anna May Wong, one of Hollywood's greatest, most poorly used stars, is fourth-billed as Donlevy and Walker's maid.

The movie is not exactly suspenseful but it's a solid piece of work. The acting ranges from good to excellent and the plot, though it wanders a bit from time to time, is intriguing. It's also unusually literate: The characters speak in impeccable (though never stilted) English.