Secrets de femmes

A young boy is the sole survivor of a plane that went down in the mountains and a rescue mission of mountain-climbers are on their way to get him. The news flash reveals that today is his birthday and that he had been adopted through a certain agency. When Eleanor Parker hears this, she loses it, as she had given her baby up five years ago and that today would have been his birthday. She never told husband Leif Ericson. She hightails to the site where the press is stationed near the mountains. There she meets Patricia Neal and Ruth Roman, who both had used the same agency to give up their babies on the same day. Through the device of flashbacks, we are allowed the story of each and how each came to this point of their lives. This is excellent little film with great actresses for the lead roles, fleshing out the characters and making them three-dimensional. I grant you actresses like Bette Davis, Susan Hayward, and Joan Crawford has guts, but no one could quite deliver a line like Patricia Neal with her sarcastic coyness. And, Ruth Roman is one tough cookie, too. But the story is what really takes center stage with a taut pace and the outdoors being used to good advantage by the film's director. But who's baby is it? We are told, but there is more to it than any happy ending. The film reflects the struggles, loves, and yes secrets of three women, who were existing in a world and trying to come out a survivor, and that's what makes this film successful: the story of people. People are the story.

Often compared with 'A Letter to Three Wives', this Robert Wise directorial effort has sufficient clout and substance to be judged on its own merits.

'Three Secrets' offers the double whammy of a perceptive insight into the contrasting fortunes of the three women, who have a claim to being the boy's mother, against a backdrop of the daring, treacherous, hazard strewn rescue attempt of a child who may/may not still be alive.

Only Ruth Roman's history seriously delves into the film noir canon. The rest follows the fractious romantic drama route, as the bite yer fingernails down to the elbows tension of the rescue continues. Happily married Eleanor Parker has sought to move on with her life, but has acutely bitter memories revived as the headline stealing events unfold. Cynical journalist, Patricia Neal finds herself reporting on the case, whilst fellow hack, Edmon Ryan, master of slime and smarm is responsible for blowing the whole legal shebang out into the open.

The driven, feisty Neal can only ruefully reflect on a painful, passionate and ultimately doomed romance with more grounded Frank Lovejoy, whilst struggling to maintain a cool detachment from her personal involvement, through a string of zesty one liners.

An unanticipated final twist....and NO, it's not that an administrative medical records muddle reveals that NONE of the three is the birth mother! Gives 'Three Secrets' a closing shot in the arm on the credibility scale.

Three women review their past lives while they wait for news that will change the future totally for one of them.

But it isn't "Letter to Three Wives"!

Putting aside the shameless use of the formula from Mankiewicz' masterwork, "Three Secrets" is an enjoyable, well-written drama. Another similarity to "... Three Wives", and one that I have no objection to, is leads Patricia Neal, Eleanor Parker & Ruth Roman being mature, extremely attractive women; not a teenybopper or nymphet in sight.

A second movie that came to mind while watching "Three Secrets" was "The Big Carnival" with its media circus of cynical reporters covering and exploiting a disaster. However Wilder's film followed this one.

The beautiful Cole Porter tune `I get a kick out of you' is well used on the soundtrack.

Spin offs, copy cats clones, Three Secrets is easily compared to its earlier & far better film A Letter To 3 Wives Basically both plots involve 3 women in a quandry.or a dilemma..in 3 Wives .one of their husbands has run away with another woman (Miss Addie Ross).. who which ? stream of conciousness flashbacks..witty & brilliantly directed by Joseph L.Mankiewiecz a superb cast & even better supporting cast "Letter "is one of the all time great films.."Tree Secrets 3 women face another dilemma, a boy is involved in a plane crash in the mountains. Boy was adopted by parents who were killed in crash..Boy survives crash 3 women gave birth to a boy same day..& gave up for adoption to the same shelter..Whos child is this? Does anyone care.?Yes it is agood film very a sorbing & very well acted. 3very good actresses Eleanor Parker Patricia Neal & Ruth Roman are the 3 women in despair,,and give very fine performances.Direction is very good also by future Oscar winner Robert Wise.. but a lot is borrowed from "Letter" the basic 3 women plot, the miasma, and the stream of concsiousness flashbacks.They worked well for "Letter" & work well here also... but the conclusion is smaltzy & the film lacks the wit and intelligence of its predecessor.. Worth seeing.. a "Chick" flick & some good actors involved..but Letter to 3 Wives is an original & a masterpiece !!

Smartly combining a bit of the disaster movie with melodrama, Robert Wise was very good at directing actresses; his precedent movie, "the set-up" ,although taking place in the boxing world , featured a prominent female character (the boxer's wife was not only decorative and she had this sublime sentence :" WE've won tonight" .)

By and large ,the first part is given over to Parker, then Neal dominates the second one -and her evolution from an arrogant journalist to a compassionate woman is convincing - ;Roman appears late in the story (apart from a brief glimpse in "the shelter" ) but her character is the only one who does not belong to a privileged milieu :an ex-convict ,she 's lost everything and she clings to this hope : a child who could be hers ,should he be found still alive. The audience sides with her when she slaps in the tabloid press journalist's face.

The rapport the three actresses have is deeply moving , and although we eventually learn the true identity of the mother ,it does not seem to matter anymore ; it's OUR child .