The Flame

"The Flame" is a dark but disappointingly routine melodrama of the seen-it-a-million-times-before variety. A French nurse, in cahoots with her sleazy American lover, agrees to marry his ailing half-brother in order to gain his wealth. Guess what -- she begins to fall for the bore (who whiles away the hours playing dirges on his Hammond organ).

John Auer was one of the more talented directors working in the B-movie mill of the 40s, and he injects the picture with enough visual panache to give it a professional veneer and subtle moodiness. But what can you do with this cast from hell -- particularly Vera Ralston, at her most wooden (her voice-over narration is practically indecipherable).

A couple of reels into the film, things briefly perk up when a young Broderick Crawford unexpectedly slides into the narrative as a dour potential blackmailer who gets wise to the scam. Even better, his sometime girlfriend is a sexy cabaret performer played by the always fascinating Constance Dowling -- her Gilda-style song and dance routine gives Auer a chance to show his licks. But the brittleness all dissolves pretty quickly into some very unwelcome sentimentality towards the end.

John Carroll has spent all his inherited money and lives on what his brother, Robert Paige gives him. He's a good egg, and when Carroll fell ill, Paige hired nurse Vera Ralston for him. They fell in love and were going to be married, until she changed her mind and married Paige. Now here's Broderick Crawford, blackmailing Carroll lest he Tell All.

Under director John Auer, this one hits almost all the Film Noir tags: movie told mostly in flashback, femme fatale -- although Mrs. Herbert Yates, as she was known when the credits weren't rolling, is one of those inadvertent types who changes her mind more or less honestly, perhaps -- quirky angles, dark lighting...... except no Venetian blinds, for some reason. It's also well acted, except for Mrs. Yates, who is typically wooden and whining in her performance. Republic was quite capable of footing the bill on a pretty good movie, and did so, except for the female lead. Her husband wanted to make her a star, despite a lack of interest in anyone not on his payroll. THe result is pretty good anyway.

One of Martin Scorsesse's Picks, while Combing the "Republic" Archives, Destined for Restoration, and Therefore Reconsideration.

The Film Impresses with Luscious Visuals, a Proven Stalwart Plot of Brother Against Brother (Cain & Able) and a Jump-Starting Broderick Crawford in Act II.

A Good Sleazy and Slimy Lead with John Carrol and a Spunky Slippery "Tramp-Singer" Constance Dowling Add the Dark-Side Duo to the Mix of Good v Evil Melodrama.

There's a Heavy-Handedness to some Religiosity like a Church-Beam of Light Announcing a Revelation and a Prayer Redemption Asked of the Cross.

Dirges on the Hammond from the "Diagnosed a Death Sentence" Good -Guy Accompanies the Doomed Situation of a Dying Man.

Soon to be Dead-Guy is the Victim of a Plot to Inherit His Millions by His Brother in Cahoots with His Lover to Collect the Dough.

His Lover is Played by Vera Ralston, Once Rumored to be the "Worst Actress in Hollywood", but She's Not All That, just Burdened with a Heavy Czech Accent.

The Movie is Better than Average of its Type with a Sumptuous Visual Palette and some Good, if Cliched Characters.

Note...Constance Dowling's night-club Rip-Off, complete with a black satin clinging dress, of Rita Hayworth in "Gilda" (1946) is a high-light.

This is told by way of the reading of a letter that explains the story of how "George" (John Carroll) has frittered away his family inheritance and is now dependent on his half-brother "Barry" (Robert Paige) - a situation which he bitterly resents. A solution to his predicament presents itself when he suggests that his girlfriend "Carlotta" (Vera Ralston) take up the position of nurse to the ailing "Barry". Their plan is quite simple, really. She befriends him, gets him to fall in love with her and then they marry. Once married, "Barry" will meet his end and she will be free to marry "George" and inherit the family fortune. It's not so much a flame this as a flicker. It's pretty obvious what's going to happen, and but for a few scenes with the scheming "Ernie" (Broderick Crawford) and Henry Travers as the well meaning "Dr. Mitchell" this story proves to not quite have the courage of it's convictions. It's all just a little too formulaic in the end. Blanche Yurka does her best impersonation of Queen Mary as his aunt "Blanche" - no fool, herself and Hattie McDaniel livens things up, sparingly, too - but sadly this all just goes the way of the damp squib after a promising start.

"The Flame" stars John Carroll, a second-tier actor who made a living mostly playing sleazy or cocky guys. In many ways, he's Republic studio's answer to Dan Duryea. In the second lead is Vera Ralston, the girlfriend of the head of the studio that made the picture. While her Czech accent was problematic, she was pretty good in this movie...although she has a reputation as a terrible actress who only got to where she did because of her connections. Regardless, she's good in this picture.

The story begins with George (John Carroll) shooting someone to death. In the process, he himself is shot. Soon, he phones the police to report the killing...and then the film goes into flashback mode where it stays most of the picture. Oddly, occasionally the viewpoint changes from his to his ex-girlfriend (Ralston)...something that seems sloppy when they both address the camera. In other words, is it his story to tell or hers? Regardless, the tale is about blackmail and it's an odd case where another blackmailer discovers the blackmail and begins to blackmail the original blackmailer! What exactly is going on here? Watch the film.

Despite the changing narration and Ralston's odd accent (she's supposed to be French...but just sounds Czech), the plot is quite engaging and the film is very well written considering it comes from Republic...a studio mostly known for B-movies...and mostly with cowboys. It is a very unique film...one that is excellent for folks who want to see something gritty and different.

By the way, although Victor Sen Yung was not a big-time actor, mostly assigned to secondary roles such as playing sons for Charlie Chan, here he really showed his talents in a scene late in the movie. A tiny scene...but an amazingly well acted one.