Follia

This psychological thriller involved a leading man who was brooding over his perceived mistreatment by MGM (Robert Montgomery), and a director, Woody Van Dyke, who was having a difficult physical and emotional time of it to the point that two other directors had to get involved. And yet it worked overall, although I feel it could have pulled together better than it did with a more cohesive vision.

Montgomery had said he was not going to act in this one, just read his lines. Yet his detached demeanor actually works as he is portraying Phillip Monrell, a man whose paranoia comes out of nowhere. He is the charming Robert Montgomery character of the high society comedies for the first 30 minutes of the film. And then becomes - without explanation - very paranoid. He has been overseas, only to return to England, meet, and marry his ailing mother's paid companion, Stella Bergen (Ingrid Bergman), in a whirlwind courtship. Ingrid you have to stop marrying in haste! You got lucky with Victor Lazslo in "Casablanca", but not this time!

And Monrell is most of all jealous of his long time "friend", engineer Ward Andrews (George Sanders). He begins to think his wife and Ward are having an affair. And this seems laughable as Sanders is for once portraying somebody who is admirable and completely guileless. Or is he??

There is a mystery patient at an insane asylum who escapes at the beginning of the film. You never see his face. And this never comes up until the end when a doctor there, Oscar Homolka, shows up at a crucial juncture. He is a very welcomed presence as he assaults a shopkeeper with his umbrella so an important phone call can be made.

Definitely worth watching. But there is just an odd lack of chemistry between the leads.

''Rage in Heaven'' wasn't a bad movie, but it wasn't good either...... I'm not sure, if it's because of the story, or because of the actors performances...... Ingrid Bergman was fine...... You could tell, that she tried to make the best of it, but there was NO chemistry at all, between her and Robert Montgomery, George Sanders...... Montgomery looks tired, and seems to be sleepwalking through the movie...... He downplayed his mentally disturbed character too much...... He seemed more alert, towards the last half of the film...... From what I read, in Ingrid Bergman's autobiography, she said, that Montgomery was forced to do this movie, so he told her, that he won't act..... That probably explains his bored looks in the movie...... Overall, could've been a better movie, if they rearranged the cast or something.......

One of James Hilton's lesser novels got a lesser production from MGM with his Day Of Reckoning becoming Rage In Heaven. This has to be one of the few instances where a psychiatrist saves the day.

I think it ironic that Robert Montgomery got cast in the lead here against his usual type. It must have been an easier sell to Louis B. Mayer to cast him after having proved his acting chops in Night Must Fall. Playing another charming maniac got Montgomery an Academy Award nomination in that film. So Mayer having been convinced was less reluctant to have him cast here.

When we first meet Montgomery we find him inside an insane asylum in France and while his doctor, Oscar Homolka is discussing his case, Montgomery up and escapes from the place. Making it back to Great Britain he goes back to his mother's place and Lucille Watson as the mother welcomes him, not knowing of his hiatus in the booby hatch.

She's got a nice new secretary/companion in Ingrid Bergman and Montgomery likes her lot. She likes George Sanders his good friend and incidentally it was Sander's character name under which Montgomery was in the asylum under.

Montgomery woos and wins Ingrid, he's now running Watson's factory and that makes him a big man and no doubt helps his cause with Ingrid. Sanders is now working for him. But this Othello has his own Iago inside him provoking the green eyed monster without any outside provocation.

When Bergman turns to Sanders after one of Montgomery's inexplicable rages, Montgomery conceives a diabolical plot to frame Sanders for his own murder. That's the best part of the film, there's no way Sanders could have or should have gotten out of it. Especially without Montgomery to be questioned.

I liked the fact that both Montgomery and Sanders were playing against type. Sanders is a good guy, one of the few films he's not working any angles. Ingrid was steadfast and loyal, her part's not that much of a stretch for her talents.

I won't give away the ending, but let me say it was way too contrived and coincidental. Rage In Heaven does not belong in the top tier of films for any of the three leads.

"Rage in Heaven" belongs to the spate of Freudian movies of the forties: Hitchcock's "spellbound" Lang's "secret beyond the door" Tourneur's "cat people" Stahl's "leave her to heaven" Siodmak's "dark mirror" ,the list is endless.

"Rage in heaven" is an excellent underrated thriller.Although Philip's mother part is underwritten ,she predates the Hitchcockian mums ,those of "Notorious" "Strangers on a train" "Marnie" etc.Robert Montgomery whose character is the most interesting portrays a rich kid,probably victim of his over possessive mother -"he's more attractive than Ward" - A selfish paranoiac man who will not be satisfied till he destroys everything.His behavior makes sense:the cat,then the best friend (the enemy ,for his wife is in love with him),the wife and finally himself ,the doctor explains.

The screenplay might not be thoroughly original,but "Leave her to heaven" (1946) borrows Gene Tierney's diabolical suicide from it,and the final search has something of Cornell Woolrich (aka William Irish) ,notably his "phantom lady".

Three excellent actors,and a gripping story: you will not waste your time.

I guess I'll be the resident moron of this film's comment section. I liked Rage in Heaven. It was entertaining, interesting, and involving.

I realize Robert Montgomery phoned in his role. His complete detachment makes the character evil rather than sick, and one cannot feel sympathy for him, if we were ever supposed to. The biggest problem is that his flat line readings and cool demeanor make it unbelievable that Bergman married a man so completely lacking in self-esteem, charm, and ardor.

The very young, pre-superstar Ingrid Bergman is marvelous - very fresh and vibrant in the beginning, her personality becoming more somber after a short time being married to Montgomery. And who can blame her. George Sanders is excellent, his portrayal possessing all the charm and passion Montgomery lacks.

As far as this plot being contrived, perhaps, but it was also clever. The original ending of "Fatal Attraction" was based on the same idea. Seen in today's modern perspective "Rage in Heaven" is most interesting. The obsession that Phillip had for Wade - very bizarre indeed!