Il grido del lupo

Recently viewed this on TCM and was captivated. What was going to happen? Why was Barbara Stanwyck sneaking about? Where was her husband? What had happened??

Errol Flynn also stars, and he was good. Don't usually see him in many suspense films that I remember.

Barbara S. was amazing as usual. Believable - and wouldn't want to mess with her - but she's met her match with Flynn.

I thought a very good plot from which I have seen picked up in several other more recent movies. A solid "8" from this reviewer. I think you'll be entertained.

"Cry Wolf" isn't the greatest or the worst movie I've ever seen, but overall I enjoyed it. Despite what other viewers have said, I LIKED the ending. It was genuinely surprising, and when I thought it over, it all added up and was satisfying. I enjoyed Barbara Stanwyck's athletic performance -- especially when she pulled herself up and down a dumbwaiter! It was fun,too, to watch Errol Flynn play a sinister gentleman against type. In her debut film, Geraldine Brooks was awful but watchable doing a bad imitation of Ann Blyth in "Mildred Pierce." The talented Richard Basehart was awful, too -- but he later gave some classic performances, and it was fun to compare the difference. There are far worse ways to spend 83 minutes of your life, and I'm glad I watched this sleeper.

Cry Wolf is directed by Peter Godfrey and adapted to screenplay by Catherine Turney from the novel of the same name written by Marjorie Carleton. It stars Errol Flynn, Barbara Stanwyck, Geraldine Brooks and Richard Baseheart. Music is by Franz Waxman and cinematography by Carl E. Guthrie.

Effective old dark house mystery picture boasting star appeal and class from Guthrie and Waxman, Cry Wolf is an enjoyable failure. The story finds Babs Stanwyck as Sandra Marshall, who turns up at a creaky old mansion investigating the death of her husband. Met with a frosty reception by the lord of the manor, Mark Caldwell (Flynn), it's not long before Sandra is neck deep in intrigue and suspicious behaviours.

Flynn and Stanwyck aren't asked to stretch themselves for this plot, in fact Flynn garnered unfair criticism for his portrayal of the shifty Mark Caldwell (wooden/miscast etc). Unfair because the character is meant to be restrained and sombre, keeping his cards close to his chest, you can certainly see why Flynn took the part, it was a chance to tackle something away from the flamboyant roles he was so iconically known for.

As the main characters move through the standard plotting of such fare; what's the secrets of the house, what is going on in the locked room? And etc, the house is the major player. Again it's standard stuff, a place of creaky doors, shadowy rooms, ominous clock chimes and things that go bump in the night. Guthrie (Backfire/Caged/Highway 301) brings his awareness of film noir visual conventions to the piece, where all the night time sequences carry atmospheric punch. While Waxman at times scores it like a Universal Studios creature feature, which is just dandy, the string arrangements delightfully menacing.

Some back projection work is poor, and although the twisty finale worked for me, I personally can understand it being a disappointment to others, while there's definitely the feeling of wasting the stars hanging over proceedings. Yet there's a nice old fashioned feel to the movie that charms, even if the stars and technical purveyors are bigger than the material handed to them. An enjoyable failure, indeed. 6/10

I wanted to add to the other reviews. I think Flynn's character was strongly based on his own father, a scientist (the film makes a point of saying he is a scientist of some note). Stanwyck's character had some of Flynn's mothers characteristics. And during the film Flynn alludes to a family ancestor who was a rable rouser and sailed about the world and married a French showgirl who was world renowned, a very possible reference to Flynn himself , he loved to sail and certainly was a rable rouser , and Flynn's first wife ( a popular French actress).Then the grim joke about her being poisoned was a snide aside (Flynn was paying alimony ever since the divorce). It seemed like they let Flynn play a part very similar to his own reserved scientist father and paired him with the head strong adventurous woman who resembled his mother.

I disagree with all the reviewers who disagree with me. This was a tense, suspenseful melodrama which I feel has gotten a bad rap since it came out. The mood of the film is ominous and unsettling throughout and benefits from excellent acting jobs from the two stars. Barbara Stanwyck almost never gives a bad performance and does not disappoint, but the big surprise here is Errol Flynn. In "Cry Wolf" he shows unexpected depth and nuance - this from an actor known for one-dimensional action/ swashbuckling roles, in addition to his off-screen antics as a swordsman. Who knew he was capable of such acting?

More disagreement. I thought the script was intelligent and that the pacing was good and that the ending was not a lame copout. It did not rely on its star performances and it kept you guessing right up to the end. I never took a movie course but I know what I like, to coin a borrowed phrase, and this was a good picture. I will have to say I was going to award Geraldine Brooks the Hand-Painted Mustache Cup as Hambone Actress of 1947, but I passed because it was her screen debut.

But don't take my word. Decide for yourself if it's a quick, exciting 83 minutes. That's what makes horse racing.