Dangerous Moonlight

This is another case where if this movie was available on DVD with English subtitles, I might enjoy it. As it was, seeing it on VHS I had to strain to understand half the dialog of Anton Walbrook, who plays a Polish man, "Steve Radetzky." His combination British-Polish accent was tough to decipher and it totally takes away from enjoying the film.

Also a warning for those who read on the VHS box about the "great action scenes." Those don't take place until the very end of the movie! It's hardly a great film to begin with, with a very dated look to it with the hokey backgrounds scenes somewhat cheap production values.

One thing that is not cheap or dated: the fine music. Our main character is a pianist as few people ever complain listening to someone play "The Warsaw Concerto." I've also never complained looking at Sally Gray's face!

However, your best bet is to buy the CD for the music and skip the film, although at slightly over an-hour-and-a-half, it's not a long film one has to endure to get through....but don't expect a lot of excitement here.

Anton Walbrook and Sally Gray fall in love in "Dangerous Moonlight," a 1941 British film also starring Derrick Marney. The story is told in flashback. When we first meet the famous Polish pianist-composer Stefan Radetzky (Walbrook), he is an amnesia victim to whom the doctors have given a piano in the hopes that he will remember something. We then see what brought him to this point. He is a fighter pilot who first meets Carol (Sally Gray), a beautiful American reporter, in Warsaw while he is grounded. There is an instant attraction; six months later, when the Germans have invaded Poland, Radetzky comes to America to give concerts in order to raise money for Polish refugees. He and Carol meet again and decide to get married. He finally decides to go back and fight, but Carol doesn't want him to leave.

Sally Gray had a nervous breakdown after this movie that kept her off the screen for five years, but I doubt it had anything to do with "Dangerous Moonlight." Later on, she became a Baroness and retired, even turning down an offer from Hollywood. She's lovely in the film, though doesn't make much of a stab at an American accent. Given that the character comes from money, though, her accent is probably fine, as young women in the better schools were taught that British-type accent anyway. Anton Walbrook is very suave and attractive.

This is a propaganda film that seems to have dashed out without much of an eye to detail - it has German planes flying upside down, and I doubt very much if "Radetzky" spelled that way is Polish. The goal of the film was to keep up morale and also to encourage the U.S. to stop its policy of isolationism. Since it wasn't released in the U.S. until April of 1942, England had already gotten its wish.

What makes "Dangerous Moonlight" memorable is the music, notably the Warsaw Concerto, purportedly written by Radetzky, in reality written by Richard Addinsell. Pianist Louis Kentner dubbed the piano for Walbrook and plays the Chopin Polonaise as well. The Warsaw Concerto is very haunting music, just beautiful.

If you're not familiar with Sally Gray, and you like beautiful music, you might want to check out this film. As a bit of trivia, the Beatles song "A Day in the Life" was actually written about Sally Gray's stepson, who apparently crashed John Lennon's car.

Dangerous moonlight, known as suicide squadron in the u s, was released june of 1941 in england. But it was not released in the united states until april 1942. Europe had already been in the war for several years, but the u s didn't officially join until pearl harbor, december of 1941. It took almost a year for the film to be shown in the u s. According to the film, it begins in london, november of 1940. American reporter carol meets polish airman and pianist stefan radetzky, during the bombing. They meet again in new york. When he talks about returning to europe to fight, carol can't stand the thought of it. Stefan wants to go fight for his homeland, but carol doesn't want his gift of music to be silenced. Or is it for more selfish reasons? Perfect issues to be discussed in a wartime propaganda film. It's pretty well done. Rather rushed ending, but it works. Directed by brian hurst, who had fought in world war one. The picture is all quite dark, for atmosphere? And there are many snaps and pops in the sound track. Could use a restoration.

"Dangerous Moonlight" is one of those movies that catches one by surprise. I was working in my home office one night when I started hearing this piano music coming from the living room television. Enjoying it so much, I quit working and went in to listen and then to watch. Then after checking the television schedule, I set the VCR and taped the movie. I have since watched the movie several times and continue to enjoy it.

Anton Wallenbrook plays his part quite well and gives one a very interesting story of talent and guilt. Sally Gray makes an equally good performance as a normal insensitive American lady reporter who does not understand the implications of war. Derrick DeMarney is also good as the best friend of Stefan Radetsky, by being his conscience and confidant.

You can enjoy this movie watching it once, but don't cheat yourself, watch it a few times.

Dangerous Moonlight is one of those almost completely forgotten films, apart from the music, and tracking the film down for the first time it is not particularly hard to see why that is.

The music by Richard Addinsell is the one component that people remember about the film, and it is also the best and only outstanding element about it. The Warsaw Concerto is very popular, is a concert show-piece and is still heard on the radio a lot, and judging from the hauntingly stirring and quite oddly beautiful way it's written for good reason too. Anton Walbrook is typically suave (though this is a long way from being one of his better performances), while lovely Sally Gray brings some poignancy to her role and Derrick DeMarnay is a suitably sympathetic confidant, his chemistry with Walbrook being particularly strong. The film is sometimes moving, and the aerial combat sequences are quite good.

On the other hand, Dangerous Moonlight was apparently made quickly and cheaply and it shows in some less than smooth photography, some choppy editing (like in the climatic dog fight) and some clearly artificial-looking sets. The script is lumbering and heavy-handed with some ham-fisted melodrama (Walbrook's dialogue is not always easy to understand too), the sometimes moving but thin story is really quite dull, over-dramatised and little more than nonsensical and heavy-handed propaganda, the film is routinely directed and the climatic dog fight agreed is choreographed pretty poorly. Apart from the three leads the rest of the acting is either wooden or overwrought, and Walbrook and Gray's chemistry while sometimes affecting doesn't ignite as well as it could have done.

In conclusion, loved Addinsell's music, but Dangerous Moonlight as a film on the whole left me cold. 5/10 Bethany Cox