O Bígamo

This is one of the strangest films I have ever seen coming from Hollywood in the 1950s. It is a very engaging film about Edmond O'Brien and his double-life. He is married to Joan Fontaine and loves her, but there marriage is very distant--both emotionally and because O'Brien is on the road so much as a traveling salesman. Eventually, he is driven by loneliness to another woman in another town. Over and over, he vows to break it off but eventually this other woman becomes pregnant and he just can bring himself to either leave her or his wife! The movie is shown through flashbacks. And, despite the sensational plot, the movie is actually done very sedately and avoids sensationalism. Instead, it tries to portray O'Brien in a pretty sympathetic light--while not excusing his actions. And, by doing so, the movie really gets you thinking. An excellent job of acting by all, but the star of this picture is Ida Lupino who plays the second wife and so deftly directed this little film. It's well worth a watch.

PS--one very cute little inside joke was when O'Brien and Lupino were on a bus going past homes of the stars. Among the many stars' homes that were pointed out by the tour guide was that of Edmund Gwenn--who actually plays a major role in the film as an adoption agency investigator!

Always enjoy a film in which Ida Lupino directs and stars in the same film. This story has a twisted tale about a guy named Harry Graham, (Edmond O'Brien) who is married to a very successful woman, Eve Graham, (Joan Fontaine), who devotes her entire life to her business along with her husband who is a traveling salesman for their company. When Eve found out she could not have any children, she unknowingly neglected her husband and they went their separate ways, only seeing each other maybe once or twice a month. Harry meets up with a young woman, Phyllis Martin, ( Ida Lupino ) on a tour bus in Los Angeles and they both get interested in each other. One day, out of the blue Eve Graham asks Harry if he would like to adopt a child and so they engage the help of Mr. Jordan, (Edmund Gwenn) who works for a child adoption agency. Mr. Jordan explains that he will have to investigate both of their backgrounds and Mr. Jordan begins to have his doubts about Harry. It is at this point in the film when it gets very interesting. This is truly a great 1953 film Classic; I was surprised to learn that Joan Fontaine and Ida Lupino were both married to Collier Young who wrote the screenplay for this film.

This film is centred on freezer salesman Harry Graham. He and his wife, Eve, are hoping to adopt a baby. Before this can be done adoption agent Mr Jordon must do a background check on each of them. His checks take him to Los Angeles where Harry spends much of his time. Here he meets Harry again and makes a shocking discovery... he has another wife, Phyllis, and a baby son. He is horrified but listens as Harry tells the story of how he came to meet, fall in love with, and finally marry Phyllis.

I found this to be an interesting film; it certainly wasn't the sort of topic I expected to be explored in a film of this era... especially given its sympathetic portrayal of Harry. While he is clearly misleading the two women the way his second relationship starts feels almost accidental and more than once he plans to do the 'right thing' but then something happens to stop him. Edmond O'Brien does an impressive job as Harry and gets fine support from Joan Fontaine and Ida Lupino as Eve and Phyllis. Ida Lupino also does an impressive directing job at a time when women directors were incredibly rare. The story is told in a way that makes it easy to believe Harry's behaviour and the fact that he got away with it for so long. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to fans of older films looking for something rather different.

Ida Lupino directs and costars in "The Bigamist," a 1953 film starring Edmond O'Brien, Joan Fontaine and Edmund Gwenn, as well as Lupino. O'Brien and Fontaine play a married San Francisco couple, Harry and Eve Graham, who are unable to have children and are planning to adopt. Eve is a very successful businesswoman; Harry is a traveling salesman with a big territory in Los Angeles. Harry becomes quite nervous when he realizes that a thorough background check must be done before the adoption can take place. Mr. Jordan (Gwenn), who works for the adoption agency, knows something is wrong but can't quite put his finger on it. Eventually he finds out - Harry Graham is Harrison Graham in Los Angeles, and there he has another wife (Lupino) and a new baby. Harry tells Jordan the whole story of meeting Eve (Lupino) in Los Angeles, drifting into an affair with her, learning she was pregnant and being unable to abandon her.

Well directed by Lupino, the film pushes the sympathy toward Harry and his dilemma and keeps a good pace and interest throughout. Fontaine was no longer a big movie star, having passed the magic age of 30 several years before, and she can be seen often in these black and white B movies of the '50s. She does a good job and looks quite glamorous, but Lupino's role is the showier one. Edmond O'Brien does an excellent job as the beleaguered Harry.

This film truly was a family affair - this screenplay about a man with two wives was written by Collier Young, the ex-husband of Lupino and, at that time, the current husband of Fontaine; and Fontaine's mother, Lillian Fontaine, plays Lupino's landlady. Worth seeing, if only to wonder what went on during the filming.

An interesting drama with some thoughtful moments, "The Bigamist" succeeds in offering a sympathetic look at everyone involved in an emotionally trying situation, and in maintaining drama and tension for the entire running time. Ida Lupino does a good job both in acting and in directing, playing one of the key characters while telling the story in a careful fashion that does not oversimplify the issues involved.

As the three main characters, Lupino, Edmond O'Brien, and Joan Fontaine all give believable and effective performances. All of them make their share of mistakes, and yet all three characters are worth caring for, and their mistakes are understandable ones. The double-life situation and its consequences for all concerned is set up so as to go against some of the usual preconceptions. O'Brien's character is lonely, but by no means ill-intentioned, and the situation is sad, never sordid.

The tone is somber almost from the beginning, and except for a couple of amusing references to Edmund Gwenn's earlier role in "Miracle on 34th Street", there are few or no moments of humor to break the tension. Thus you can feel the unending sense of foreboding that O'Brien's character feels in regard to the complications he has caused.

Lupino and the script also manage to provide an honest look at the situation with few hindrances from the strict production code of the era. Only at a couple of odd moments can you tell that they had to shift gears slightly so as to placate the censors. Although the movie is low-key and straightforward, it's a commendable effort, and it makes for good drama.