Impacto

A good example of a little known "film noir," this 1949 film was shot primarily on location in San Francisco.

There is good acting all around, from the main stars down to supporting cast, and the plot does tie together nicely.

Look for Mae Marsh, a silent film star who plays Ella Raines mother, and also look for a brief cameo appearance by syndicated columnist and radio personality Sheila Graham, playing herself of course.

Brian Donlevy, who made similar "noir" films, among them D.O.A., appears to be right at home in this film, and is wonderful in an understated way.

The film, at almost 2 hours in length was a bit long for the time, and might drag a bit, but is worth watching.

Anna Mae Wong plays the maid in this film, an old time character actress from the days of silent films, she has a small but all important role in the film, for she holds the key (literally) to how the whole movie ends. Listen for some degrading Chinese music when Ms. Wong is on the run.

Interesting note, Helen Walker who plays the scheming wife in the film, was involved in a major scandal of her own. On New Years Eve, 1946, she was driving home some hitchhiking soldiers near Redlands, California. Walker, apparently drunk at the wheel, got into a car accident in which one of the soldiers was killed and the other two badly injured. Though in the end exonerated of any guilt from the accident, it seemed to plague her for the rest of her life, and she slipped deeper and deeper into depression.

I imagine there will be many who dispute the characterization of "Impact" as film noir, and I can't blame them. It's not photographed in typical noir fashion, to be sure, but its themes are definitely in the noir neighborhood. There is a stark contrast between the murderous doings in San Francisco (and on the road), and the pastoral joys of Larkspur, Idaho--a contrast that is emphasized by the score, which favors harp and flute for Larkspur and dramatic strings, or even complete silence, for the rest of the film.

Brian Donlevy turns in a solid performance as the loving husband and successful industrialist who discovers his beloved wife is scheming with a lover to kill him; the scene where he breaks down after realizing this is more than solid, and reveals a depth of emotional understanding that Donlevy rarely showed, or at least got the chance to show. Helen Walker is just tremendous as the scheming wife, whose lightning-fast wit helps her transfer the murder rap from herself to her husband, despite her surprise at his being alive at all.

Charles Coburn slips in and out of an Irish brogue as the detective who suspects Walker and supports Donlevy, even at the expense of undercutting the D.A.'s case. Anna May Wong has a small role that emphasizes how the years have worn on her since her beautiful turn in "Shanghai Express." Philip Ahn has an even smaller role as Wong's uncle, who responds to Coburn's condescending query, "You savvy English?" with an urbane "Yes. Also French, Italian, and Hebrew" (reminiscent of his character years earlier in "Something to Sing About").

The plot gets a little convoluted, and the triumphant ending may seem like a bit of an anticlimax, but "Impact" should still be better known than it is.

The interesting story and cast help to make this a good film-noir, with an involved plot that keeps your attention even through a couple of slower stretches. In the lead role, Brian Donlevy gives a low-key performance that works pretty well.

Donlevy plays a talented but rather naive businessman who suddenly finds himself the target of his scheming wife and her calculating boyfriend. The story passes through several different stages, as the whole story gradually comes out. It's structured so that the audience knows much more than any of the characters do, and thus much of the suspense comes from wondering how they will react if and when they figure it all out.

As the scheming wife, Helen Walker is solid in conveying her character's deceitfulness. Ella Raines is satisfactory as a resourceful woman who befriends Donlevy's character. Charles Coburn gets a good amount of screen time as a detective, and although much of the time his character serves only to advance the plot, Coburn makes good use of his occasional opportunities to do more. Mae Marsh only gets a handful of scenes, but she has one good speech in a scene with Donlevy. Anna May Wong plays a character who is important to the plot, but unfortunately the role does not give her much of a chance to display her considerable acting ability.

Aside from meandering a bit at times, the story works pretty well. The various pieces of the movie fit together most of the time, and it maintains the tension effectively. As a whole, it's somewhat above average, and it should not disappoint most fans of its genre.

Successful businessman Walter Williams (Brian Donlevy) loves his pretty wife Irene (Helen Walker) more than anything. Little does he know she's plotting with her lover to kill him. During the murder attempt, Walter is hit hard on the head but lives. The other guy, however, is killed in a car crash and burned beyond recognition. Believed to have been the man killed in the crash, Walter decides not to come forward. Instead he goes to work as a mechanic in the garage of Marsha Peters (Ella Raines). When Irene is tried for his murder, Walter must decide whether or not to reveal he's still alive.

Brian Donlevy is pretty good. He's at his best when his character is angry or edgy. The sappy romantic stuff doesn't fit him well. Helen Walker is a particularly hissable villainess. Lovely Ella Raines is the good girl. There's no meat to the part but she does well with what she's given. Charles Coburn plays the detective out to get to the bottom of things. He's always fun. Arthur Lubin's direction in the first half is great film noir. I loved the scene where the lover tries to kill the husband. The whole thing was brilliantly executed. Then something happens and it's like a separate movie. The second half is much less like noir and more like a standard crime melodrama where a girl has to prove her guy is innocent of murder. If the entire picture had been like the first half, I'd say it was one of film noir's best. But it isn't. It's still an enjoyable movie with some good twists and turns.

Too bad the movie's a disappointing crime thriller after a promising start. Brian Donlevy plays a high-powered corporate executive with a lavish apartment and a silken wife (Helen Walker). Trouble is the doe-eyed Walker has teamed up with a low-class lover (Tony Barrett) to plot Donlevy's murder. When that fails, Donlevy finds himself stranded in a small Idaho town where he settles in with new girl friend Ella Raines. However, police are still trying to unravel what happened at failed murder site, so an unresolved cloud hangs over both Donlevy and wife Walker.

Strong opening that nicely sets up the melodrama and Donlevy's betrayal. Middle part is unusual for crime drama since it celebrates virtues of small town life. Yet, it does so fairly effectively, such that even a hard-charging executive like Donlevy would find welcome escape from city life and a faithless wife. Last third, however, settles into routine suspenser as Raines seeks evidence to clear Donlevy.

Though movie contains noirish elements, particularly spider-woman Walker and destiny-crossed Donlevy, director Lubin films in flat, uninspired fashion that adds nothing to the script. In fact, his approach tends to drain excitement from those parts that should have impact. For example, the business around the doomed car needs a few emotional close-ups to emphasize the cat-and-mouse stalking going on. Instead, Lubin's camera remains at an impersonal distance as if it's a family outing being filmed. The movie's entire texture appears better suited to a police docu-drama than that of a man menaced by unseen forces.

Casting too, amounts to a problem. Donlevy's a fine character actor who could bring off authority figures with real conviction. As a high-powered executive, he's excellent; as a romantic figure, he's about 10 years too old and not much good at softer emotions. Then too, having the comely and much younger Ella Raines quickly fall for him is something of a stretch. A bigger problem lies in framing Walker's lover as something of a low-life, without the charm or polish that would naturally attract a high-class woman of her social standing. The script would have been wise to imply that Walker is just using him to get rid of her husband. Just as unpersuasive is the casting of a geriatric (72 year-old) Charles Coburn as a cop, even if he does manage some finesse. All in all, the oddball casting just doesn't work.

An exception is Helen Walker who's perfectly suited to her role as the devious woman. Watch her array of expressions as the cops close in. Her career was unfortunately slowed down by a debilitating accident and she died much too early . Though largely forgotten today because of her few credits, once you see her, you don't forget her with her "upside down" eyes, statuesque bearing, and unforced beauty. She's unforgettable as Tyrone Power's scheming nemesis in Nightmare Alley and could do comedy equally well, as in the hilarious Murder, He Says (1945). In my little book, she could easily qualify as an actress with a cult following.

Too bad that an Anthony Mann, Robert Siodmak, or Andre deToth didn't get hold of the material before the pedestrian Lubin. The premise is prime material for noir treatment, and with more astute casting, might have become a classic.