Evidência Trágica

The Scarf (1951)

A peculiar but sometimes charming movie, filled with empty moments, people sitting and talking, the wind whistling through trees in the desert, and a possible killer on the loose. The best parts for me were the odd pairing of a loner woman played by Mercedes McCambridge and the leading man on the run, John Barrington (John Ireland). Later, both of these characters appear in different places, sometimes crossing paths. McCambridge is a sharp, funny, slightly tragic actress, and Ireland is a super sweet guy. They make a surprising pair.

The setting for all this is a nice little village on the edge of the desert, and a dry turkey farm out of town. As Barrington suffers with his guilt and doubts about having committed a murder (strangling someone with a scarf), he bounces from place to place, just barely avoiding trouble. People are rough and Barrington can't get his head together, but he plugs along, butting against McCambridge at times, and the tensions grows before you realize it.

It isn't quite a Hitchcockian innocent man on the loose. We doubt him, too. We are unravelling the problem as they go. It isn't always a remarkable unfolding of events, but it has remarkable moments, and a strange, spare mood that is possessing. At first I almost stopped watching it because it was a bit clumsy and raw, but that becomes smoother and more essential over time. Eventually it becomes downright idiosyncratic in the best ways, just on the happy edge of weird. There's even a barroom scene with McCambridge singing a simple blues song, pretty amazingly.

The plot takes on some forced twists toward the end, but they are still dramatic ones. "The doctor is allergic to irrelevant laughter."

If you've read this far, you know what "The Scarf" is about, so I'll only add that after a not-so-promising start it gets wonderfully weird in so many ways that I stuck with it to the rather silly ending. Worth seeing for the actors involved and the priceless and sometimes witless dialog. John Ireland is surprisingly good in a lead role for a change and Mercedes McCambridge is wonderfully cast against type as something of a good-time girl/waitress/singer of sultry songs. John Barton has a chance to really shine in this film during a career consisting of mainly bit parts on television. You can see "The Scarf" on the Netflix instant service, as of 5/14/12.

It was rumored that after his role in ALL THE KING'S MEN, John Ireland had demanded too much from the studios. This smaller production is filmed in the same slow mist of the hero's memory. Mercedes McCambridge is excellent as the female support. James Barton gives great support on the male side. It is a strong well acted performance. It should be shown more often. It is a shame that features like this are not shown on today's cable systems or available in any format.

Unfortunately being a psychiatrist myself kind of ruined this movie content wise (the first part where insanity is debated--shows only people who know absolutely nothing of mental illness). But maybe that was the point as John Ireland hadn't a trace of mental illness--just some sort of PTSD and amnesia.

The British Doctor as the paranoid schizophrenic was a stupid cartoon version but much closer the mark and what most B audiences would view as mental illness (fortunately this idiotic denouement only lasts for about the last 5 minutes of the movie.)

John Ireland is very handsome and the movie clips right along...the other two actors--the philosopher turkey farmer especially and the barmaid are very sympathetic characters as well.

It is very competently filmed and worth a watch. Leagues above the average B movie. Ignore the actual content of philosophy. I once heard that a good educated British accent reading a phone directory sounds intellectual to the average American; this is the same sort of effect you have in this film...just enjoy the flow of the movie and imagine deep things are being said.

RECOMMEND

Perhaps the script could have used a re-write, but otherwise this is a great movie with an excellent performance by James Barton, who has an intriguing back story, including being named one of Bing Crosby's favorite actors. McCabridge and Ireland have chemistry and are solid in their roles, and the former sings a fine song called "Summer Rain." It has a cynical view of human behavior, which, depending on your worldview, may be warranted, but the intelligently written script (despite some lapses) uses the three main characters to partially mitigate the cynicism. Recommended. P. S. If you are looking for non-stop action, this is probably not for you. There is a lot of dialogue, like a play, and Barton's character has some great lines as a farmer/philosopher.