Angoisse

Jacques Tourneur, whose films (such as the famous 'Cat People') were noted for their subtle and suggestive qualities, delivers an excellent specimen of his craft here, by directing a mysterious and atmospheric drama set in 1903. The incredibly beautiful Hedy Lamarr is at her dazzling best in her exquisite period gowns, looking deeply disturbed, and having good reason to do so, as her husband is a dangerous psychotic who may at any moment kill their son. The story begins in the best way possible, with a chance meeting on a train between the superbly mysterious and elusive actress Olive Blakeney and a calm, unruffled, and reassuring medical doctor played by George Brent. Brent could be annoying when cast in straight and earnest romantic leads, but being a doctor is perfect for him, and we happily allow him to fall in love with the one woman no one could ever resist, Hedy Lamarr, widely known in her prime as 'the most beautiful woman in the world'. Paul Lukas as the insane but genteel, rich, and sophisticated husband, has plenty of opportunity to show what a splendid actor he was, as he tackles this role with great subtlety. If only the scenes in the daisy fields had not been shot on a studio set! Otherwise, the atmosphere, especially of the huge old-fashioned mansion, is powerful and reeks of mystery. This is an excellent melodrama. Some of the film was cut at the last minute, as a shocking gap in continuity occurs when Brent is telling his friend that he is being followed. He does not comment on the strange shoes the man had been wearing, which we had previously seen on camera. But the next moment, his friend mentions them, despite not having been told about them in the final cut. The studio may have ordered some cuts by another editor, without the director being involved, as Tourneur would never have let this happen if he could have prevented it. So probably ten or fifteen minutes of the film were chopped out prior to release. This film is only available on DVD in Spain, from where I obtained it (where it is called 'Noche en el Alma'), and I had to watch it with Spanish subtitles. One will do anything to see a Hedy Lamarr film, after all, won't one?

Many critics have never been able to get past Hedy Lamarr's fabulous face. She was so beautiful, that it was hard to realize that she was actually human, an not some marble work of art. I think she gave a fine performance in this slick psychological thriller. The supporting cast was also good. I know I am probably the only person in the world, who would have preferred Hedy Lamarr over Bergman, in Gaslight. With superior direction, and a better script, I think Hedy Lamarr could have turned in a very good performance. Anyway, Experiment Perilous is a little gem, made during Hollywood's golden age.

If you are a fan of Jacques Tourneur, "Experiment Perilous" is a must-see. This sinister and beautifully photographed period thriller ranks with Tourneur's supreme masterpieces, "Out of the Past", "Stars in My Crown", "Canyon Passage", "Curse of the Demon", "I Walked with a Zombie", and "Cat People". It is imbued with Tourneur's trademark touch of ambiguity and mystery. One of the reasons "Experiment Perilous" is so underrated is that the story does not flow logically. You have to do a bit of brain work to understand it, but if you are already familiar with Tourneur's cinema, this may come as a revelation. The film has often been compared to Cukor's similar costume thriller "Gaslight" which was also released in 1944 but "Experiment Perilous" is a better and more personal work. The opening chance encounter between Dr. Bailey (George Brent) and Cissie (Olive Blakeney) on the train resembles the mysterious chance meetings of "Cat People" and Tourneur's 1956 film noir "Nightfall". It has been said that the film was set in 1903 as opposed to 1944 because Heddy Lamarr wanted to wear period costumes. Lamarr is undoubtedly beautiful and her scenes with Brent and Lukas are exquisite and sensual.

There is an excellent analysis on the film in Chris Fujiwara's book, JACQUES TOURNEUR: THE CINEMA OF NIGHTFALL (1998).

Some of the reviewers here have been unkind for Hedy's performance, and can't for the life me understand why. They are all making comparisons for 2 different performances, with 2 movies that have similar backgrounds...almost anyway. Hedy's was suppose to show fear, anxiety, and meekness in her character...afraid to confront her husband. In this regard, Ingrid's character in "Gaslight" was similar, up to a point. Ingrid, had the one big scene where she shows all her frustration and anger at her husband, in one lusty yell. Hedy had no such scene advantage. Her performance was more somber, which i think she did, to me, and at the time of its release, many of the reviews said the same. By today's standard of performances, she would have been at the least nominated for an Oscar, as in comparison to a Helen Hunt performance in a forgettable movie with Jack Nickelson, in which she won Best Actress.

Jacques Tourneur directed this RKO historical melodrama that has a good cast, excellent director, and atmospheric cinematography by Tony Gaudio, so the money spent definitely shows on the screen. So what's wrong? The wordy, tortuously slow script that is all talk and no action and tries to echo "Gaslight".

When there's finally a confrontation between the good and bad guys, they yap forever before there's any action. Director Tourneur and his cast do their utmost, but they just can't redeem the script. They do make the film watchable and intermittently fascinating. In the end, Gaudio's cinematography and the performances are better than the script deserves.

It is an interesting factoid that Cary Grant and Gregory Peck were both scheduled to play George Brent's role but both dropped out. It might have been a better film had one of them been in it.