User reviews

Excellent performances from all, and especially a rare performance from Sanford Meisner. Great direction and intensity from Clifford Odets. A rather simple story superbly told. Sanford Meisner's performance is especially outstanding and fresh as the prosecuting attorney on the scent.

I finally had a chance to see this film from beginning to end. I first came across the movie one Saturday afternoon in 1997 and never knew its title. After a couple of years of searching, I gave up. Just last week, a librarian referred me to a video store in North Hollywood that had the title. Rita Hayworth is Prozac-like and convincing in her portrayal as a sensitive, yet withdrawn woman. Her husband, played by Alfred Ryder is as insensitive and abusive as they come; especially that he carries a gun. I thought Gig Young's character would have stood up to his mother, played by Mildred Dunnock, more sooner than later in life. Dunnock's, Mrs. Ellis was superbly overbearing, manipulative and snobbish. Tony Franciosis performed magnificently on cross of the character when questioning her undue and unwanted influence over her son. Once Defender Santini took his seat after questioning, one could see the flames of anger and disdain flow from his nostrils. This movie is a definite must-see for classic movie lovers. All those years were worth the wait and anticipation.

A fine movie underplayed by all except Tony Francisco who took his part to am outstanding performance. Acting in his role to levels we rarely see him in.

The role by Hayworth was purposely underacted and she became a minor role in the movie but was quite effective.

What impressed me most was Young's character as a "Mommy's" boy who came to his own through the film.

I have always liked Young and this might have been his best dramatic movie of his career even though his part was minimalised through most of the movie.

& yes, he won fair maiden.

A full 7/10 and maybe an 8.

Watch and enjoy!!!!

p.s. It might not have been near as good in color. B&W was perfect.

An above-par courtroom drama, set in Los Angeles, elevated by director/screenwriter Clifford Odets' sharp script. He originally intended for this work to be a play. It was also elevated by an outstanding cast, with special kudos to Rita Hayworth's warm portrayal of a woman in an abusive marriage and by Sanford Meisner's forceful and expressive performance as the cross-examing prosecutor.

The bulk of the film takes place in the courtroom and since we immediately see the crime, we know that it was an accident and therefore the tension in the film comes about in finding out if the two lovebirds accused of murdering her husband will be given a death sentence, because the circumstances point to their guilt.

The beauty in the film is in the long-drawn-out courtroom dramatics.

The story itself wasn't too interesting, but the performances were energetic and the film had a good courtroom style, enough to make this chatty film well worth seeing.

Playwright Clifford Odets wrote and directed the absorbing courtroom drama, "The Story on Page One," starring Rita Hayworth, Tony Franciosa, Gig Young and Mildred Dunnock. Lovers Larry Ellis and Josephine Brown (Hayworth and Young) are accused of killing her sometimes violent and verbally abusive husband (Alfred Ryder). Josephine's mother (Katherine Squire) begs the down and out Harvard law school grad Victor Santini (Franciosa) to take the case. Josephine insists to Victor that the killing was an accident.

You'll never see a movie with such long scenes again. It's a shame, because they were very absorbing, with Franciosa really ratcheting up the fireworks. This is especially true in his cross-examination of Ellis' mother (Dunnock).

As good as the courtroom part of the film is, there are a few problems with the rest of the script. There isn't enough character fleshing out of Franciosa's character - seemingly within minutes, he goes from a broke lawyer with a hangover to this handsome, confident, sharp lawyer in a suit. We learn precious little about Young's character either, for instance, why is he still a mama's boy in his thirties. Strangely we know most about two supporting characters, Ellis' mother and Josephine's husband. Franciosa, Dunnock, Ryder and the well-known drama coach Sanford Meisner, as the prosecuting attorney, hand in the best performances.

Rita Hayworth actually began to show signs of Alzheimer's only a few years after this film and suffered from it for the next 25 years. People who knew her say she was much like the character of Josephine - quiet, shy, insecure and sweet. The sex goddess is gone; in her place is a good-looking woman wearing a frumpy house dress, her hair worn off of her face. Hayworth doesn't exhibit much personality in this, but then, probably the unhappy Josephine wouldn't have either.

One other problem with the script is the killing itself. If in fact Josephine's husband's hand never came off of the revolver, why wouldn't a fingerprint test show that Ellis never touched it? Actually the evidence of the gun is never mentioned, so maybe Josephine got rid of the gun. Also, the wild shot fired while the men were fighting landed somewhere in the kitchen and would at least have helped Ellis' story a little. That isn't mentioned either.

Nonetheless, the courtroom segments make for great drama. Recommended.

Other than trying to figure out why Rita Hayworth was falling for such a weak mama's boy like Gig Young in the first place The Story On Page One is one of her best roles showing our World War II era sex goddess can really act in a good role with proper motivation.

The Story On Page One has Rita Hayworth still beautiful, but in a drab role as a housewife married to cop Alfred Ryder who's a real caveman alpha male type and abusive. I guess Young's sensitivity is what attracted her, he's a 180 degree different from Ryder.

In any event we know what happens right away. Ryder catches Young and Hayworth together at their home. Ryder being a cop has a licensed weapon. He and Young struggle for the gun and it goes off killing Ryder.

She needs a lawyer and as it turns out Hayworth's mom Katherine Squire knows a good one who's kind of gone to seed. Anthony Franciosa who I think is one of the most underrated talents ever is hired.

I'm not sure charges would have been brought had Ryder not been a cop. And Young and Hayworth do some stupid things not helping their case any. In their stupidity they actually convince Franciosa that they're innocent. Now if he can sell a jury which is the crux of the film.

Soome other nice performances of note are Robert Burton as the District Attorney and Mildred Dunnock as Young's mother. She has a scene with Hayworth telling her to keep her hands off her darling boy that's another highlight. One of my favorite of players Hugh Griffith plays the judge and Griffith is not given all that much to do.

The film is adapted from a Clifford Odets play and directed by Odets. He sure brought out a great performance in Rita Hayworth.

Based on a play , filmed on wide screen,which is unusual for such a drama filmed in an enclosed place ,"the story on page one" is directed by the playwright himself ,which was rare (his contemporary peers Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller,Edward Albee et al never directed a film); some may find it a bit talky ,and directing takes a back seat to acting.

First shock is sex symbol Rita Hayworth as a plain housewife ,devoid of her usual sex appeal ,an act of self-renewal ;she portrays the woman at home ,before women's lib movement , totally dependent on her husband who "feeds her, pays for the car and the house " as the prosecutor claims.

Ditto for Gig Young ,cast against type too (one is far from the ruthless cynical emcee from "they shoot horses,don't they? (AA)) as momma's little boy .

Tony Franciosa is true to form ,but in a conventional part .

But the elders steal the show : Hattie Brown as Hayworth's mother, a woman who knows what submissive housewife means and who's afraid of her addicted -to -alcohol son-in-law ; and mainly impressive holier-than-thou Mildred Dunnock ,a character who could be in a Williams' play , an over possessive mommy who 's got sonny under her thumb ,for his own good.

Eventually , the so-called crime is secondary : the defendants ' prisons are not those of the state : they are to be found in their home.

As a long time criminal/civil trial lawyer, I think most films/TV shows about trials are pretty bad. I thought this one was was good in that the trial procedures, in particular the direct and cross examinations of the witnesses, were highly realistic (as they are in the better known " Anatomy of a Murder"). Sanford Meisner's cross examination of Gig Young was very well done as was Franciosa's of Young's meddling mother. Hugh Griffith also did a good job as the judge. The police and prosecution were not portrayed in a very favorable light which was unusual during that era. I'm surprised that it's not out on DVD as yet. I caught it on FMC when that station was still running good movies. This film gives a far better picture of a trial than those in most TV shows which tend to show actors making speeches for the jury.

From the beginning, I noticed how well my TV's stereo was working when watching this story. Funny thing is, this was a Mono. recording originally? Perhaps it was an illusion but it was as if each person had their own microphone and the voices seemed to jump left and right just as the characters sat across from each other. In most films, I hardly notice anything stereo when two people are sitting quite close together. The sound worked well with the 2.35:1 wide screen image...so wide that it still only filled half of my digital TV screen.

In the courtroom, in addition to the voices, the smallest noise of rustling paper or moving a glass filled the background. The result was very lifelike.

Not a great story, but one that is a real treat for the ears.

Clifford Odets was the golden boy of the New York stage as resident playwright of the Group Theater, the company that put the Method on the map. Odets' plays were also embraced by Hollywood, connecting two disparate cultures - stage and screen - and exerting a lasting influence on realistic portrayals of contemporary life.

"The Story on Page One" is chiefly of interest for the spirited performances by New York stage actors, who outshine their Hollywood colleagues. The storyline involves a painstaking analysis of the suffering of a momma's boy - a case not often aired in public - which was perhaps Odets' own cross to bear.

Mildred Dunnock as the domineering mom is simply exquisite. Gig Young as her feeble son is interesting. Rita Hayworth is dragged in as a love interest tied to a bullying husband, who manages to get himself killed. Thus, the takedown of the matriarch occurs at great length during a murder trial, without much dramatic tension or climax.

Since Odets chose to direct his own script, he didn't get any input from a film director, who would surely have cut the script and found ways to spice up the visuals. The film at 1h58m is half an hour too long, and becomes visually tedious as soon as they enter the courtroom.

Clifford Odets possibly only foray into courtroom drama is a most successful one as evidenced by The Story on Page One.

Anthony Franciosa, (many MST fans will remember him as being the star of the 80's ABC series The Finder of Lost Loves) stars at what first seems to be a similar character to Paul Newman's in The Verdict, a drunk, down on his luck, lawyer getting the case of his career that will either make or break him.

But Odets subverts our initial belief as the story actually focuses on the illicit love affair/murder, whose participants include the ever, great character actor Gig Young and Rita Hayworth, the Lady from Shanghai herself, only to deceptively lull the audience into the intimate details of the backstory, seeing how the bored wife could easily be enticed to look outside of her marriage for the love she sorely needs, and the emotionally scarred CPA who could provide that love.

At the 45 minute mark we get the whole sordid affair in triplicate and one wonders why Odets decided to relate the story in such in way but as the rest of the film plays out at the trial, we see he shrewdly grounded the defendants' sympathies in our hearts whereby every setback and revelation resonates as much for us as for the protagonists.

Coming out in the same year that the topical, yet ultimately sloppily made Anatomy of the Murder, The Story on Page One manages to trump the former just from sheer acting chutzpah and deliberate yet intelligent pacing.

Another facet I found fascinating was Odets use of natural, everyday faces to populate this meller. From the middle-aged insurance seller with his hearing aid, to Katherine Squire's craggy teeth, one sees this is a story that could possibly be culled from a newspaper, relating the plight of the ugly, common man and not some glamorpuss Hollywoodized actor playing him.

Having never been a Rita Hayworth fan, I wasn't expecting much from The Story on Page One. I certainly wasn't expecting good acting and a solid dramatic story. Rita starts the movie haggard and resigned to face the death penalty. She's been arrested with her lover Gig Young for the premeditated murder of her husband, Alfred Ryder. Her mother, Katherine Squire (whom you might recognize from When Harry Met Sally) asks Anthony Franciosa to represent her in court, and even though he thinks it's a lost cause, he turns out to be a pretty great lawyer. I love the courtroom scenes where he pulls a Joe Pesci and crucifies the witnesses for the prosecution.

The biggest disappointments were the flashbacks in which you see what actually happened. I was hoping for more twists and surprises, but everything was pretty straight-forward. So, don't watch this movie hoping for a mystery. Watch it for the courtroom portions. They're entertaining, smart, and make you smile when the bad guy gets his (and hers) and cringe when the good guy gets trapped in a corner. Mildred Dunnock plays a particularly convincing villainess as Gig's overbearing mother hiding behind her Southern belle shell.

Rita Hayworth plays a woman wrongly accused of murder, Anthony Franciosa plays her lawyer. This is a fairly solid, if routine, courtroom drama. You probably pretty much know where its basically going from the start and, to b honest, it sort of goes there.

I started watching this movie with somewhat low expectations based on comments about the director, the script and blah blah. To be honest it didn't grab me right out of the box, but it it grew on me quickly, especially the sad, lonely and hopeless housewife done so expertly by the lovely Rita Hayworth. Gig Young and Tony Francisco played their part with great expertise as did each actor, which I is a tribute to the director. I ended up having a great appreciation for Clifford Odets' approach and directing skills and don't understand why he was panned at the time. I wish he had gone on with other movies. Overall, it is just an enjoyable drama and is well worth the time to watch.

This movie is pretty disappointing. Rita Hayworth and Gig Young are, each in a different way, completely unconvincing in roles that portray characters so dumb and passive that it would be hard to play them really well. The long denouement, their trial for murder, is boring and inferior to a standard Perry Mason. How Odets did a movie this trite is a puzzle. For a while I had hopes of a surprise ending, a la "Witness for the Prosecution" -- but Tony Franciosa is not Charles Laughton and the heartwarmingly straight ending is so unsurprising that I was surprised by it.