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The Red House (1947) [Re-Up]

Posted By: Efgrapha
The Red House (1947) [Re-Up]

The Red House (1947)
DVD5 | VIDEO_TS | NTSC, 4:3 (720x480) VBR | 01:39:58 | 3.64 Gb
Audio: English AC3 2.0 @ 192 Kbps | Subs: none
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Mystery

Delmer Daves directs the noirish thriller The Red House, based on the novel by George Agnew Chamberlain. Edward G. Robinson plays Pete Morgan, a farmer who harbors dark secrets and refuses to let anyone near the red house in the woods behind the house. In order to fend off trespassers, he hires Teller (Rory Calhoun) to stand guard. He lives with his sister, Ellen (Judith Anderson), and his adopted daughter, Meg (Allene Roberts). When they hire Meg's friend, Nath Storm (Lon McCallister), to help out on the farm, the two kids start to wonder about the mysterious red house. The film features an eerie original score by Miklós Rózsa.

Synopsis by Andrea LeVasseur, Allmovie.com

In France, Delmer Daves is considered one of the best of Hollywood craftsmen, a maker of underappreciated pulp. But in America, try as we may, we just can't elevate him to the status of people like Hawks, Walsh, or Mann. Today he's best known for two "messagey" Westerns, Broken Arrow (1950) and 3:10 to Yuma (1957), as well as the third of four Bogart/Bacall movies, Dark Passage (1947).


These movies don't quite click with The Red House, which is a peculiar thriller with some horror overtones. It conjures up a wholesome small town feel, complete with nosy neighbors and gossip, and an undercurrent that grows increasingly darker.

Perhaps the most interesting facet is Edward G. Robinson, in one of his most complex roles, something of a cross between his milquetoast in Scarlet Street (1945), and his tough, resourceful Nazi hunter in The Stranger (1946). He plays Pete Morgan, a farmer with a wooden leg. He appears to live a peaceful existence, until we learn that his family is slightly broken. The woman he lives with (Judith Anderson, from Rebecca) is not his wife, but his sister, and their pretty teen daughter, Meg (Allene Roberts), is actually adopted.

Moreover, Pete lives in fear of the nearby woods, and forbids anyone to go in or near them. But as the story begins, Meg convinces Pete to hire Nath (Lon McCallister) to help out after school. On the first night, Nathe decides to take a short cut through the woods, which causes all kinds of havoc. Nathe decides to find out what the big deal is, but the next time he ventures into the woods, someone clocks him on the head. To complicate matters, Nathe has a sexy girlfriend (hottie Julie London) who doesn't particularly care about Nathe's new pastime. Big lug Rory Calhoun co-stars.

When characters go into the woods, Daves lets them have it with wind, shadows, and howling, creepy sound effects. Otherwise, things are sunny and idyllic, like a preview of "Leave It to Beaver." Yet he doesn't seem particularly able to cross or layer these ideas the way that, say, Fritz Lang might have done. However, the atmosphere is still strong, and even if Daves doesn't generate any real terror, he does make a fairly compelling mystery, filled with terrific little touches. Miklós Rózsa contributed the eerie score.

Review by Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

IMDB 6,9/10 from 1 521 users
Wiki

Director: Delmer Daves

Writers: George Agnew Chamberlain (novel), Delmer Daves

Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Lon McCallister, Judith Anderson, Rory Calhoun, Julie London and other

The Red House (1947) [Re-Up]

The Red House (1947) [Re-Up]

The Red House (1947) [Re-Up]

The Red House (1947) [Re-Up]

The Red House (1947) [Re-Up]

The Red House (1947) [Re-Up]

Special Features:

None

All thanks to original releaser