Everyone tries hard to make this work, but somehow, it never fits together. Johnson's script gives some authentic 50s New York texture to the early scenes (some location shots help a lot) and the theatrical atmosphere seems right for its time (this theatrical milieu is almost totally gone from New York now), but the plot creaks its way to an oddly flat conclusion.
The standouts for me are Rogers, who tries hard to play a character different from her usual, Mabel Albertson as a restaurant owner, and Cathleen Nesbitt, again playing against type, as an American housekeeper. Tierney looks distracted and is wasted here (were her mental problems beginning to surface during the making of this?), Hefliin goes though the motions; the supporting cast is decent but flat, quite missing the opportunity to add some texture to the piece, except for those I've mentioned, Nesbitt and Albertson.
And finally, Fox has started to show this creaky but interesting melodrama in its original, widescreen version. New York City at last takes its role as another character in the piece.
The standouts for me are Rogers, who tries hard to play a character different from her usual, Mabel Albertson as a restaurant owner, and Cathleen Nesbitt, again playing against type, as an American housekeeper. Tierney looks distracted and is wasted here (were her mental problems beginning to surface during the making of this?), Hefliin goes though the motions; the supporting cast is decent but flat, quite missing the opportunity to add some texture to the piece, except for those I've mentioned, Nesbitt and Albertson.
And finally, Fox has started to show this creaky but interesting melodrama in its original, widescreen version. New York City at last takes its role as another character in the piece.