The always alluring Merle Oberon is defeated in this painfully slow melodrama (of the Margaret Lockwood variety) by an overly pretentious attempt to make a work of art out of a tedious script. She's a calculating divorcee, manipulating herself into the life of wealthy archaeologist George Brent and quickly becoming involved in a passionate affair with the handsome Charles Victor.
A dramatic cord of music strikes quickly every time Oberon puts into action a sinister scheme and each time she is confronted or informed of what her schemes have achieved. The flashback scenario is structured in an agonizingly slow manner, and the music often overpowers the dialog. Brent and Paul Lukas (as a doctor), but Lenore Ulric is very good as Brent's faithful housekeeper who briefly becomes a close companion to Oberon until she catches on.
This variation of "Bella Donna" is a missed opportunity, often trying to capture the essence of the European new wave, but succeeding only for the technical aspects of the film. As a huge fan of Oberon, I found myself completely uninterested in the proceedings, even though I've loved the British melodramas that Margaret Lockwood starred in. American variations of that theme have mainly failed (see "The Strange Woman" with Hedy Lamarr), although Joan Fontaine in "Ivy" was much better.
A dramatic cord of music strikes quickly every time Oberon puts into action a sinister scheme and each time she is confronted or informed of what her schemes have achieved. The flashback scenario is structured in an agonizingly slow manner, and the music often overpowers the dialog. Brent and Paul Lukas (as a doctor), but Lenore Ulric is very good as Brent's faithful housekeeper who briefly becomes a close companion to Oberon until she catches on.
This variation of "Bella Donna" is a missed opportunity, often trying to capture the essence of the European new wave, but succeeding only for the technical aspects of the film. As a huge fan of Oberon, I found myself completely uninterested in the proceedings, even though I've loved the British melodramas that Margaret Lockwood starred in. American variations of that theme have mainly failed (see "The Strange Woman" with Hedy Lamarr), although Joan Fontaine in "Ivy" was much better.