Impact
A unfaithful wife plots with her lover to kill her husband, but the lover is accidentally killed instead. The husband stays in hiding and lets his wife be charged with conspiracy. In San Francisco, su…
Impact
A unfaithful wife plots with her lover to kill her husband, but the lover is accidentally killed instead. The husband stays in hiding and lets his wife be charged with conspiracy. In San Francisco, successful self-made businessman Walter Williams has just bought three factories in Denver with the approval of the board of directors. His wife Irene tells him that she is not feeling well enough to travel with him and asks him to give a lift to her cousin Jim Torrence. On the highway, Jim--who is actually Irene's lover--tries to kill Walter, hitting his head and throwing him off a cliff, and has a fatal fiery accident while escaping driving Walter's car. Walter is believed to be the driver and later his wife is sent to jail accused of plotting his murder. Meanwhile, the wounded Walter falls asleep in a moving van and eventually winds up in Larkspur, a small town in Idaho. He is hired as a mechanic in a gas station by the owner, Marsha Peters. For three months Walter reads the news, expecting revenge with Irene sentenced to death, and he and Marsha fall in love with each other. When Walter discloses the truth to Marsha, she convinces him to return to San Francisco and save his unfaithful wife. The situation changes when Irene accuses him of plotting to kill her lover Jim, and Walter must prove his innocence. —Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Wealthy San Francisco industrialist Walter Williams has what he would probably consider a perfect life. He is well liked and respected by almost everyone including: his Board of Directors who he can usually get to agree with his desired direction for the company; and his Chinese housekeeper Su Lin Chung who works proudly in his service. He loves and dotes on his wife, Irene Williams, who loves him in return. That veneer of perfection hides something about which he is blissfully unaware: while Irene loves what his money does buy her, she truly does not love him in having an affair with a lowlife named Jim Torrence, the two plotting to kill him to be able to live off his money. In Walter eventually coming to the shocking realization the hard way of Irene's duplicitous nature, what ensues is a battle between husband and wife to ruin the other completely, for Walter in retribution of the lie she perpetrated over the entire course of their relationship while meeting someone who he ends up loving and who truly loves him in return, small town war widow Marsha Peters, and for Irene to reach her original intended end goal while saving her own hide. —Huggo Walter Williams (Brian Donlevy) is a take-charge captain of industry who has worked his way up in a San Francisco steel company from a position as a sheet metal worker. He loves his wife Irene (Helen Walker) very much, and they have planned a vacation drive together. Irene cancels at the last minute claiming a toothache but asks that Walter drive her cousin Jim Torrance (Tony Barrett) as far as Illinois. Walter agrees, and he and Jim take off together, but later Jim knocks Walter unconscious and takes the car, only to be hit himself by a truck and killed, his body burned beyond recognition. Walter comes to and, suffering a concussion and deep confusion from feeling betrayed by Irene, hides out in a small Midwest town until guilt and peer pressure force him to go back to San Francisco and tell his story to the Police. But by the time Walter returns to San Francisco, a clever detective Lieutenant Quincy (Charles Coburn) has uncovered some facts about Irene and her 'cousin' Jim. The police have been holding Irene for the murder of her husband Walter but release her presuming that Walter was hiding out because he had killed Jim. Along the way to uncovering the truth in court, Walter realizes some hard facts about what he holds valuable and the trust he has put in those around him. No-nonsense San Francisco industrial whiz Walter Williams' two-timing wife and her lover plot to do her husband in, but Williams survives the attack and the lover is burned beyond recognition while driving Williams' car. Half-dazed, Williams stumbles into a moving van and ends up in idyllic Larkspur, Idaho, where he tracks newspaper stories of his "death". While recuperating, he falls in love with Marsha, who owns the garage where he's working as a mechanic. But when Williams finally goes back to San Francisco to clear his wife, who is suspected of killing him, he's tried for the lover's murder. —Paul Penna <tterrace@sonic.net>
Impact
Crime,Drama,Film-Noir
Film Details
A unfaithful wife plots with her lover to kill her husband, but the lover is accidentally killed instead. The husband stays in hiding and lets his wife be charged with conspiracy. In San Francisco, successful self-made businessman Walter Williams has just bought three factories in Denver with the approval of the board of directors.
His wife Irene tells him that she is not feeling well enough to travel with him and asks him to give a lift to her cousin Jim Torrence. On the highway, Jim--who is actually Irene's lover--tries to kill Walter, hitting his head and throwing him off a cliff, and has a fatal fiery accident while escaping driving Walter's car. Walter is believed to be the driver and later his wife is sent to jail accused of plotting his murder.
Meanwhile, the wounded Walter falls asleep in a moving van and eventually winds up in Larkspur, a small town in Idaho. He is hired as a mechanic in a gas station by the owner, Marsha Peters. For three months Walter reads the news, expecting revenge with Irene sentenced to death, and he and Marsha fall in love with each other.
When Walter discloses the truth to Marsha, she convinces him to return to San Francisco and save his unfaithful wife. The situation changes when Irene accuses him of plotting to kill her lover Jim, and Walter must prove his innocence. —Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Wealthy San Francisco industrialist Walter Williams has what he would probably consider a perfect life.
He is well liked and respected by almost everyone including: his Board of Directors who he can usually get to agree with his desired direction for the company; and his Chinese housekeeper Su Lin Chung who works proudly in his service. He loves and dotes on his wife, Irene Williams, who loves him in return. That veneer of perfection hides something about which he is blissfully unaware: while Irene loves what his money does buy her, she truly does not love him in having an affair with a lowlife named Jim Torrence, the two plotting to kill him to be able to live off his money.
In Walter eventually coming to the shocking realization the hard way of Irene's duplicitous nature, what ensues is a battle between husband and wife to ruin the other completely, for Walter in retribution of the lie she perpetrated over the entire course of their relationship while meeting someone who he ends up loving and who truly loves him in return, small town war widow Marsha Peters, and for Irene to reach her original intended end goal while saving her own hide. —Huggo Walter Williams (Brian Donlevy) is a take-charge captain of industry who has worked his way up in a San Francisco steel company from a position as a sheet metal worker. He loves his wife Irene (Helen Walker) very much, and they have planned a vacation drive together.
Irene cancels at the last minute claiming a toothache but asks that Walter drive her cousin Jim Torrance (Tony Barrett) as far as Illinois. Walter agrees, and he and Jim take off together, but later Jim knocks Walter unconscious and takes the car, only to be hit himself by a truck and killed, his body burned beyond recognition. Walter comes to and, suffering a concussion and deep confusion from feeling betrayed by Irene, hides out in a small Midwest town until guilt and peer pressure force him to go back to San Francisco and tell his story to the Police.
But by the time Walter returns to San Francisco, a clever detective Lieutenant Quincy (Charles Coburn) has uncovered some facts about Irene and her 'cousin' Jim. The police have been holding Irene for the murder of her husband Walter but release her presuming that Walter was hiding out because he had killed Jim. Along the way to uncovering the truth in court, Walter realizes some hard facts about what he holds valuable and the trust he has put in those around him.
No-nonsense San Francisco industrial whiz Walter Williams' two-timing wife and her lover plot to do her husband in, but Williams survives the attack and the lover is burned beyond recognition while driving Williams' car. Half-dazed, Williams stumbles into a moving van and ends up in idyllic Larkspur, Idaho, where he tracks newspaper stories of his "death". While recuperating, he falls in love with Marsha, who owns the garage where he's working as a mechanic.
But when Williams finally goes back to San Francisco to clear his wife, who is suspected of killing him, he's tried for the lover's murder. —Paul Penna <tterrace@sonic.net>.