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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
"He did a lot of crazy things...some of the bad...", July 24, 2006
The problem with the deceased, you see, is sometimes they don't know, don't believe, or don't care that they're dead, which can cause complications for those of us still shuffling about on this mortal as they tend to hang about making nuisances of themselves, as seen in the film The Amazing Mr. X (1948). Directed by Bernard Vorhaus (The Last Journey, The Courageous Dr. Christian), the film stars Turhan Bey (The Mad Ghoul, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves), Richard Carlson (It Came from Outer Space, Creature from the Black Lagoon), and Lynn Bari (Charlie Chan in City in Darkness, Kit Carson), appearing in a role originally intended for actress Carole Landis, that is before she took her own life just prior to filming. Also appearing is Cathy O'Donnell (Detective Story) and Donald Curtis (Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo).
The film begins with a shot of a lonely mansion perched atop a precarious coast, one occupied by widower Christine Faber (Bari) and her younger sister Janet Burke (Cathy O'Donnell), whom, I might add, are a real pair of classy dames. As Christine is preparing for a date with her boyfriend Martin Abbott (Carlson), she hears a man's voice furtively wafting in from the ocean, calling her name...'Chistiiine...Christiine...', sounding a lot like that of her dead husband Paul, whose been gone for two years. She relates this to Janet, but the pair eventually dismisses it as the wind, and Janet prods Christine to get ready for her date, as it seems this is the night Martin's going to pop the question. As Christine makes her way along the darkened beach to Martin's house, again she hears the voice, just before a `chance' meeting with odd individual named Alexis (Bey), who turns out to be a psychic consultant and relates things to Christine he couldn't possibly know, unless he truly had supernatural abilities (or a really good investigative source). Anyway, after a harrowing experience of the supernatural kind later that night, Christine enlists Alexis to perform series of séances (much to the dismay of Martin and Janet) as she feels Paul is lingering about (I guess he missed the whole bit about `until death do us part' bit during the vows). Martin and Janet, fearing Alexis is a fake and only after money, hire a private detective to look into Alexis' past, the hope being to show Christine once and for all the man is nothing but a scam artist (turns out he is, but a really good one). After a series of events Martin and the detective confront Alexis during one of his séances and put him on the spot, to which Alexis delivers, much to the surprise of everyone (including Alexis himself) as Paul's spirit makes an appearance...holy guacamole! Martin aka Mr. Practical still thinks it's all a sham, but Christine's more convinced than ever, resulting in a falling out between the two (I guess the wedding's off, but I missed the part where she returned the engagement ring with the ginormous diamond)...eventually some surprising, nay, shocking revelations are made, all leading up to a very climatic and engaging finale.
I came into this film not expecting much other than perhaps a modest mystery type thriller, but it turned out to be a whole lot more. Everything here worked out very well including the strong performances, the excellent directing, the exceptional cinematography by John Alton (T-Men, Father of the Bride, An American in Paris), the sometimes humorous dialog, the tightly woven and complicated plot, loads of atmosphere, decent special effects, thoughtful settings, and so much more. I really can't tell you how much I enjoy coming into a film expecting little, and walking away with the complete satisfaction of finding a real gem. There were so many little, enjoyable touches throughout, a few of the more memorable ones including the following...as Martin and Janet contact a private investigator who's somewhat of an expert in uncovering psychic sham artists we see the investigator performing a number of slight of hands tricks while the three are talking. Turns out the guy is as good as he is because at one time he was a magician, and is familiar with many of tricks of the trade. Watch as Janet is completely mesmerized by the man's abilities...that disappearing cigar gag is a hoot. Another bit involves Alexis, after it's confirmed to the audience, at least, that he is a scam artist, and we see how his home is set up as one, giant tool to facilitate his profession, complete with two way mirrors, remote control doors, and so on...at one point an obviously wealthy, older woman shows up, goes through his little `entrance' routine, and then during their proper meeting, Alexis suavely takes her hand as to kiss it...watch his eyes grow wide as he gets a good look at the jewels on her hand. My favorite bit is near the beginning when Martin proposes, doing so right in front of the huge, sinister-looking portrait painting of Christine's deceased husband...perhaps it's time for that baby to come down....yeesh...in the hands of others this film probably would have come off more as a run of the mill mystery, but given the obviously professional efforts of those involved I thought at times I was watching a something along the lines of a Hitchcock film. It may not have had the nail biting tension so often featured in Hitchcock's films, but it came very close. The strongest character for me was Alexis, played by Turhan Bey. Man what a smooth operator...here's someone who has honed his craft to the point where it seems flawless. It's one thing to be able to perform parlor tricks for the rubes, but it's the true artist who studies his marks with a psychological eye, picking up on their body language, and telling them exactly what they want to hear while making it come across completely natural. All in all I thought this a lot of fun, and a great choice for those who appreciate well made, entertaining mystery thrillers infused with `noir' qualities.
Released by Wade Williams, the picture quality on this Image Entertainment DVD, presented in fullscreen, does suffer some age related damage as there are white specks and vertical lines present through nearly the entire feature. While noticeable at the outset, I eventually got used to it and just enjoyed the story. The audio, presented in Dolby Digital mono, comes through very well. There are no extra features on the DVD, but it is divided into twelve chapter stops. Included within the case is an insert with informative liner notes by freelance writer Jim Arena, providing some background on the performers and the production.
Cookieman108
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent thriller that's well worth a look, September 26, 2005
Just as greiving widow Christine Faber (Lynn Bari) is about to put the tragic death of her husband behind her and move on with her life, she starts hearing his voice on the wind... his restless spirit has returned to haunt her! In a fortuitous coincidence, Christine meets Alexis (Turhan Bey), a psychic who offers to help her contact her husband's spirit and perhaps put it to rest.
Christine's younger sister (Cathy O'Donnell) and Christine's would-be new paramour thinks that the meeting with Alexis was too fortuitous, and they suspect that perhaps he is part of a scam to defraud the emotionally frail Christine of her inheritance. They secure the services of a magician turned private eye who specializes in debuniking phoney mediums and set about to expose Alexis for the fraud he is. However, the haunting continues to grow in intensity. Can it be that Christine's departed husband really is reaching out from beyond and attempting to pull her into a watery grave along side him?
This 1948 B-movie is an excellently made thriller. It is well acted, well filmed, moves briskly, and keeps the viewer engaged with clever plot-twists and a couple of nicely done double-reversals of expectations. There are films with perhas ten times the budget of "The Amazing Mr. X" that aren't half as successful at telling the kind of story that this film features--which, I admit, was pretty well-worn even in 1948. That said, modern filmmakers trying their hands at thrillers with supernatural overtones would do well to study this work, as it shows exactly how that kind of film is made.
Don't let the cheesy title fool you. This is a top-notch thriller that's well worth a look by any lover of the genre.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A B Movie Gothic Noir, Nicely Done, April 17, 2005
If you enjoy B movies, gothic noirs and second string actors, you might enjoy this gem. I did.
Christine Faber (Lynn Bari), a rich, beautiful widow who lives in a mansion high on a cliff overlooking the Pacific surf, is a widow of two years still grieving over the death of her husband, whose body was never found. Her younger sister (Cathy O'Donnell) is worried about her and her good friend, (Richard Carlson), who wants to be more than a friend, thinks somehow she has to start living her own life. Then Christine learns of a medium, Alexis (Turhan Bey), the mysterious Mr. X, who has moved near by. Alexis is supposed to do wonders in bringing back the dead, and he seems able to bring up the spirit of Christine's husband at seances for her. But Christine also hears strange, familiar music late at night in her mansion. The french doors leading to the cliffs mysteriously open. She begins to hear the voice of her dead husband when she's trying to sleep, speaking lovingly to her and urging her to join him on the cliffs.
This movie may be one of the thousands of B movies Hollywood cranked out during the Forties, but it is competently made and moves ahead briskly. There is a twist about two-thirds of the way through that might surprise you. And the climax, a struggle in the dank, dark cellars of the mansion, is very well handled.
Joan Crawford might have been Hollywood's Queen Bee, but Lynn Bari was undoubtedly the queen of the Bs. She was a classy looking woman with a great, rich voice who could handle comedy or mystery, evil or good, with competence. And while probably few people remember Turhan Bey, for a few years he was Hollywood's favorite exotic leading men. That might not be saying a lot, but he made a reasonably successful career of it for a while.
But be warned; the DVD picture is watchable but nothing more.
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