The Reckless Moment
Drama • Thriller
Theatrical Release (US)
~ It could happen to so many married women! ~
Overview:
After discovering the dead body of her teenage daughter's lover, a housewife takes desperate measures to protect her family from scandal.
Director:
Max Ophüls
Status:
Released
Language:
English
Buget:
$0.00
Revenue:
Key words:
Cast
James Mason
~ as ~
Martin Donnelly
Joan Bennett
Lucia Harper
Geraldine Brooks
Bea Harper
Henry O'Neill
Tom Harper
Shepperd Strudwick
Ted Darby
David Bair
David Harper
Roy Roberts
Nagel
Jessie Arnold
Old Lady (uncredited)
Al Bain
Man (uncredited)
Jack Baker
CinemaSerf
Written 3 year(s) ago
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What is it about folks in movies who find dead bodies? Rather than just call the police and rely on them to adequately do their jobs, they always find themselves embroiled in silly, self-inflicted plots that almost always cause far more trouble... Here is another such example. Joan Bennett is "Lucia", a rather bored housewife whose husband is always away, and whose young daughter "Bea" (Geraldine Brooks) is having a fling with the rather roguish "Ted" (Shepperd Strudwick). Her mother tries to put a stop to the relationship, be he wants paying off - she tells him to get lost. Next day, he confronts poor old "Bea" with the truth, a tussle ensues and soon "Ted" is down with the fishes, the daughter having tried to cover her tracks. Police find the corpse, and enter James Mason ("Donnelly") and his even more unscrupulous partner "Nagel" (Roy Roberts) who have some incriminating letters and want $5,000 to keep them from the investigation. Mother, determined to save her irresponsible child, tries to accommodate the blackmailer and over time their dynamic changes somewhat... It's quite a quirky story with two good performances - Mason, quite understated and Bennett measured - even when under quite a bit of pressure, and the direction from Max Opuls keeps the pace well. Sadly, he struggles to see it off the rocks of melodrama as we near the end, but even that is a bit different.