MovieChat Forums > The Two Mrs. Carrolls (1947) Discussion > Awesome Psychological Thriller!

Awesome Psychological Thriller!

posted 14 years ago by BogieandBacallfan
12 replies | jump to latest

I had never heard of this movie until recently...and I love both Bogie and Stanwyck! So, I ordered a copy from the Warner Bros Archive collection and I loved it!

This superb, little suspense yarn has Bogie as the deranged Geoffrey Carroll...and for a mentally disturbed psycho, I must say I thought Bogie did an outstanding job! I had never really seen him in that kind of role before, as he usually always played a gangster-tough guy or a private detective-hero. Boy, he really held it together until the end too...when things finally started falling apart for him.

Barbara Stanwyck also was very "real" and engaging...as always! Even though I've never really considered her that pretty, I've always thought she was a superb actress! However, I thought in this movie she was very attractive, and you truly felt for her. Alexis Smith also was awesome as the scheming, vindictive mistress (or should we say next "project" for our psychotic little artist ;-) ) of Bogie.

Although some might think the plot somewhat predictable...it's not always! It does leave you thinking..."Maybe I'm wrong?" throughout, and the suspense and Bogie's slow but sure mental collapse is chilling and riveting! Awesome plot, awesome actors, and awesome performances!

[–] Xcalat3 13 years ago

Awesome Psychological Thriller!

yes!, great film!

When there's no more room in hell, The dead will walk the earth...

[–] WarpedRecord 11 years ago

It is a very suspenseful film with an excellent cast. 8/10 stars from me.

[–] HarlowMGM 11 years ago

This was the very first "old" movie I ever saw Barbara Stanwyck in after years of seeing her in BIG VALLEY reruns as a kid and I was stunned by her excellent performance in this - she immediately became one of my favorite classic movie stars. I liked your comment about how "real" Stanwyck was in this, a very melodramatic film, it was my first taste of how natural and sincere she was in motion pictures (I did like her in BV but it wasn't really something that showcased her acting to her best ability, Emmy award to the contrary.

[–] OpaqueOne 11 years ago

Stanwyck is one of the best. Check out her performances in No Man of Her Own (1950) and The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946) if you want to see more noir-flavored melodrama made believable by her genuine acting. Good stuff.

[–] Gadare 8 years ago

Stanwyck could do drama very well, but I love her in the comedies "Ball of Fire" and "The Lady Eve". She just glows in those.

"Victor, what are we going to do to stop this fiendish tit?"

[–] MyMovieTVRomance 11 years ago

I do agree that this movie is very good, but I wouldn't call it suspenseful at all. That's the one thing about it that perhaps wasn't done well enough, because the element of suspense requires mystery in order to exist, but it felt like there was none in this film.

The plot was predictable. Though, that's also part of the problem with old movies of this genre---the fact that you know there's only so far an old film will go, and only so much the characters will be allowed to get away with, and that limits the possibilities of the plot tremendously. That's why it was predictable to me. Cause I knew who would win in the end, right from the start.

Good film, but lacking.

Please excuse typos/funny wording; I use speech-recognition that doesn't always recognize!

[–] waldenpond66 10 years ago

The reason why I prefer old movies is that they have totally different plots which makes them so much more interesting than watching all these predictable new movies/thrillers/spy films at the movie theater or on TV. I can always guess what's happening next, those blonde young actresses look so much alike and all have the same body language und falling in love always follows the same formula...I could care less.

If "The Two Mrs. Carrolls" was not suspenseful then I really don't know what is?

[–] matt72582 8 years ago

Couldn't have said it better.

[–] waldenpond88 8 years ago

Thanks :).

[–] waldenpond88 9 years ago

Hi BogieandBacallfan,

You might also enjoy "Conflict" (a lesser known Bogie and Alexis Smith thriller) and "Dark Passage" (Bogie and Bacall...IMHO their best joint movie).

Cheers,

Chrissie

[–] superdavey 8 years ago

I'm as big a Bogie fan as just about anybody, and think Stanwyck was one of the best, but this movie was just ok for me. Bogie is Bogie, but I didn't love or hate his character. I was curious to see what he would do next, but not emotionally invested. And the characters around him just aren't that interesting. The housekeeper and doctor are good, but they have such minor roles that they make little impact on the film. Stanwyck is in fine form, but here character is basically one dimensional. Compare that to another film noir "Double Indemnity" where she is complex and sexy, and you can't wait to find out what she does next and what ultimately happens to her. Double Indemnity also had the wonderful Edward G. Robinson character, I was following his "gut instincts" with keen interest and wondering if/when he would figure things out. Compare that to Bogie last lover, or his precocious daughter, who were ok but just not that interesting. Their main contribution to the movie was to get out of the way when the real action took place.
Were you excited at the end to think Stanwyck and "Penny" might end up together? I didn't think so.

The best movies stand up to repeated viewings. Why would anyone want to watch this more than once? I just didn't care enough about any of the characters for it to make a lasting impact.

[–] waldenpond88 8 years ago

I watched "The Two Mrs. Carrolls" many times and still think it's very spooky, especially the painting scene.
But you are right, "Double Indemnity" certainly is a remarkable film noir!