Tallulah! Tallulah! Tallulah!

Rating: 9/10 (2 June 2016)

Tallulah Bankhead made very few films and this one is probably the best known of her film performances. She played Constance Porter, a self-involved wealthy journalist, who was aboard a ship before a Nazi torpedoed it. She survived along with her luggage in the lifeboat by herself until other survivors come along. Bankhead had a history of difficulty and perhaps it is why she never made a film career. Bankhead was better known onstage in theatre. The cast includes other theatre veterans like Hume Cronyn, Canada Lee and more. Mary Anderson and Heather Angel are the only two female supporting roles overshadowed by Bankhead. A film veteran like Walter Slezak also performs. The cast and ensemble work together as a team though surviving in the lifeboat. The film could actually be adapted to a stage production if possible. The film is set in one lifeboat surrounded by water. The director Alfred Hitchcock did an admirable job with this film. Sadly, "Lifeboat" gets overshadowed by other Hitchcock gems. If you see his entire film catalog, you will "Lifeboat" as a gem and treasure not to be missed. It should have been nominated for Best Film as well too. I only wondered and worried about what happened at the end of the film. It leaves you hanging and wanting more.