A Woman's Secret

Plot synopsis:
In a story told in a series of flashbacks, singer Marian Washburn (O'Hara) loses her voice. Aided by her pianist, Luke Jordan (Douglas), they promote a young singer, Susan Caldwell (Grahame). When Susan decides to quit the business, she is shot and seriously wounded in the Park Avenue apartment in New York that she and Marian share. When the police arrive, Marian confesses.
Luke believes there must be more to this. He hires attorney Brook Matthews, (Victor Jory) who has a past relationship with Susan, and explains at length to Fowler, a police inspector, (Jay C. Flippen) how he and Marian came to know Susan.
After an audition, Susan, an aspiring singer from Azusa, California, collapsed from starvation in front of them. Luke and Marian took her home and heard her voice. They decided to promote Susan's career, taking her to France, where as a performer she became known as "Estrellita," but, behind their backs, briefly ran off with a soldier to Algiers.
In the present, as Susan fights for her life in a hospital trying to survive the gunshot, the former soldier, Lee Crenshaw (Bill Williams), gets into a verbal confrontation with Luke while admitting that he had given her a Luger pistol from the war as a gift.
Luke relates to Fowler and the inspector's amateur-sleuth wife, Mary, (Mary Philips) how on a boat home from France, they encountered Brook, the influential lawyer, just as they hoped they might. Brook had been known to sponsor young talent and, before long, he became Susan's patron, with a personal relationship also developing between them.
When she comes to in the hospital, a delirious Susan confirms the story Marian has told, that she was shot by Marian after their quarrel. Mary points out to her detective husband that Susan had just finished reading a newspaper account of the crime and could have been influenced by that.
A piece of key evidence leads to the truth, that Susan possessed the gun and, when Marian became concerned that Susan might be contemplating suicide, they struggled over the weapon and it went off. Charges are dismissed and Marian returns to Luke.

Tags: murder, flashback

Review:
As the movie opens she is arrested for shooting Grahame, and the movie tells their story in flashback form.I liked this movie a lot, it's intelligent and engrossing, and one of the few films of the period to focus on the relationship between two women.
O'Hara is focused, driven, smart, savvy and lives for her work; and Grahame is a dim-witted, good-natured bimbo who'd just like to enjoy life.
The conflicts between them grow and grow as the movie progresses, building up until we come back to the shooting of Grahame.The performances are good, as they should be in a character-driven film like this.
Grahame gives one of her best performances here (I've never been impressed with any others, truth to tell), she has a lovely time dropping bricks in polite company and blithely accepting the adoration of every man she meets.Worth a look if you're in a mood for interesting people, not explosions..
In fact, it was impossible for me to figure out why most of the characters do what they do -- but, maybe you can.Why does the police inspector sit and listen to Melvyn Douglas drone on for hours about what a great gal the Maureen O'Hara character is?
Maureen O'Hara confesses to shooting her protégée (Gloria Grahame) in "A Woman's Secret," costarring Melvyn Douglas.
Though this is a drama, it actually has a witty script, a light touch, and wonderful performances.Most of the story is told in flashbacks as Douglas, who plays a pianist/songwriter, describes to police detective Jay C.
Flippen why it was impossible for O'Hara to have shot the singer Estrelita, whom O'Hara and Douglas discovered and helped make famous.Melvyn Douglas' years as a great actor came later in his life.
O'Hara had a lovely soprano voice and starred in a Broadway show, "Christine," but it isn't clear whether or not she did her own singing in the film.Some of the best scenes, though, are provided by Jay C.
Maureen O'Hara loses her voice to one of those strange diseases that abound in movies, and drives a young woman (Gloria Grahame) as an understudy.
This is probably one of Gloria Grahames' best performances, with Melvyn Douglas giving a polished display and Jay C Flippen as the Police Inspector a delight.
Maybe the title is wrong, there really is no secret about anything here.If A Woman's Secret has earned any place at all in cinema history it's because director Nicholas Ray met and fell for Gloria Grahame on the set of this film.
As for the film, retired singer now manager Maureen O'Hara has a quarrel with her protégé Gloria Grahame.
Later on when Grahame is shot and critically wounded, O'Hara is brought in for questioning.Composer and critic Melvyn Douglas in a character based on parts of Alexander Woollcott, Clifton Fadiman, and Oscar Levant just simply doesn't believe the whole thing.
Others in the ensemble include Victor Jory as a criminal attorney that Douglas brings in for O'Hara who knows both of them and Bill Williams, a former GI who was to marry Grahame.With their only being a small amount of alternate probabilities other than O'Hara trying to commit murder, there's not much of a secret to A Woman's Secret..
Nicholas Ray directs Maureen O'Hara in interesting but flawed noir style mystery....
A WOMAN'S SECRET is a melodramatic noir style mystery based on a Vicki Baum story, played in florid fashion by MAUREEN O'HARA, MELVYN DOUGLAS and GLORIA GRAHAME, all of whom are a bit over-the-top under Nichols Ray's direction.O'Hara is the tough ex-singer promoter of the singing career of Grahame, and plays some of her argumentative moments as though she's Joan Crawford brandishing a gun in "Mildred Pierce".
She does get a chance to demonstrate her pleasant singing voice, unlike Grahame who is dubbed.After confessing to shooting Grahame during a heated argument over Gloria's decision to quit her career, she tells her story in flashback.
But the trouble here is that Secret is simply too muddled to fit anywhere, and that's despite a luminescent turn from the incomparable Gloria Grahame.Director Ray was especially expert at getting triumphs from love story actresses—Cathy O'Donnell, Allene Roberts, Natalie Wood, et al.
Mankiewicz (Ray's treatment, however, is sufficiently stylish to overcome the essential impersonality with which he approached the material and, at least, through working on this film, he met future wife Gloria Grahame!).Even if controversy still rages over Mankiewicz' exact contribution to CITIZEN KANE (1941), he gives this one a similar flashback structure; of course, comparisons to Orson Welles' magnum opus won't do Ray's more modest effort any favors, so I won't make any!
Still, while not especially memorable, the film can stand on its own two feet  thanks largely to a fine cast (an unusually aggressive Maureen O'Hara, the volatile Grahame, the typically cynical Melvyn Douglas, Victor Jory as a wealthy but love-struck middle-aged man, Jay C.
By the way, amusing though it is, the film's injection of humor is rather atypical for Ray  particularly in the figure of Flippen's wife, who likes to carry out her own sleuthing!.
I knew this was a Nicholas Ray movie, and with the opening credits saw it was written by Herman Mankiewicz, based on a Vicki Baum novel, with Melvin Douglas, in the cast, I warmed up.I've always liked Gloria Grahame, who always lended herself to out-of-the-box roles, which worked so well in Film Noir.
Gloria Grahame knocked my socks off, the scenes with her vocals were done so well, it made the whole movie work (I know, Maureen O'Hara is the vocalist, but Grahame steals the show here).
The ubiquitous Maureen O'Hara bags the most dramatic role of the suspected murderess and headlines it as you'd expect, but Melvyn Douglas holds it all together as the man caught between two feisty women.
Gloria Grahame is an intriguing actress who gives a rather sultry turn as the star singer and it's increasingly apparent as the story progresses that the director is in love with her.Otherwise, despite the lack of action and incident, A WOMAN'S SECRET works rather well.
The movie starts out with Gloria Grahame being shot and being close to dying and Maureen O'Hara says that she shot her.
Flippen plays a detective who doesn't quite believe her story and Melvyn Douglas plays a friend of both O'Hara and Grahame who tries to convince Flippen that O'Hara really didn't do it.
The screenplay is by Herman J Mankiewicz of 'Citizen Kane' fame and it's directed by Nicholas Ray and features actress Gloria Grahame.
Ray also directed one of my favorite films 'In A Lonely Place' in which Grahame also starred.
The great side-story on the film here is how the two of them met on the set and zipped off to Vegas so that Grahame could get a quickie divorce from her then husband and marry Ray. Maybe they should have focused on making this a watchable film instead of cooing over each other.
Is Gloria Grahame the bad girl, or Maureen O'Hara?.
Me neither, but I was seriously excited when A Woman's Secret started and she shot Gloria Grahame in the opening scene.
Her usual over-the-top persona is gone, and in its place is a confessed murderess!As Maureen sits in a jail cell, her boyfriend Melvyn Douglas and the head detective Jay C.
This film is based upon the novel MORTGAGE ON LIFE by Vicki Baum, and the screenplay by Herman Mankiewicz (brother of Joe, uncle of Tom, whom I knew slightly) sparkles with witty lines and lively dialogue.
This film has spectacular performances from Maureen O'Hara, Melvyn Douglas, and Gloria Grahame.
But watching Grahame sing the hit song 'Paradise', whoever's voice it was, is such a great moment that it is worth seeing the film just for that.
Grahame is shot early in the film and Maureen O'Hara insists that she did it, but many people suspect that she is only pretending to be guilty, especially as she even refuses a lawyer.
Ray certainly knew how to get the best performances out of Gloria Grahame, and it was the next year that their joint triumph appeared, aided by Humphrey Bogart of course, IN A LONELY PLACE (1950, see my review), one of the greatest noirs ever made and one of the finest films of its time.
These early films of Nicholas Ray are genuine classics, and A WOMAN'S SECRET is not to be missed..
After two duds, Nicholas Ray's third directorial attempt finally broke through the mold to create an intriguing story complete with a fine mixture of hard-boiled and humorous dialogue as well as solid acting from everyone down to the minute supporting roles.Maureen O'Hara and Gloria Grahame headline a two women with a strange connection pushed even closer together when one of them is shot and the other is accused.
A popular young radio singer (Gloria Grahame) is shot, and her mentor (Maureen O'Hara) confesses to the deed...
...says Mrs Mary to the nurse.Mrs Mary is a delightful middle age lady who does her Miss Marple act.As an user has already pointed out,she steals every scene she is in.That just shows how non-Rayesque this movie is.Maureen O'Hara is a talented attractive actress,but she 's more at ease in Ford's or Dieterle's movies.The screenplay is primarily a detective story:did Marian really try to kill Susan because her protégé wanted to call it quits (she's a singer)?
Marian was herself a singer but she lost her voice and she made Susan a star.It is an entertaining but impersonal movie.A young person who would like to discover Ray's work had better pick up "rebel without a cause" "Johnny Guitar" or "they live by night".Besides,female rivalry is much better applied on "Born to be bad" ,Ray's 1950 movie..
A Woman's Secret is directed by Nicholas Ray and adapted to screenplay by Herman J.
It stars Maureen O'Hara, Melvyn Douglas, Gloria Grahame, Victor Jory and Jay C.
Diskant.When young singer Susan Caldwell (Grahame) is shot, Marian Washburn (O'Hara) takes the blame and is promptly charged.
Some of the dialogue spouted is noir gold, particularly when coming from the mouth of Flippen's (stealing the film but sadly under used) grizzled copper, while Ray and Diskant know their noir visuals as they tone down the contrasts and utilise closed in space for the more serious scenes in the story.
Grahame is full of sexual and world wise innocence, teasing away like a good un', Jory gives a show of fidgety anger, while Douglas gets the tongue in cheek role and works well as a romantic prop feeding off of O'Hara's (actually under written considering it's the lead) more sternly sexy performance.
After preforming for a New York City radio station, popular singer Gloria Grahame (as Susan "Estrellita" Caldwell) goes back to the apartment she shares with roommate-manager Maureen O'Hara (as Marian Washburn) and threatens to give up her lucrative singing career.
She should have asked, "What did you burn, Susan?" Adding to the confusion, the beginning flashbacks don't match later events – maybe this was intended to make it all more interesting.**** A Woman's Secret (3/5/49) Nicholas Ray ~ Maureen O'Hara, Gloria Grahame, Melvyn Douglas, Bill Williams.
It Looks Great and so do Gloria Grahame and Maureen O'Hara.
But the Movie is All Over the Place in Terms of Tone and Style Incorporating Dull Songs (quite a few), Sloppy Motivations, and Flashbacks to Tell a Story that in the End, Few will Care About.Melvyn Douglas is Miscast as is Victor Jory.
Surprisingly the Most Entertaining Part of the Film, other than Looking at the Female Beauties, is the Sharp and Sarcastic Dialog Between a Police Detective (J.C. Flippen) and His Amateur Sleuthing Wife.It's All Professionally Done and is a Mediocre Melodrama with Ill Fitting but Enjoyable Comedy Bits.
A unique role for Maureen O'Hara,and intriguing tongue-in-cheek film noir!.
Still, a film with enough tongue-in-cheek humor and essential pat pulp-genre characters, and what a nice departure to see Miss O'Hara acting a role with a dark latent side left mysterious enough keep the viewer interested and wondering.....
Its starry cast includes Maureen O'Hara and Gloria Grahame, Melvyn Douglas, Victor Jory, Bill Williams and the estimable character actor Jay C.
Why, nobody even dies.O'Hara plays a faded singer and Grahame her wildly successful protegée (Estrellita, or :Little Star').
While Maureen O'Hara tells the police she shot her protégé, Gloria Graham, her boyfriend (Melvin Douglas) is sure she couldn't have done such a thing.
Both tell their side of the story from their perspective and the police wait until Graham recovers from surgery to get at the truth.This is an okay idea for a film--not great, but it sure could have been a lot better.
Generally regarded as director Nicholas Ray's least successful movie, "A Woman's Secret" is based on the novel "Mortgage on Life" by Vicki Baum and tells the story of an investigation into the near-fatal shooting of a well-known young singer.
What transpired before the shooting is revealed through a series of flashbacks with some pieces of information proving to be more reliable than others and very little being discovered which could explain why the victim's mentor so readily confessed to the crime.Following one of her radio broadcasts, popular singer Susan Caldwell (Gloria Grahame), who's known professionally as Estrellita, returns to the apartment she shares with her mentor Marian Washburn (Maureen O'Hara) and announces that she intends to give up her singing career.
This leads to a very animated quarrel, a physical struggle and a gun being fired that leaves Susan critically injured before Marian, very calmly and without hesitation, calls for medical help and reports the incident to the police.Police Inspector Jim Fowler (Jay C Flippen) leads the investigation and Marian's business partner Luke Jordan (Melvyn Douglas) hires attorney Brook Matthews (Victor Jory) to defend her.
Despite this, however, it's not entirely without merit because there are some good performances (particularly from Gloria Grahame, Jay C Flippen and Melvyn Douglas), some enjoyable humour and amusing dialogue (e.g. when Jordan describes Susan as having "a voice with hormones").
The flashback structure also creates an impression of more substance than would have been the case if the drama had simply been presented in linear form.Interestingly, during the making of this movie, another drama was being played out behind the cameras, as Nicholas Ray and Gloria Grahame had an affair which led to their unsuccessful marriage and divorce.
Brutal film with Maureen O'Hara, as a washed-up singer, who takes Gloria Grahame under her wing.Grahame, a temperamental, prime dona, wants to quit the singing racket and a mystery evolves when an enraged O'Hara allegedly fires a bullet into her.
Grahame had the audacity to survive the shooting, the writing of this awful film obviously did not.Matinée idol Melvyn Douglas plays O'Hara's love interest, and Maureen becomes enraged when she thinks that he is showing too much of an interest in Grahame.
What really happened when the gun was fired, what type of person was Susan Caldwell?The film starts with a fight between Susan (Gloria Grahame) and Marion Washburn (Maureen O'Hara).
She and Marion go upstairs, there is a shot and when police come, Marion calmly confesses that she fired the gun that could fatally have injured Susan.Luke Jordan (Melvyn Douglas) and Brooke Matthews (Victor Jory) get involved.
Gloria Grahame is a bright light - if it wasn't for her the film would be pretty dull.Jay C.
Who would ever associate Maureen O'Hara with Nicholas Ray?
Flippen and Victor Jory in the same film let alone a film that already has O'Hara and Douglas aboard, to say nothing of Gloria Graham who plays Estrellita as if she'd been told to effect a cross between Gracie Allen and Marilyn Monoro - although Monroe had yet to establish her persona in 1949 despite three or four small roles.
Partners Maureen O'Hara and Gloria Graham have an argument.
Maureen O'Hara didn't shoot Gloria Graham.
Why the writers thought that their denouncement of how/why a temperamental singer (Gloria Grahame) was shot, and why her mentor (Maureen O'Hara) would claim guilt is about as engrossing as a Progressive Car Insurance Commercial.
From there, it bogs into a bunch of melodramatic nonsense with O'Hara flashing back to how she lost her own singing voice, how she and her fiancé (Melvyn Douglas) met Grahame (playing a poor man's Eve Harrington), how Grahame's romantic nonsense (involving Douglas, sleazy looking Victor Jory and handsome Bill Williams) almost ruined their relationship and finally the revelation of the so-called secret.
A Woman's Secret was sandwiched between several Film Noir titles early in Director Nicholas Ray's career.
Maureen O'Hara and Melvyn Douglas play mentors of up and coming singer Gloria Grahame after O'Hara's career fails because of losing her voice.
Grahame is shot after a radio show one night, and the rest of the film is devoted to revealing the relationships between O'Hara, Douglas, and Grahame and what happened.
Douglas plays his usual nice guy self, and Grahame is very good as the ditsy singer who doesn't appreciate her career.
The supporting cast is good also.While not truly a Noir film, A Woman's Secret does have a few elements often identified with the genre: a shooting, story told in flashback, and a few red herring suspects.
The movie has all the noir gloss we expect of RKO.What the film also has is Gloria Grahame.
It's no surprise that director Ray and actress Grahame got married as soon as shooting was completed because if ever a camera was in love with an actress that camera is the one used to photograph entrancing close-up after close-up of Miss Gloria in A Woman's Secret.
But this coat didn't fit O'Hara well at all.Melvyn Douglas comes off okay here because his flip attitude works here...and this was during the point in his career where Douglas was often flip.Gloria Grahame is a surprise here.
Flippen are quite entertaining as a detective and his wife...an amateur sleuth herself...though I'm not sure that makes much sense.No, this film just doesn't work.