Rosalind Russell is wonderful playing a demure, somewhat repressed secretary, working for her crotchety old auntie in a country estate, who suspects the charming Irish houseboy of being a killer; worse still, her odd attraction to the man stops her from alerting the police. Emlyn Williams' successful stage production becomes first-rate dramatic film, with careful attention to character motivation and dialogue (and gleefully nasty, sordid little details besides). Unfortunately, it all unravels in the final reel, which does allow Oscar-nominated Robert Montgomery a chance to pull out the stops, though at the expense of credibility. Beautiful production, terrific supporting performance from May Witty. Followed in 1964 by a critically-drubbed remake. **1/2 from ****
Review of Night Must Fall
