Thus although I have spoiler warnings, let me say upfront, I SPOIL this film completely. Because what you see is not the important part. There is very little action here. The actual present day part of the film takes place in just a few rooms of a mansion. Nancy (Laraine Day) is preparing to marry John Willis (Gene Raymond), member of a prominent family. Nancy is charming and obviously well liked by John's family and friends, but some family members mutter their suspicions about this woman of average means who has so quickly captured John's heart.
Dr. Harry Blair (Brian Aherne) is waiting for John in his library. He claims to have been married to Nancy for five years and warns him she will ruin his life. John at first is ready to throw him out, but Blair knows Nancy's birthday when asked, and the rest of the movie is the layered flashback that you've heard about, as Nancy's story is told first from Blair's viewpoint, then from that of a prior suitor who came to visit Blair, an artist Norman Clyde (Robert Mitchum...no, seriously!) ,and then there is even Nancy's story of childhood trauma from her viewpoint as told to Norman. This is all done very well and is not the least bit confusing, but it commands your attention.
The flashback is the tale of Nancy, a girl whose father died when she was a child, forcing her mother to take work as a housekeeper in a wealthy household. Nancy felt only one person in the family treated her as an equal - the same-aged daughter of the family who gives her a locket as a token of affection. The little girl's elitist mother demands the locket back. Then the locket goes missing and the mother accuses and shakes Nancy until she falsely confesses she stole the locket. Then she and her mother are ordered out of the house and her mom is out of a job.
Nancy's story as an adult is a sad tale of descent into kleptomania and compulsive lying, leaving a trail of suicide and maybe even murder in her wake. Norman had painted a picture of Nancy as Cassandra, with the eyes blank before he saw her for what she was. Cassandra was a mythological figure cursed by the Gods to utter true prophecies but not to be believed. Nancy seems to be the reverse - she can tell no truths, not even to herself, yet all believe her.
In the end, John does just as Blair did when Norman came to him with the truth - he believes Nancy over Blair. They continue with the preparation for the wedding, and then something happens that causes Nancy to have a psychotic break, to have to face the truth of what she has done and how she has gotten here. You see, the person Nancy is marrying is the son of the woman who falsely accused her of theft as a child.
There are so many questions here. I'll just ask a few. Nancy seems to believe the lies she is telling. Does she? How did she wind up going down the aisle with the son of the family that started her on the road to insanity? Did she plan it all along or did fate or her subconscious lead her to this point, back to square one? Isn't it interesting that we never actually see her steal or hide the jewels? All we have is the undeniable truth of her actions. Oh, and one more, the music box that falls open in the film is playing the same tune as was played in "The Bad Seed" ten years later. Is that a coincidence?
This is a great psychological noir, probably the best part Laraine Day ever had after a decade of playing the chipper girlfriend to virtuous characters, and the end of Robert Mitchum's days as a supporting player at RKO. I highly recommend it.
Dr. Harry Blair (Brian Aherne) is waiting for John in his library. He claims to have been married to Nancy for five years and warns him she will ruin his life. John at first is ready to throw him out, but Blair knows Nancy's birthday when asked, and the rest of the movie is the layered flashback that you've heard about, as Nancy's story is told first from Blair's viewpoint, then from that of a prior suitor who came to visit Blair, an artist Norman Clyde (Robert Mitchum...no, seriously!) ,and then there is even Nancy's story of childhood trauma from her viewpoint as told to Norman. This is all done very well and is not the least bit confusing, but it commands your attention.
The flashback is the tale of Nancy, a girl whose father died when she was a child, forcing her mother to take work as a housekeeper in a wealthy household. Nancy felt only one person in the family treated her as an equal - the same-aged daughter of the family who gives her a locket as a token of affection. The little girl's elitist mother demands the locket back. Then the locket goes missing and the mother accuses and shakes Nancy until she falsely confesses she stole the locket. Then she and her mother are ordered out of the house and her mom is out of a job.
Nancy's story as an adult is a sad tale of descent into kleptomania and compulsive lying, leaving a trail of suicide and maybe even murder in her wake. Norman had painted a picture of Nancy as Cassandra, with the eyes blank before he saw her for what she was. Cassandra was a mythological figure cursed by the Gods to utter true prophecies but not to be believed. Nancy seems to be the reverse - she can tell no truths, not even to herself, yet all believe her.
In the end, John does just as Blair did when Norman came to him with the truth - he believes Nancy over Blair. They continue with the preparation for the wedding, and then something happens that causes Nancy to have a psychotic break, to have to face the truth of what she has done and how she has gotten here. You see, the person Nancy is marrying is the son of the woman who falsely accused her of theft as a child.
There are so many questions here. I'll just ask a few. Nancy seems to believe the lies she is telling. Does she? How did she wind up going down the aisle with the son of the family that started her on the road to insanity? Did she plan it all along or did fate or her subconscious lead her to this point, back to square one? Isn't it interesting that we never actually see her steal or hide the jewels? All we have is the undeniable truth of her actions. Oh, and one more, the music box that falls open in the film is playing the same tune as was played in "The Bad Seed" ten years later. Is that a coincidence?
This is a great psychological noir, probably the best part Laraine Day ever had after a decade of playing the chipper girlfriend to virtuous characters, and the end of Robert Mitchum's days as a supporting player at RKO. I highly recommend it.