Although the story is quite simple and of predictable consequences, I just couldn't take my eyes off the screen. I'm always in awe of those movies that don't waste a single scene.
Artistically exciting and with a brutal opening sequence, "The Lady Gambles" is a short thriller with a lot going on in a woman's life, as the protagonist herself says, "with nothing better to do".
As for the reasons for her addiction, there are no assertions. She loves her husband, but their marriage has reached such a stagnation point that the chance to do anything that will take her out of her lonely normalcy overwhelms her.
Cards, dice, booze, bums and a very seductive mobster, who could resist? I know I couldn't...
Added to this is a sneakily cruel older sister, who never misses a chance to make the protagonist feel guilty about her mediocre life.
These family plots, where one emotionally manipulates the other, are almost always infallible in old movies. I just missed a little more depth in the backstory between the protagonist and her sister. More scenes between the two and perhaps a cathartic clash, just to see more of such a talented cast under such capable direction.
Artistically exciting and with a brutal opening sequence, "The Lady Gambles" is a short thriller with a lot going on in a woman's life, as the protagonist herself says, "with nothing better to do".
As for the reasons for her addiction, there are no assertions. She loves her husband, but their marriage has reached such a stagnation point that the chance to do anything that will take her out of her lonely normalcy overwhelms her.
Cards, dice, booze, bums and a very seductive mobster, who could resist? I know I couldn't...
Added to this is a sneakily cruel older sister, who never misses a chance to make the protagonist feel guilty about her mediocre life.
These family plots, where one emotionally manipulates the other, are almost always infallible in old movies. I just missed a little more depth in the backstory between the protagonist and her sister. More scenes between the two and perhaps a cathartic clash, just to see more of such a talented cast under such capable direction.