Stan Grayson wakes from one nightmare world and into another, a purgatory of guilt and suspicion that pierces like an icepick at the back of his brain. This mesmerizing tale of skewed perceptions relies on the obvious trope of hypnosis, which transforms behavioral psychology into a magical vaudevillian elixir. Though the plot isn’t tenable, the way in which it is photographed by DP Joseph Biroc and acted by a profusely anxious Kevin McCarthy elevate this into an exciting film noir! Maxwell Shane allows the tension to slip as the film slows down in the second act, but his direction is workmanlike and doesn’t impede Edward G. Robinson who chews his scenes as Rene Bressard, the Homicide Detective and Brother-in-Law of our protagonist.
The absurd plot involves the aforementioned Stan Grayson (Kevin McCarthy) and his attempt to discover the waking truth to his murdery nightmare in a mirrored room, where he stabbed some guy and hid his body in a closet, with the help of an unidentified femme fatale. He confides in Rene (Edward G. Robinson), his sister’s husband that happens to be a New Orleans’ Homicide Detective, who doesn’t believe him and thinks he’s overworked by long nightly hours as a musician. But Stan is sure it happened in reality! Coincidence and plotting take the duo and their paramours to an abandoned house during a thunderstorm where the mirrored room is discovered, and the parish po-po keep a sharp eye. Investigation and ruminations ensue, until a Freudian killer spouts his Grand Guignol game plan onto reel-to-reel tape.
The film begins with a dripping candle in complete darkness, the swirling wax becoming the opening credits, then transitions into surreal closeups and mirrored imagery as a man is murdered. It’s a great opening sequence! When the survivor awakes into daylight, he has a bruise on his neck and blood on his arm that matches his dream. DP Joseph Biroc’s work here is exemplary, as the nightmare is composed like a horror film, but when Stan is awake Biroc casts strange long shadows of the ceiling fan across the room, creating a slightly distorted reality. Biroc visually represents the subconscious as it haunts Stan’s waking mind! His use of titled and fractured, split compositions, as well as an extremely high angle shot during a suicide attempt create frisson. The acting is superb as Kevin McCarthy revels in nervous energy and sweating close-ups, as if his angst raddled persona is an extension of Dr. Bennell, trapped in Santa Mira. Note: Invasion of the Body Snatchers was made the same year! Edward G. Robinson is fine, gruff yet likable, a good cop balancing his family’s honor with title 18. In a neat cinematic “flash-forward”, Stan is made to go jump in a lake much like Raymond Shaw in Frankenheimer’s 1962 classic THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE, which also concerns hypnosis and autosuggestion.
Turns out, Stan is an actual murderer and must face the DA’s preliminary hearing, but thankfully involuntary intoxication is an absolute defense. Even when the intoxicant is mesmerism.
Final Grade: (B)