Home | Movies By Year | Movies from 1946
Shadow of a Woman
Buy Shadow of a Woman now from AmazonFirst, read the Wikipedia article. Then, scroll down to see what other TopShelfReviews readers thought about the movie. And once you've experienced the movie, tell everyone what you thought about it.
Wikipedia article
'Shadow of a Woman' is a 1946 American drama film noir directed by Joseph Santley, featuring Helmut Dantine and Andrea King. The film is based on the novel 'He Fell Down Dead' written by Virginia Perdue..
Plot
A woman (Andrea King) on the verge of a breakdown marries a fraudulent medical doctor (Helmut Dantine) she hardly knows, putting her in the path of fear and danger. She suspects her husband is starving his young son from a previous marriage.
Cast
* Helmut Dantine as Dr. Eric Ryder
* Andrea King as Brooke Gifford Ryder
* William Prince as David G. MacKellar, Louise's Lawyer
* John Alvin as Carl. Emma's son
* Becky Brown as Genevieve Calvin
* Richard Erdman as Joe, Counterman at Owl Lunch
* Peggy Knudsen as Louise Ryder, Eric's Ex
* Don McGuire as Johnnie, MacKellar's Photographer
* Lisa Golm as Emma, Eric's Sister
* Larry Geiger as Philip Ryder, Eric's Son
* Monte Blue as Mike, Police Lieutenant
* J. Scott Smart as Timothy Freeman
* Leah Baird as Mrs. Calvin, Genevieve's Mother
* Lottie Williams as Sarah the Calvin Maid
* Paul Stanton as Dr. Nelson Norris
Reception
Film critic Dennis Schwartz panned the film, writing, "A failure in every possible way. Joseph Santley flatly directs this film noir adapted from Virginia Perdue's novel 'He Fell Down Dead.' The script by writers C. Graham Baker and Whitman Chambers was lacking credibility. The acting was hammy and unconvincing. The film offered hardly any entertainment value and the irrelevant story was more of a turn off than anything else. On top of all that, there were serious gaffes in the plotline that filled the story with holes the size of craters. This postwar B-film melodrama reunites 'Hotel Berlin' co-stars Helmut Dantine and Andrea King. 'Shadow of a Woman' might be remembered by film buffs only because it played in an early restaurant scene "How Little We Know", the Hoagy Carmichael song that Lauren Bacall sang in 'To Have and Have Not.'"[http://homepages.sover.net/~ozus/shadowofawoman.htm Schwartz, Dennis]. 'Ozus' World Movie Reviews', film review, August 25, 2002. Last accessed: February 21, 2011.
'TV Guide' wrote about the screenplay, writing, "A slightly unrealistic story line hinders this drama that deals with a bride's terror."[http://movies.tvguide.com/shadow-woman/117368 'TV Guide'], film review. Last accessed: February 21, 2011.
Box office
According to Warner Bros figures the film earned $490,000 domestically and $242,000 foreign.References
Buy Shadow of a Woman now from Amazon
<-- Return to movies from 1946