Phantom Lady (USA, 1944) 87 min B&W DIR: Robert Siodmak. PROD: Joan Harrison. SCR: Bernard C. Schoenfeld, based on the novel by Cornell Woolrich. MUSIC: Hans J. Salter. DOP: Woody Bredell. CAST: Ella Raines, Franchot Tone, Alan Curtis, Aurora Miranda, Thomas Gomez, Fay Helm, Elisha Cook Jr. (Universal)
An A-1 example of style transcending substance, this adaptation of Cornell Woolrich’s novel finds businessman Scott Henderson (Alan Curtis) guilty of his wife’s murder. Throughout his testimony he sticks to his flimsy alibi that during the time, he was out at a show with a woman wearing a strange hat, no questions asked, no names given. No one has any recollection of the woman in that fateful night… or do they? While he awaits execution, his “Girl Friday”, Carol “Kansas” Richman (the ravishing, underrated Ella Raines) sets out to investigate.
Woolrich’s themes of obsession and isolation are hard to transcribe to the screen. A conventional plot-driven narrative is ignored as Henderson’s fate is governed by a string of circumstances – which can only be as irrational as real life. “Kansas” gets assistance from the now-retired detective Burgess (Thomas Gomez) who participated in the man’s arrest. He now believes his innocence, because the only person who would still stick to a story like that is either a fool or telling the truth! On paper, the double-dealings that soon evolve would seem rather contrived, but in the hands of Robert Siodmak and cinematographer Woody Bredell, this material is adapted to a visual nightmare.
Siodmak, one of many noir directors to begin their careers in the days of German cinema before fleeing to America after the rise of Hitler, has graced many pictures with his superb command of the visual medium (The Killers, The Spiral Staircase). Some ambitious writer once penned that Phantom Lady is “the Citizen Kane of B-movies”, and I’m not sure that’s wrong. As “Kansas” begins her journey into the creatures of the night, the look changes from monochromatic greys to strong contrasts of black and white. Hard key lighting, long shadows, and bending silhouettes of offscreen objects turn this film into a purely subjective nightmare. Perhaps the most striking scene is the famous moment where she catches the eye of the drummer at the musical revue her boss and the phantom lady attended. Because the drummer is played by noir’s perennial fall guy, Elisha Cook Jr., you know she is just using him to get some information. He invites “Kansas” to an after-hours jazz jam, in which he does a stunning drum solo. The extreme close-ups of Cook’s face are illuminated with a hard key, and he is revealed as something other than human- more animal than man. Yet, this is one of many unforgettable moments: the wet streets, high contrasts, and the element of danger at every corner turn this film into a living nightmare. This is also a superb showcase for the stunning Ella Raines, whose too-short career included other 40s noirs, The Web, Brute Force, Impact, and two more with Siodmak: The Suspect and Uncle Harry.
