I've never actually seen it either, but I'm not embarrassed to admit it. It's been hard to see, particularly in a decent form. And one of the reasons, apparently, is that Criterion has been sitting on the title for who-knows-how-long. Meaning no one else could bring it out on home video in the meantime. I just hope it doesn't turn out to be a huge disappointment.
Saw Shadow on the Wall (1950) on TCM the other day.Zachary Scott plays a man wrongfully convicted of killing his wife; the real killer was his sister-in-law (Ann Sothern). Scott's little daughter (nice performance by child actress Gigi Perreau) saw the killing, but is too shell-shocked to recall or speak about it. After Scott is sent to prison, Pereau is sent to an orphanage, where the psychologist (Nancy Davis, later First Lady Nancy Reagan) tries to make the child recall the traumatizing event, believing that will cure the child, and find the real killer. But when Sothern finds out what Davis is up to, she determines to do whatever it takes to stop the psychologist from doing her work with the child before she is successful in helping the child recall the event.
rating?
According to what we're told at the start of the film (twice, in fact), the action in The Lady in the Lake begins "three days before Chirstmas." That would mean the 22nd, tomorrow, would be a most opportune time to revisit the title, should any on this board care to do so. Just saying.
And btw, de Carlo leaves Lancaster cuz he is hurting and can't flee, she isn't interested in being noble and helping him if she isn't gonna be able to get away with the money. But if he had been able to get away cleanly and unharmed, you so sure she wouldn't have stayed with him?
Also, RE: Double Indemnity: is Keyes's love a consolation for Neff? He had a good life and fucked it up for money and a woman and got neither. If anything, the fact that Keyes expresses his love just accentuates what a good life Neff had before he met Phyllis: he had a good job, was successful at it, good friends, and screwed it all and got nuthin for it. I don't think Keyes reaffirming his friendship mitigates that; it may even make it worse, showing that he threw away a good life for nothing.
Savant tips us to a nice link: http://www.cinephiliabeyond.org/billy-wilder-film-noir/