Lady in the Lake (1947)

Director:

Robert Montgomery

Writers:

Steve Fisher (screenplay)
Raymond Chandler (novel)

Release Date:

14 April 1947 (Sweden)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Mystery | Romance

Tagline:

Another Sizzling Murder Mystery by RAYMOND CHANDLER!

Plot:

The camera shows Phillip Marlowe's view from the first-person in this adaptation of Raymond Chandler's book...

Plot Keywords:

First Person | Publisher | Detective | Fistfight | Femme Fatale

Cast

Robert Montgomery	...	Phillip Marlowe
Audrey Totter	...	Adrienne Fromsett
Lloyd Nolan	...	Lt. DeGarmot
Tom Tully	...	Capt. Kane
Leon Ames	...	Derace Kingsby
Jayne Meadows	...	Mildred Haveland aka Muriel Chess
Dick Simmons	...	Chris Lavery
Morris Ankrum	...	Eugene Grayson
Lila Leeds	...	Receptionist
William Roberts	...	Artist
Kathleen Lockhart	...	Mrs. Grayson
Ellay Mort	...	Chrystal Kingsby

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Canada:PG (video rating) | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (PCA #11803)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

The entire movie plot unfolds from lead Robert Montgomery's point of view, thus creating a rarity in film: the principal character is only seen on-screen as a reflection in mirrors and windows, and as the narrator speaking directly to the audience.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Lieutenant DeGarmot is punched and he hits the floor, we can see the taped marks on the floor used for the actors.

Quotes:

Adrienne Fromsett: We get hundreds of submissions every week.
Philip Marlowe: Why don't you print a few?

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Best of Film Noir (1999) (V)

Soundtrack:

God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen

Hardly a classic, but great fun nonetheless.

If you want a great, serious Philip Marlowe mystery, go check out "The Big Sleep." If you're in a lighter mood, however, this one is well worth watching. The POV is cute and leads to some decent effects, but it's also tremendously goofy sometimes. The dialogue really sells it though. The lessons I learned from this movie were 1) Only men can handle guns. 2) Having four thumbs is bad. 3) Never, ever tell anyone the time. 4) If you try hard enough, you can drink whiskey through your eyes. I'm sure there are hundreds more gnomic sayings, easily applicable to daily life, scattered through it!

Seriously, though, it was a lot of fun to watch, mostly because of the problems with it, and I'd highly recommend it.