Synopsis:
In early twentieth century England, overworked composer George Harvey Bone (Laird Cregar, I Wake Up Screaming) is distraught over a sudden onset of severe blackouts. After an old merchant is brutally murdered by an unknown assailant, Bone wonders if he killed the man during one of his dizzy spells.
Reaction & Thoughts:
“All my life I’ve had black little moods”
Few things are more interesting and exciting than a movie that defies expectations. This is a fascinating psychological thriller, if only because of its unusual choices: Hangover Square is about a vicious killer who doesn’t want to kill, consequently, the murderer ends up being the most sympathetic character in the entire film.
Directed by John Brahm (Guest in the House) from a script by Barré Lyndon (Cecil B. DeMille’s The Greatest Show on Earth) based on the 1941 novel by Patrick Hamilton (the mystery writer behind such stage hits as Gaslight and Rope). Hangover Square confounds viewers with its unorthodox handling of thriller tropes.
Hangover Square opens with a long, uninterrupted crane shot that reveals the identity of the killer. This short but elaborate sequence quickly announces that the film is not your run-of-the-mill thriller. In this case, the bulk of suspense comes from the fact that the audience is always one step ahead of the characters — we worry about the characters because they don’t know they are in imminent danger.
There are a few other things that immediately stand out from the movie. First, Laird Cregar’s performance (his last). The role literally killed him. Thinking, perhaps incorrectly, that the starring role called for a handsome leading man, Cregar adopted a crash diet to lose weight. The decision proved to be fatal for the fine actor.
I must say that if Cregar expected to look better after losing weight, well, I don’t think it worked at all — he looks sickly. Worse than that, the actor’s sudden weight loss caused a fatal heart attack (the movie was released posthumously). There must be some consolation in knowing that Cregar ended his career with a bang. He’s superb in a complex role that has more than a few things in common with Dr. Jekyll (and Mr. Hyde).
The other thing that stands out is Bernard Herrmann’s (The Day the Earth Stood Still) superb music score. It’s one of the composer’s most ambitious scores. Because this is the story of a brilliant composer, Herrmann needed not only to write a conventional music score, but also come up with music one could believe was written by a genius. The outcome isn’t entirely unexpected — Herrmann pulls it off marvelously!
Hangover Square ends with a grand concerto (aka “Concerto Macabre“), and this stunning composition is one of Herrmann’s finest efforts (the symphony influenced Stephen Sondheim’s musical Sweeney Todd). Herrmann’s score also offers viewers a hint of things to come. Close your eyes and listen carefully, and you’ll notice similarities between this score and the ones Herrmann wrote for Alfred Hitchcock.
Conclusions & Final Thoughts:
Hangover Square will undoubtedly appeal to people looking for an offbeat murder-mystery. Additionally, character actor Laird Cregar is fantastic, and Bernard Herrmann’s powerful music score will get stuck in your head. Also starring Linda Darnell (A Letter to Three Wives) as a heartless cabaret singer and George Sanders (All About Eve) as a sympathetic physician. Highly recommended! B&W, 78 minutes, Not Rated.
This is my contribution to The Bernard Herrmann Blogathon, hosted by The Classic Movie Muse.
Pingback: Treats All Around: The Bernard Herrmann Blogathon Begins!! – The Classic Movie Muse·
I want to see this. I checked, but it’s not on any of my streaming services. I love Laird Cregar. I’ve always thought of him as a fabulous character actor. For me, that’s the ultimate compliment for an actor.
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Cregar is fabulous, so I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!
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Oh man this is such a great film. I did a little review on it myself sometime ago. The tragic real story of Laird Cregar really broke my heart. And then throw the beautiful Linda Darnell who’s tragic end is also a gut punch.
Laird is equally theatrical and a little hammy in the brilliant The Lodger (1944) if you haven’t seen it.
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Agreed. The Lodger (1944) is great! Ah, I forgot about Darnell’s tragic death. Plus George Sanders eventually committed suicide. Very sad indeed.
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Oh yes the George Sanders thing was tragic too but brave to go out on your own terms I guess. What a body of great work he left behind.
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George Sanders was a most distinguished presence. I first saw him in Village Of The Damned. It’s his last film, Psychomania, that made a most particularly great impression. With all the tragedies that actors and actresses have suffered over time, we can certainly be grateful for having all their wonderfully talented work to positively remember them for.
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Yes Psychomania! What a brilliant fun film that is. I stumbled in drunk one night and rewound the VHS where I had recorded Alex Cox’s Moviedrome series on the BBC. Each week a new cult film. Goodness me, Psychomania was it bonkos and pure fun. Every now and then I have to watch the trailer on YT. It’s the perfect trailer. Manic mania. 🙂
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I have my mother to thank for my seeing Psychomania when she decided to buy it for me on VHS. Being a fan of the British side of the horror and sci-fi genres from the 70s, it resonated with me as a horror film with a message and especially by understanding Sanders’ obvious role as Shadwell. And for his last film, it’s more impacting for me as is Brainstorm for Natalie Wood’s last film.
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Nice story. I thought Psychomania was going to be a bottom-of-the-barrel biker movie, but was pleasantly surprised that it was more, much more than that!
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Sanders was always great! I think The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945) was my intro to Sanders. Loved him in Samson and Delilah (1949), All About Ever (1950), and, yes, Village Of The Damned!
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Hangover Square has so many excellent components that it keeps me off balance, and always keeps me coming back for more. Today being Hallowe’en is the perfect day to listen to Concerto Macabre.
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Yes! I’m planning to play Concerto Macabre while I give candy away. 🙂
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Whoa – I didn’t realize that about Laird Cregar. His sudden death is a real shame.
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He was only 31 years old… 😦
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That’s so sad.
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What a powerhouse of a film and score to match! I love the fact that Herrmann got to write a score where the music becomes part of the story.
You’re right, Cregar is outstanding and the tragedy surrounding the whole cast makes the film even more poignant.
Thanks so much for contributing this fine review to my blogathon, Eric!! 🙂
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Thanks for the Blogathon! As always, you did a great job hosting it!
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Wow. 😀 I’d never heard of this film, but it sounds so intriguing – from the opening crane shot (which looks amazing, I’m sure!) to the shocking behind-the-scenes tragedy of poor Mr. Cregar (an actor with whom I’m totally unfamiliar).
And I can definitely hear the Sweeney Todd influence in this concerto! 😀 I love theatre, especially Sondheim – so I really appreciate this bit of trivia. 🙂
Thanks for introducing me to this film (and for reading and commenting on my post, too)! 🙂
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I’m a theatrephile too, and I was delighted to find out that Herrmann inspired such a legendary Broadway production! 🙂
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Sadly because covid I cant do my hobby 😦
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I want to travel too. Maybe next year!
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Yeah thats why I wrote my latests blogpost I think you would enjoy it a lot 😀
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BTW, no place for replies? I would love to write my reaction to your wonderful posts.
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I set the setting on that after 14 days it will be turned off because of the shady link spammers I can turn it on for you
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Yes!
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can you now comment?
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Great review for a fabulous and dark movie. Cregar’s shadow and Herrmann’s score are undoubtibly the best aspects, but the cinematography of LaShelle (who won his first Oscar with “Laura” the same year) is another. It drags us into the darkness of this mad musician.
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Merci beaucoup! By the way, I love your profile picture. I quite liked The Keeper and have been waiting impatiently for a Blu-ray release of the uncut version.
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Oh merci 😀
I’m fond of Michael Mann’s work and “the Keep” is probably the most mysterious movie he made. But it’s a film he doesn’t like very much. I hope one day it will reborn on screen or on br.
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