Caught

Calling this noir is a big stretch, it's really pure melodrama. But it's pretty good melodrama. Because it's Ophuls, the most outstanding element is the cinematography. Bel Geddes gives a passable performance, Mason is fine as well. The real star is Ryan, who once again shows a profound ability to make a horribly villainous character come off as more than a cartoon. The film expresses a Sirk-like social critique and has a quasi-feminist leaning to it. The ending has quite a subversive edge.

A bit too tidy in the wrap up of the plot, perhaps, and somewhat reductive in its psychology. The performances are good but Bel Geddes is better at playing naïve than in the more dramatic scenes towards the end. The camera moves are interesting; some of Ophül's stylistic choices make a lot of sense (the dance), others come off as unmotivated (conversation across a desk). A very decent drama.

Well shot but the real Ophuls trademark is the film's tone and subject matter, rich lady love conflicts and social constraints. He's done it better, but that doesn't mean it's not well done here. Robert Ryan is once again pretty fantastic and the rest of the cast, while not as great, does a good job of keeping things interesting. It's a strong story with a pretty fresh narrative structure that provides a few surprises, including the ending. Not great but very solid all around.

An absorbing gothic melodrama transformed by the Ophuls touch and the elegant yet brooding cinematography of Lee Garmes. If you like movies about naive brides and psycho husbands, this is the movie for you. James Mason is very good as the noble young doctor, Barbara Bel Geddes gives a performance of great emotional range, and creepy Robert Ryan--playing a character very much like Howard Hughes--is extra creepy here.

In all likelihood, the darkest and most twisted chick picture this side of _What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?_ Expertly acted, written, and directed by all involved. And if you weren't this movie will have you thanking God you weren't a young woman in the 1940s

In "Caught", Ophüls balances melodrama with maturity and dark subject matter with a deftness that would have eluded any of his contemporaries other than Douglas Sirk. However theatrical, and lukewarm in the acting department, the film's persuasiveness in conveying the complexity of human relationships is undeniable.

An inexperienced girl becomes involved with a rich man and winds up getting an education. Characters are not fully rounded but do show some complexity, with dialogue and performances that are approaching a naturalism not much seen up to that time. Ophüls uses the camera to contrast the dynamic nature of genuine care work with the static nature of power. Certainly the first movie I ever saw where the sudden miraculous happy ending is brought about by the death of the protagonist’s premature baby.

this was a far fetched and melodramatic story to the core, yet i enjoyed the performances of the three love triangle leads. ryan is quite effective, cardiac episodes included, as the controlling milliionaire ohlrig, bel geddes is terrific as the naive and kind hearted leonora and mason, as doctor quinada. i also loved the art direction, in particular the long island estate. ophuls used several shots in the cold, cavernous home, which will always stick with me, with one character in the foreg

Max Ophüls really brings the darker touches here. Seeing how he applies his skills for something a lot more disturbing sure was a sight. Almost makes me angry he didn't do it more often, because his films had a tendency to be too romantic for my tastes. Both Barbara Bel Geddes & Robert Ryan were quite amazing in their miserable marriage, while James Mason, for his American debut, brings a sense of decency to the mental hell the other two live in. Let's just say I was Caught (1949) in the drama.

The contents of the drama are much more interesting than the story itself. Ryan is the best out of the three main characters, and the camerawork quite impressive.

They built this film around the premise that women's success is determined by how rich she marries. The ending alone makes this film worth watching, lots of drama here.

85.50

Simmering noir/drama is perhaps a little too slow-burn for its own good, and Bel Geddes is never really convincing as either the naïve ingénue or hardened survivor, but Ophuls inventive staging (the pool table scene stands out) and a brilliantly cold-blooded turn by Ryan as the vengeful husband make the film worthy. A pity Mason is squandered in a dull part.

Atmospheric psychological drama that also makes a comment on the social mores of he time.

More a class-conscious melodrama than a true noir, it's emotionally engaging on that level. Ryan can play cruel bastards in his sleep and boy does he ever here, and Ophuls is inspired in the way he moves his camera.

Initially offers more possibilities for social inquiry than its descent into dialectics is able to achieve. But as always Ophüls is a great stylist, and I wish there were adult dramas like this nowadays.

I wish there were more villains like Robert Ryan...

watched: 2012, 2022