The Bigamist

Lupino basically pulls a Val Lewton, taking a plot that looks scandalous and instead turning it into a an empathetic emotional drama. There are moments when it shines. But time and some questionable script choices robs it of more tension than it can spare, and even at 80 minutes it crawls.

Good on you, Ida Lupino! I wanna see the sequel where Lupino and Fontaine are engaged in a fiery romantic relationship, leaving all traces of men behind.

Really surprised by this one. Excellent drama and interesting story, featuring stars of the day.

A graceful treatment of a touchy subject. The human element is strong and the underlying commentary compassionate, even towards the bigamist himself. However mature this is as a concept for the times, the extent of the innocence attributed to his character makes the story seem naive. Besides giving more complexity to the protagonist, the film would have benefited from more running time to better establish the relations between him and his women. Given the production value, well done.

Interesting take on a sensitive topic. The cast is very good, although I'm not sure all the characters were completely fleshed out, and the flashback-y middle of the movie dragged in a few parts. Surprising that the story seems so sympathetic toward the titular character.

Due respect must go to Lupino for tackling a scandalous subject for the time, especially as Hollywood’s first female director of any prominence, and without resorting to some kind of exploitative sensationalism. A subtler title would have allowed for some tension in the first act, and the subsequent narrated flashback structure is hardly elegant, but the dependable cast make certain that the drama is sufficiently engaging.

Lupino always courageously tackled topics that her contemporaries cringed away from, but in messing with the U.S's dearly held "family values", The Bigamist may be her boldest film. It juggles three empathetic characters, including two women whose predicament casts them as mutual antagonists, and a bigamist anti-hero. It's a tragedy before being a melodrama, and as a melodrama it is almost Sirk-esque, with emotional insight underlying the simplistic dialogue.

I have a lot of good will toward this film, but I just can't get over the way the two female leads seem to be mere accoutrements to O'Brien's Harry Graham. Eve, in particular, lacks as a character, which makes the whole thing feel like it's stumbling toward its end.

Quite charming. I really enjoyed Ida Lupino's hand in this.

the scarlet letter in the film poster should be the "B" as in B movie....dull and irrelevant and a waste of a great cast...

A gem. Even with an ending that can be argued to be moralising, and the main character Eve Graham (Fontaine) being not as fleshed out as the other two, this manages to brave a very controversial subject and wonderfully portrays it an extremely heartfelt way, far from a sordid taboo(the title let alone the subject would have probably been too blunt for comfort back on its release for the censors) but used to depict the sad consequences that can take place in love. If you can find it, see it.

Standard 50's melodrama. There is nothing memorable about it or relevant for film goers today.

Nice direction and performances--particularly by Lupino, O'Brien and Gwenn--but the whole thing is pretty forgettable and slow. The scenes on the Hollywood bus are particularly interesting.

Near perfect movie, with pitch perfect tone.