Screen Directors Playhouse: Claire (1956)
** (out of 4)
A doctor (George Montgomery) marries his second wife (Angela Lansbury) who just happens to have witness his first wife drown to death. Once the two are married and living in the first wives old house the new wife begins to think that the cat Claire hates her and wants her out of the way. This is a rather strange short as it seems like a weak version of a Poe story or at least a reject from the Alfred Hitchcock series. I'm sure there's a good story to be found somewhere but sadly none of it is brought to life and in the end we're pretty much left with a bland story without too much energy. It appears both Lansbury and Montgomery were sleepwalking as neither one breathes any life into the film. It really did appear as if both actors were just in a little rehearsal as it's hard to see that either one of them are interested in what's going on. Lansbury really hurts the film because her character is suffering some psychological problems and the actress just can't get this out. Another problem is that the entire thing just looks incredibly cheap and it appears as if no one involved knew what type of movie they were wanting to make. Just take a look at the final sequence and the bit with the cat and the outcome. The scene is so poorly shot and edited that you can't help but feel what impact might have been there is just lost.
** (out of 4)
A doctor (George Montgomery) marries his second wife (Angela Lansbury) who just happens to have witness his first wife drown to death. Once the two are married and living in the first wives old house the new wife begins to think that the cat Claire hates her and wants her out of the way. This is a rather strange short as it seems like a weak version of a Poe story or at least a reject from the Alfred Hitchcock series. I'm sure there's a good story to be found somewhere but sadly none of it is brought to life and in the end we're pretty much left with a bland story without too much energy. It appears both Lansbury and Montgomery were sleepwalking as neither one breathes any life into the film. It really did appear as if both actors were just in a little rehearsal as it's hard to see that either one of them are interested in what's going on. Lansbury really hurts the film because her character is suffering some psychological problems and the actress just can't get this out. Another problem is that the entire thing just looks incredibly cheap and it appears as if no one involved knew what type of movie they were wanting to make. Just take a look at the final sequence and the bit with the cat and the outcome. The scene is so poorly shot and edited that you can't help but feel what impact might have been there is just lost.