Review of The Woman Between

One of my favorite films, this one has an outstanding cast led by Lili Damita and O.P. Heggie. Although Lili is mainly remembered today (if she is remembered at all) as the spouse of Errol Flynn (1935-1942) – she was also married to director Mike Curtiz for a year or so (1925-1926) – she was not only a very beautiful lady but a fine actress, as this film amply demonstrates. Normally any player would meet their match with the charismatic O.P. Heggie, but Lili is the dominant figure here and it is only in the last scenes that Heggie finally gets his chance to seize the reins. The rest of the players – with the exception, of course, of Halliwell Hobbes who makes the most of his brief appearances as the butler – put up a bit of a struggle but Lester Vail as the surly son is easily outclassed, as is Miriam Seegar, Anita Louise and even Blanche Friderici. Nevertheless, all contribute magnificently to the film which moves at such a rapid pace under the inspired direction of Victor Schertzinger and is so attractively photographed (J. Roy Hunt) and set (Max Rée – who also designed the moodily lavish costumes) that it is impossible to take our eyes off the screen for even a few seconds. Based on a seemingly unproduced stage play (well, it was not presented on Broadway, that's for sure!) by Irving Kaye Davis. Available on an excellent Alpha DVD.