(TV Series)

(1952)

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8/10
Very hard to believe but enjoyable.
planktonrules28 May 2016
In this installment of "Four Star Playhouse", Charles Boyer stars as Paul--a famous director of plays. When the show begins, Paul is leaving a poker game and wants to find a cab home. After all, although he is fond of walking, it's raining outside. However, on the way out he notices a young woman about to jump off a bridge! Paul is a very decent man and decides to help Amy. However, what happens next is a bit strange and it involves counterfeit stage money as well as a job with the acting troop.

As usual, Boyer is wonderful in his role. He seems very natural and you like the guy he plays. The story is very interesting and the twist also very interesting. Believable? Not for a second...but very enjoyable. And what's not to believe? Well, I'd rather not say as it would spoil the episode.
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7/10
Jealous and selfish and spoiled rotten but not vicious.
mark.waltz4 February 2021
Warning: Spoilers
At least actress Hillary Brooke has one decent quality, slipping stage money in replacement of actual cash into Boyer's hand after a card game. While out on the street, Boyer comes across the suicidal Marcia Henderson and arranges to pay for a hotel for her for the night and when she disappears, he believes that she may have committed suicide, especially after he learns the truth about the money that he gave to the hotel staff. But now, Boyer feels responsible for Henderson, and the jealous Brooke gains some conscience when she learns what her actions might have led to.

A decent story and a nice moral lesson are aided by the presence of some veteran character actors, among them Florence Bates, Cecil Cunningham and Percy Helton. This episode of the Four Star Playhouse has some good moments, but the main storyline is over far too soon and develops into another one that there really isn't time to deal with considering the half hour running time. Still, it's nice to see some humanity in the theater although the storyline involving Henderson has a bit too much of Eve Harrington insinuated with plot twists.
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Fate moves its huge hand
lor_16 February 2024
The writing team of Gwen and John Bagni came up with a wonderful storyline in "Backstage", a drama that uses the backdrop of the theatre to concoct a winning and original tale, with Charles Boyer super in the main role.

It's built around a familiar, if apocryphal, notion that if one save's someone's life then you're responsible for them from then on. Boyer is an actor-director with a theatre company on tour, and on a walk home one rainy night saves gamin Marcia Henderson from committing suicide by jumping into the river.

Several ingenious plot twists, revolving around the central theatrical premise lead suspensefully to a charming and surprisingly upbeat ending. Film director Robert Florey adds some atmospheric touches, and Hillary Brooke is quite fine as the nominal (but not really) "bad guy" in the story, as an actress with a crush on Chuck.
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