XoWizIama
Excellent adaptation.
Maidexpl
Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast
Arianna Moses
Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.
Joe Stemme
WHEN STRANGERS MARRY (aka Betrayed) 1944. Even most film fans know William Castle only for his gimmicky 50s & 60s horror films like THE TINGLER. But, Castle cut his teeth with several crime and mystery films which often bordered on Noir such as early entries in The Whistler series. STRANGERS is very much a B movie with all the usual shortcuts (montages, stock footage and scenes that can be only seconds in length). It's an efficient enough little thriller with a stellar cast including Kim Hunter, Dean Jagger, Neil Hamilton (as another cop) and the great Robert Mitchum. Much of your enjoyment will depend on how you take the twist towards the end, but, it moves along at a brisk 67 minutes and has enough to pass the time.
bkoganbing
Some important names were getting good exposure for their talents in When Strangers Marry. In front of the camera were Kim Hunter and Robert Mitchum. And behind are director William Castle later famous for horror pictures and Dimitri Tiomkin whose music scores were usually in films with far bigger budgets and vistas than When Strangers Marry.Young Kim Hunter arrives in New York where she's on impulse married salesman Dean Jagger on short acquaintance. He's been delayed in Philadelphia and tells her to go to his flat and set up housekeeping. A helpful friend in Robert Mitchum proves even more helpful when Jagger is delayed for quite some time.Good reason he has been delayed. The opening shows the homicide of a drunk and flannel mouth Dick Elliott who was bragging about the $10,000.00 he had even dropping large bills on the barroom floor. The next thing we see is the hotel maid finding the body and the cops Philly have a lead the suspect has gone to New York.Where Neil Hamilton of the NYPD takes over and Jagger looks good for it to a disbelieving Hunter.Not the greatest of noir films. But When Strangers Marry gave Robert Mitchum his first taste of a genre where at RKO he would get some really great roles and become a mega-star. Hunter and Jagger do well in their parts. For a look at some movie legends developing I would give When Strangers Marry a viewing.
madmonkmcghee
Bargain basement noir with some nice touches, but ultimately disappointing. Director Castle simply tries to be too clever and too faux artistique for such a modest melodrama. It's obvious he'd seen movies like Stranger on the Third Floor ( a moody masterpiece) and thought he'd figured out the recipe. He guessed wrong: the plot is riddled with holes, the lighting and camera-work, essential to make noir movies really work, are shoddy and bleak. The sets look like cardboard cutouts that could collapse at any moment, and some actors fumble their lines or deliver them as if they're John Barrymore. On the plus side Mitchum is his good solid self, but he just doesn't get the chance to be as charming or menacing as he should be. Kim Hunter is engaging, but she only gets to play a lovesick newlywed for the entire movie, even when the story clearly demands a change of mood. Even when she suspects her hubby of being a serial killer, she keeps staring longingly into his eyes and even helps him escape from the police. The things we do for Love! The surprise twist at the end is just too predictable to forgiveall these faults, and the ending.....surely when they're on the rooftop together the killer will.....? Nah, just let the cops nab him posting a letter. That Castle just didn't get it; no wonder he turned to effect-heavy horror flicks. Noir addicts may want to give this one a look, but probably not more than once.
donzilla
This is a Hitchcockian film that reflects well the Film Noir period of Hollywood. Suspense is high, and the audience is kept guessing right to the end about who might be the killer of the drunk good-time Charlie, who innocently invited a stranger in a bar in New York to stay in his apartment for the evening. Don't be fooled by the original name, though.It is being aired on the premium classics channels under the a.k.a. name "Betrayed".
