I can't imagine how this got greenlit back in 1945. It's almost impossible to imagine a film like this being made back then - the era where women weren't allowed to have their dresses crease around their buttocks and "show the shape of their behinds" (as Carl Reiner put it on commentary for the Dick Van Dyke show).
Seen sixty (!) years later, it still holds up amazingly well. A great deal of films from the 1940s and '50s seem outdated today, but the issue of alcoholism will probably never die... and as long as it exists, this movie will remain prescient.
Ray Milland delivers a powerful performance as Don Birnem, a recovering alcoholic whose girlfriend Helen (Jane Wyman) and brother Wick (Phillip Terry) have planned a weekend getaway to the country, to take his mind off the booze.
Don makes up an excuse not to go - he says he wants to be alone. His brother is suspicious of his decision, but nevertheless leaves without him. After the two leave, Don pulls a bottle of alcohol through his window, which was tied to a string by the window sill, hidden from view outside the apartment.
Don makes his daily visit to the bar where Nat (Da Silva) the Bartender serves his drinks. The more he drinks, the more Don spirals downwards into a hellish nightmare, complete with flashbacks to his past where he is reminded of the destructive patterns of his addiction.
I bought this movie a few months ago out of curiosity, mainly because I saw it had been directed by Billy Wilder. Wilder is most commonly known for his comedies like "The Apartment" and "Some Like It Hot," but here he shows he has a great eye for drama.
This is a superb film on all levels. The themes are gripping and important, the acting is totally uncompromising and the direction is top notch. I'd say it's one of the best and most underrated films of the 1940s; I had personally never heard of it before... I'm glad I stumbled across it.
Seen sixty (!) years later, it still holds up amazingly well. A great deal of films from the 1940s and '50s seem outdated today, but the issue of alcoholism will probably never die... and as long as it exists, this movie will remain prescient.
Ray Milland delivers a powerful performance as Don Birnem, a recovering alcoholic whose girlfriend Helen (Jane Wyman) and brother Wick (Phillip Terry) have planned a weekend getaway to the country, to take his mind off the booze.
Don makes up an excuse not to go - he says he wants to be alone. His brother is suspicious of his decision, but nevertheless leaves without him. After the two leave, Don pulls a bottle of alcohol through his window, which was tied to a string by the window sill, hidden from view outside the apartment.
Don makes his daily visit to the bar where Nat (Da Silva) the Bartender serves his drinks. The more he drinks, the more Don spirals downwards into a hellish nightmare, complete with flashbacks to his past where he is reminded of the destructive patterns of his addiction.
I bought this movie a few months ago out of curiosity, mainly because I saw it had been directed by Billy Wilder. Wilder is most commonly known for his comedies like "The Apartment" and "Some Like It Hot," but here he shows he has a great eye for drama.
This is a superb film on all levels. The themes are gripping and important, the acting is totally uncompromising and the direction is top notch. I'd say it's one of the best and most underrated films of the 1940s; I had personally never heard of it before... I'm glad I stumbled across it.