''When Strangers Marry'' (rerelease title ''Betrayed'') is a 1944 American suspense film directed by

William Castle William Castle (born William Schloss Jr.; April 24, 1914 – May 31, 1977) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. Orphaned at 11, Castle dropped out of high school at 15 to work in the theater. He came to the attenti ...

and starring

Dean Jagger Dean Jagger (November 7, 1903 – February 5, 1991) was an American film, stage, and television actor who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Henry King's ''Twelve O'Clock High'' (1949). Early life Dean Jeffrie ...

Kim Hunter Kim Hunter (born Janet Cole; November 11, 1922 – September 11, 2002) was an American theatre, film, and television actress. She achieved prominence for portraying Stella Kowalski in the original production of Tennessee Williams' ''A Streetcar ...

and

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Joe'' (1945), followed by his starring in ...

Plot

Millie Baxter, a naïve woman, comes to New York City to meet her salesman husband Paul Baxter, whom she had met only months before, and discovers that he may be a murderer.

Cast

as Paul Baxter *

as Millie Baxter *

as Fred Graham (billed as Bob Mitchum) * Neil Hamilton as Det. Lt. Blake * Rhonda Fleming as Girl on Train

Production

The film was originally known as ''Love from a Stranger'' and then ''I Married a Stranger''. Producers Frank and Maurice King liked '' The Whistler'', a film that director

had made, and borrowed him from

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

for $500 a week. Castle later said that the script originally offered to him was "horrible", the story of a gangster who is killed, rejected from heaven and returned to earth. Castle had previously directed ''Chance of a Lifetime'' from a script that he disliked and did not wish to repeat the experience. He advised the King brothers that they should not make the film, and they agreed. The brothers introduced Castle to writer

Philip Yordan Philip Yordan (April 1, 1914 – March 24, 2003) was an American screenwriter of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s who produced several films. He acted as a front for blacklisted writers although his use of surrogate screenwriters predates the McCar ...

, with whom he devised a new story idea that the Kings liked.Castle p 80-85 Yordan gave the story to aspiring novelist Dennis Cooper, but Yordan later rewrote Cooper's work. Cooper and Yordan were given joint screenwriting credit in the film.McGilligan, Patrick. Backstory 2: Interviews with Screenwriters of the 1940s and 1950s. Berkeley: University of California Press, c1991. http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/ft0z09n7m0/
/ref> With only seven days and a budget of $50,000, filming took place in June 1944. Neil Hamilton and

were borrowed from

Selznick International Selznick International Pictures was a Cinema of the United States, Hollywood motion picture studio created by David O. Selznick in 1935, and dissolved in 1943. In its short existence the independent studio produced two films that received the Acad ...

. Castle persuaded the leads to rehearse without pay and on their own time. ''When Strangers Marry'' marked Rhonda Fleming's film debut in a small role. Fleming later claimed that she had been cast when Castle saw her walking through the backlot and said "you'll do." She also said that she was not paid for her role.

's role is among his earliest, and he had previously appeared in ''

Johnny Doesn't Live Here Anymore ''Johnny Doesn't Live Here Anymore'' is a 1944 American comedy/romance film starring Simone Simon, James Ellison, William Terry, and featuring Robert Mitchum in an early role. Produced by King Brothers Productions, it was co-written by Philip Yo ...

'' for the King brothers. The Kings later claimed that they had Mitchum under a multi-picture contract and tried to enforce it, but he made no further films for them. Castle was slated to next direct '' Dillinger'' for the King brothers but instead accepted an offer to direct the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

play ''Meet a Body''.

Reception

Critical response

'' Variety's'' review was positive: "Only thing wrong with this film is its misleading title. Tag, ''When Strangers Marry'', suggests another of the problem plays of newlyweds when in reality pic is a taught (''sic'') psychological thriller about a murderer and a manhunt full of suspense and excitement." In a contemporary review of the film,

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

wrote: "It isn't as slick as ''

Double Indemnity ''Double Indemnity'' is a 1944 American crime film noir directed by Billy Wilder, co-written by Wilder and Raymond Chandler, and produced by Buddy DeSylva and Joseph Sistrom. The screenplay was based on James M. Cain's 1943 novel of the same ...

'' or as glossy as '' Laura'', but it's better acted and better directed ... than either." Welles would later work with Castle on '' The Lady from Shanghai''.

James Agee James Rufus Agee ( ; November 27, 1909 – May 16, 1955) was an American novelist, journalist, poet, screenwriter and film critic. In the 1940s, writing for ''Time Magazine'', he was one of the most influential film critics in the United States. ...

later wrote: "The story has locomotor ataxia at several of its joints and the intensity of the telling slackens off toward the end; but taking it as a whole, I have seldom, for years now, seen one hour so energetically and sensibly used in a film".

Adaptation

The film was adapted for an episode of ''

Lux Video Theatre ''Lux Video Theatre'' is an American television anthology series that was produced from 1950 until 1957. The series presented both comedy and drama in original teleplays, as well as abridged adaptations of films and plays. Overview The ''Lux Vid ...

'' as "I Married a Stranger."Grant Takes KMPC for New Contract; Cotten Hosts'On Trial' Series Ames, Walter. Los Angeles Times 13 Apr 1956: B6.

References

Note

External links

* * * *
Review
at Variety
Complete film
at

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

{{William Castle 1944 films 1940s psychological thriller films American black-and-white films Film noir Films scored by Dimitri Tiomkin Films directed by William Castle Monogram Pictures films American psychological thriller films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films