Berkeley university professor adjusts (using alcohol) to tragic fire deaths of wife & son.Berkeley university professor adjusts (using alcohol) to tragic fire deaths of wife & son.Berkeley university professor adjusts (using alcohol) to tragic fire deaths of wife & son.
- Katherine Mead
- (as Nancy Davis)
- Anne Ainley
- (as Rosemary De Camp)
- Margaret Andersen
- (as Katharine Warren)
- Undetermined Role
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaOne of two films starring Ray Milland that deals with alcoholism and co-stars a wife of Ronald Reagan. This one features his second wife, Nancy Reagan (credited here as Nancy Davis, her pre-marriage name), and the other, The Lost Weekend (1945), features his first wife, Jane Wyman.
- GoofsShadow of the helicopter on the clock tower in the closing scene.
- Quotes
Katherine Mead: [as Phillip opens the window to jump to his death] Phil, wait! Don't! I'm not going to try to stop you. Please listen to me. I stood exactly like that once. Exactly. Only it was a bridge. And I stood there quite calmly, looking at the lights of the city that no longer existed. And I would have hated anyone who said "don't" or "wait". And then someone did say it, all the way across the Pacific. I heard Dan, telling me not to do it. You could hear Anne and Timmy. That's what they'd say to you. As long as you live, they have a special kind of immortality, Phil. They're alive as long as you're around. Let them live, Phil. Let them live!
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Story (1951)
My introduction to the screenplay writing skills of Karl Tunberg came after seeing "Ben Hur". When I found that 'Night Into Morning' was his original story, just had to see it. It's hard to know if his credited co-writer Leonard Spigelglass ("All Through the Night" '41 ~ "Mystery Street '50) collaborated on the original story or perhaps adapted chapters after the event. There are some sections that could be seen as perhaps, changing tone - but this would also be expected from a story of this nature - people dealing with grief go through several phases.
Films with this theme are rare and often can be depressing, but not this handling. All characters are credible and the script and direction are in harmony. Tunberg's dialogue is non stop and full of character. It's not a film I would have expected from MGM and as you might expect, in the declining decade of this studio, it's a modest production ~ but wonderfully realized by a sterling crew.
Ray Miland (as the English Professor) is as always the consummate professional. Roles dealing with a full range of strong emotions are always difficult. Nancy Davis (Reagan) matches him with a sincere performance, after all, her character is still dealing with her own earlier loss.
John Hodiak (what a pity we lost this fine actor so early!) plays the 'thick headed' Swede who has difficulty in reading both his professor friend's reactions, as well as his intended wife's 'awareness' of the professor's erratic behavior. The delightful Jean Hagen puts in a marvellous turn as the lonely girl across the hall and a very young Dawn Addams adds charm as the girlfriend of one of the professor's students. The themes of a Shakespearian quote, being studied in the professor's class, are used to perfection. Celia Lovsky (Mrs Peter Lorre) has a small part as a neighbor (it was her portrait that was used so well in 1955s "The Big Heat"). My wife also picked an uncredited Percy Helton as a drunk in a prison cell --whose only line is crucial to the story--
Producer: Edwin H. Knopf, himself an Actor, Writer and Director has several distinguished films to his credit..."The Seventh Cross" '44 ~ "Crossroads" '42 ~ Cry Havoc '43. Here, he's picked an un-commercial but vital project and his Director: Fletcher Markle (also an actor and writer) handles the film's theme with care and feeling. Great Director of Photography: George Folsey seems to have been around forever and has such a wide range of top films to his credit...The Bandwaggon" 53 ~ Executive Suite '54 ~ 7 Brides for 7 Brothers '54, etc.
Some could be unimpressed by the professor's closing remarks "Go with God", but this is apt for the films themes and gives a measure of hope where today's filmmakers leave their audiences in total despair. Hope-less.
The TCM copy broadcast in Australia did not look like a re-mastered print, still it's better than some I've seen. Recommended for thoughtful viewing - unfortunately it seems to be unavailable on DVD.
- krocheav
- Jan 8, 2014
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $777,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 26 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1