Angel Face (1952) - full review!
Produced and directed by Otto Preminger (Laura (1944)), with a screenplay by Oscar Millard (The Frogmen (1951)) and Frank Nugent (The Quiet Man (1952)) that was based on a Chester Erskine story, this slightly above average crime drama film-noir features Robert Mitchum as working class Frank Jessup and Jean Simmons (in the title role) as Diane Tremayne, a seemingly sweet 'debutante' daddy's girl who's used to getting what she wants. After her mother was killed in Lorraine, France during a World War II bombing, Diane's novelist father Charles (Herbert Marshall) remarried the wealthy Catherine (Barbara O'Neil); they moved to the States were he stopped writing, becoming a henpecked husband dependent on her money. Some nine years later, Diane now feels neglected by her father and controlled by her step-mother, a situation she's compelled to change by using Mitchum's character.
The film opened with ambulance drivers Jessup and Bill Crompton (Kenneth Tobey) being called to the Tremayne estate where it's suspected that Catherine has just tried to commit suicide with her fireplace's gas, despite the fact that she claims someone's tried to murder her. While leaving the residence, Frank meets Diane, who's playing the piano and acting forlorn, even hysterical. She later follows him to a restaurant where she charms him into cancelling his date with his steady girlfriend Mary Wilton (Mona Freeman) and the two enjoy an evening of dining and dancing. Diane learns that Frank is a former race-car driver and is working odd jobs while trying to save enough to open his own garage. The next day, Diane invites Mary to lunch and tells her that she wants to help them by giving Frank $1,000 for his future plans. Mary sees through Diane's manipulation and is later angry with Frank for lying to her about the previous evening. Still, Diane convinces Catherine, a notoriously poor driver, into hiring Frank as their family's chauffeur.
But after some time living over the garage and witnessing Diane's ways, even dim-witted Frank sees that something's not right and suspects he's being used by her as part of a larger scheme. However, she's able to convince him to stay a little longer, to contemplate taking her away with him. Shortly thereafter, she executes her plan, successfully killing her step-mother Catherine when her car accelerates in reverse off an embankment. Unfortunately, she'd also accidentally killed her father in the process, which causes her to have a mental breakdown. Since Diane's suitcase was found in Frank's room, both are accused of murder. A clever defense attorney, Fred Barrett (Leon Ames), convinces Diane not to confess to the crime, that Frank too would be incarcerated. He also persuades Frank to marry Diane to explain the suitcase as part of their planned elopement. He then successfully battles District Attorney Judson (Jim Backus) in the trial to prove reasonable doubt exists, that a cotter pin could have failed, such that the rendered verdict is "not guilty".
Diane then learns that her husband Frank doesn't want her; he wants to try to go back to Mary, but learns that she is engaged to Bill. Meanwhile, Diane insists that lawyer Barrett record her confession of guilt, but he informs her that, due to double-jeopardy, she can't be convicted of the crime. She returns home feeling there's no reason to live, but is then excited to see that Frank is there too. However, he is packing and planning to head to Mexico to get away from her. She insists on taking him to the bus station and he reluctantly agrees. She has champagne in the car and asks him to pour them one last drink. She starts the car forward causing him to spill it, he snaps at her and then she snaps - she throws the car in reverse and jams on the accelerator, hurling them backwards off the same embankment and killing them both, as the story ends.
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