Sunday Viewing: The Two Mrs. Carrolls, 1947

Produced by Mark Hellinger and directed by Peter Godfrey for Warner Brothers in 1947, The Two Mrs. Carrolls is a startling film noir starring Humphrey Bogart and Barbara Stanwyck.


Bogart plays Geoffrey Carroll, a tortured painter, who, while on vacation, meets a lovely, delicate woman named Sally (Stanwyck). Carroll quickly falls in love with Sally, but fails to mention one tiny little fact. He’s already married. When Carroll returns home, his wife suddenly takes ill. Carroll paints her portrait. It’s a disturbing portrait which depicts his wife as the Angel of Death. After his wife’s death, Sally marries Carroll and moves into his English estate where she strikes up a friendship with his young daughter, Beatrice (Ann Carter).

Soon, the couple is entertaining some possible patrons of Carroll’s work. Sally notices the chemistry between her husband and a wealthy young woman, Cecily (Alexis Smith). Before long, Carroll is painting Sally’s portrait and she begins to feel ill. When Beatrice is suddenly sent away to school, Sally knows that something sinister is afoot.

The film is attractively produced with interesting sets and fast-paced dialogue. In typical film noir fashion, it’s moody and dark, but that makes it all the more appealing. Though you have a pretty good idea what’s going to happen, it’s still quite suspenseful. Here’s a film which makes the perfect escape on a chilly Sunday afternoon.  It also features the always delightful Nigel Bruce.  How could you possibly go wrong with a film which stars Nigel Bruce?