BoardChiri Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

Lollivan It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Quiet Muffin This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

MartinHafer "Strangers in the Night" is a very unusual B-movie. It's a bizarre story about a seriously deranged old lady, Mrs. Blake and the weird secret she hides.When the story begins, Dr. Ross (Virginia Grey) is introducing herself to the folks in the seaside community where she'll be taking over for the old doctor. However, when she meets Mrs. Blake (Helene Thiming), the old woman is overtly hostile towards her...inexplicably so.Soon after this, Dr. Ross is on a train and meets Sgt. Meadows (William Terry). It seems he is headed to the same small town where Ross now works...and he's going to the Blake household to see Mrs. Blake's lovely daughter. It seems that when he was off fighting in the war, he corresponded with the lady and he's totally smitten with her. However, once he arrives at the Blake household, they inform Terry that she isn't there. And, they invite him to stay until she returns. However, days pass and it's obvious something is going on here...and the return of the girl seems to very, very vague.In the meantime, Mrs. Blake's nervous housekeeper, Ivy (Edith Barrett) knows some sort of secret and seems to always be on the verge of telling the Doctor. What is the secret? And how does it relate to the missing daughter? And, what does a painting of the lady have to do with all this?I really loved this film. While most folks think all B-movies are bad movies, they are not. A true B is a short film (about an hour in length) and is usually cheaply made. The purpose of the film is to be the second film in a double feature--with the A (or prestige picture) being accompanied by this B. But just because a film is short and often hastily made doesn't mean it's bad...and "Strangers in the Night" is simply terrific. In fact, it's one of the best Bs I have ever seen. The writing and acting and direction all work together perfectly and the solution to the mystery is sufficiently dark and sick to satisfy. Well worth seeing and Helene Thiming is simply terrific as this sick, disturbed and nasty old 'lady'!My score of 9 is because the film is so good and because of how it compares to other Bs....and it's head and shoulders better than about 99% of them.

kapelusznik18 ****SPOILERS*** Badly banged up in the fighting in the South Pacific all that Marine Sgt. Johnny Meadows, William Terry, has to look forward to after leaving the hospital is meeting up with his pen pal sweetheart Rosemary Blake whom he's never as much as seen a photo of. It's Rosemary whom he's kept in contact with and who kept his hopes high since he started writing to her after finding her name in a used book he picked up back in a San Francisco book store. Now recovered from his wounds Johnny takes a train ride to Monteflores California to finally meet Rosemary in the flesh and start up a romance with her. With a detour on the train when it derailed off the tracks Johnny meets young woman doctor Leslie Ross, Virginia Grey, who in fact is looking after Rosemary's crippled mom Hilda, Helene Thimig,who as we and Johhny soon find out is a bit wacko in the head as well as crippled in her legs! At the Blake house Johnny is disappointed not to find his love Rosemary but a painting of her and is told by Moma Blake that she's out of town temporarily entertaining returning US servicemen, like himself, coming back from the war! Told that Rosemary will be back in a few days Johnny for the time being starts up a romance with Dr. Ross that causes Moma Blake a lot of hard feelings; Both towards the doctor as well as Johnny.***SPOILERS*** It's Moma Blake's good friend and live in nurse Ivy Miller, Edith Barrett, who knows the whole truth about her and her obsession with her missing from the scene daughter Rosemary and tries to warn Johnny to get out of his obsession of meeting and romancing Rosemary before it's too late. Johnny himself notices that the painting of Rosemary was done, by the unique breast strokes he uses, by someone he knew and checked out to San Francisco to see him and tell him what he knows about the elusive, from everyone in the movie cast, Rosemary Blake! Somewhat ridicules final ending with Moma Blake going completely off the wall and doing in, by spiking her milk, Ivy as well as trying to off both Johnny & Dr. Ross for finding out what a total nut case she, as if we didn't know by then, really is. Totally crazed after failing to finish off, by causing them to fall off a cliff, both Johnny & Dr. Ross the end for Moma finally comes when Rosemary herself, through what can only be called supernatural powers, puts a final end to Moma Blakes insanity!

dougdoepke When you think actresses, the name Helen Thimig doesn't pop right up. But here for a crippled old lady she's scary as heck. And what's this with her daughter Rosemary whose portrait looks like a dolled up version of Laura (1944). Poor Sergeant Johnnie, he's back from the war all bunged up, but can't wait to meet the portrait girl who sent him such beautiful letters but has since gone missing. Meanwhile he has to content himself with the lovely Dr. Leslie (Grey) who's got her own problems being a woman doctor in a man's profession. And finally there's poor Ivy (Barrett) who acts like a frightened bird, frightened even of herself let alone her employer Mrs. Blake (Thimig). Actually, Barrett and Thimig are alumni of the great Val Lewton's horror series, so it's not surprising that their compelling turns form the movie's gripping core. Director Mann's noirish touches are evident throughout and perfectly suited to the dark subject matter. Something's up with Blake and daughter Rosemary, but what. That's the crux of the plot. Also, I like the way we get a feel of how the war is affecting the home front, while the obscure William Terry makes a good happy-go-lucky GI in contrast to the sinister mansion. I expect the movie remains obscure because of its sub-60-minute runtime and lowly Republic pedigree. But there's a lot of talent involved in a suspenseful story, making this a minor noirish gem.

Dagomir Marquezi It's a dark movie - literally. At the first look at the vileness Hilda Blake (Helen Thimig) you will probably think: this is very bad acting. Than you realize Mrs Thiming is a great actress and that Hilda is a very scary character. There is an interesting romance between a soldier and a woman doctor suffering with a little community prejudice. All the action happens around a very big picture of a beautiful young woman, and the sinister Hilda give orders all the time to her submissive "friend" Ivy Miller (Edith Barrett). It's a pity that in the end the screenplay turns a little dumb in important details. This is the sixth film from Anthony Mann, and its style reminds me the very early Alfred Hichcock.