The Reckless Moment

1949

1h 22m

IMDb RATING

6.7/10

132

YOUR RATING

Rate

POPULARITY

Play trailer

0 Videos

34 Images

Drama

Thriller

After discovering the dead body of her teenage daughter's lover, a housewife takes desperate measures to protect her family from scandal.

Directors

Max Ophüls

Writers

Robert E. Kent(adaptation by)

Robert Soderberg(screenplay by)

Mel Dinelli(adaptation by)

Stars

James Mason

Joan Bennett

Geraldine Brooks

See production, box office & company info

Top cast

Martin Donnelly

Lucia Harper

Bea Harper

Tom Harper

Ted Darby

David Harper

Nagel

Old Lady (uncredited)

Al Bain

Man (uncredited)

Jack Baker

Man (uncredited)

Pat Barton

Receptionist (uncredited)

Holger Bendixen

Man (uncredited)

Gail Bonney

Woman (uncredited)

Chet Brandenburg

Department Store Customer (uncredited)

Peter Brocco

Pete the Bartender (uncredited)

Paul E. Burns

Desk Clerk (uncredited)

John Butler

Pawnbroker (uncredited)

Kathryn Card

Mrs. Loring (uncredited)

Directors

Max Ophüls

Writers

Robert E. Kent(adaptation by)

Robert Soderberg(screenplay by)

Mel Dinelli(adaptation by)

All cast & crew

Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

What is it about folks in movies who find dead bodies? Rather than just call the police and rely on them to adequately do their jobs, they always find themselves embroiled in silly, self-inflicted plots that almost always cause far more trouble... Here is another such example. Joan Bennett is "Lucia", a rather bored housewife whose husband is always away, and whose young daughter "Bea" (Geraldine Brooks) is having a fling with the rather roguish "Ted" (Shepperd Strudwick). Her mother tries to put a stop to the relationship, be he wants paying off - she tells him to get lost. Next day, he confronts poor old "Bea" with the truth, a tussle ensues and soon "Ted" is down with the fishes, the daughter having tried to cover her tracks. Police find the corpse, and enter James Mason ("Donnelly") and his even more unscrupulous partner "Nagel" (Roy Roberts) who have some incriminating letters and want $5,000 to keep them from the investigation. Mother, determined to save her irresponsible child, tries to accommodate the blackmailer and over time their dynamic changes somewhat... It's quite a quirky story with two good performances - Mason, quite understated and Bennett measured - even when under quite a bit of pressure, and the direction from Max Opuls keeps the pace well. Sadly, he struggles to see it off the rocks of melodrama as we near the end, but even that is a bit different.

Geronimo196709 Jul, 2022