Gaslight

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Leaburn O Really good British picture about a husband manipulating his wife into thinking she's gone mad. Well acted by both leads and well produced. It's a creepy film. Watched on DVD. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/15/24 Full Review Georgan G A very good British version of this story. The terrible "husband" is trying to drive his wife mad. Acting is quite good. I always wonder how incredibly naive the wife must be to equate losing things with going madness. Still, fun to watch. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/24/23 Full Review david f This movie is based on the play that gave us the term for trying to trick someone into believing they're wrong about what is real. It follows a couple in a toxic marriage where the husband keeps telling the wife that she's crazy, that she's stolen and misplaced things, and that she's wrong about everything, but it is in fact the husband who is lying to her in an attempt to get her to go crazy. Builds to a suspenseful climax and is a really well-made thriller. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Both versions are great, but I might actually like this one better. Same amount of suspense and does it in 30 fewer minutes. A little melodramatic at times but I think that only adds to the thrill of the movie. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Audience Member In Victorian London, an old woman is murdered at a house in Plimco Square and her house is ransacked, some very valuable rubies being reported missing afterward. The house is not occupied again until years later, by a man and his wife and two woman servants. But the supposedly religious husband is controlling of his wife and suggests she is mentally ill, deliberately moving objects in their home and suggesting she has been moving them in a fit of madness. He also flirts with the younger servant. Rough, a former policeman now working as a groom in the area, is suspicious and gets involved in their lives. What exactly is going on? The gaslight in question refers to suspicious dimming of the house's gas room lights at certain times to suggest goings-on at the house. Though the plot is predictable, the ending makes up for it-not because of its being a surprise but the way it is told, and how the characters handle matters when the truth is revealed. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member Gaslight (1940) has some tense scenes, but it completely lacks the suspense and mystery of the 1944 remake. Anton Walbrook offers a commanding performance as the villainous husband, Paul, who's driving his wife, Bella, insane, and Diana Wynyard is fragile and innocent as his victim, but the story presents the true nature of their relationship and their real personalities upfront, not allowing for any uncertainty as to Paul's evil motives or Bella's sanity. In Gaslight (1944), the husband (Charles Boyer) is not shown to be an outright villain and his actions are often understandable while his wife (Ingrid Bergman) does seem to act erratically, leaving open the possibility that she might actually be insane. Unlike the later version, which takes time to set up what these characters lives were like before their troubles started, this film, before even 20 minutes, has already started revealing Paul to be the cruel and oppressive man that he is. Frank Pettingell is amusing as Bella's self-congratulatory savior, a role later filled by Joseph Cotten playing a much more traditional hero to more appropriate, however less memorable, effect. Another unforgettable aspect of this version is the cancan dance which is itself impressive even if it adds little to the plot. Gaslight (1940) is enjoyable, but the story is much improved upon in the remake, which, to maintain its mystery, should be watched first. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Gaslight

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