Tonight's Movie: Secret Beyond the Door (1947) - A Kino Lorber Blu-ray Review

SECRET BEYOND THE DOOR (1947), featuring an outstanding performance by Joan Bennett, has just been released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber.

SECRET BEYOND THE DOOR is a "gothic noir" in the manner of REBECCA (1940), in which a woman marries a near-stranger and then makes unsettling discoveries after she arrives at his country home.

Bennett plays Celia, who marries Mark (Michael Redgrave) while vacationing in Mexico. Within a few days of their marriage Mark's behavior becomes baffling, his emotions running hot and cold, but after contemplating leaving Mark, Celia determines to stick it out.

Mark's sister (Anne Revere) is welcoming, but along with Mark's odd behavior Celia must contend with Mark's "Mrs. Danvers-esque" secretary (Barbara O'Neil) and his estranged teenage son David (Mark Dennis); Mark amazingly had neglected to mention his prior marriage and that he had a child, but Celia receives the news with equanimity.

The script by Silvia Richards, based on a story by Rufus King, has flaws, including the writing of Redgrave's almost psychotic character; after the opening scenes, the movie tilts too much toward his strangeness, and he's disturbed enough that one wonders if he can truly recover.

That said, I like this movie a great deal and find it an absorbing 99 minutes. This is chiefly due to the marvelous Bennett, with nods as well to the superb black and white cinematography of Stanley Cortez and the scoring by Miklos Rozsa.

Over the years Bennett has become one of my favorite actresses, certainly in my Top 5, and one of the reasons is the way she absolutely radiates thoughtful intelligence. One might say that a woman who marries a stranger isn't very smart, but I love the way Celia processes her situation, heard via very effective narration, and then commits to trying to make her marriage work.

Bennett is also incredibly beautiful in this film, surely one of the most lovely actresses of the '40s, and she has the chance to wear gowns by one of my favorite costume designers, Travis Banton.  She's a treat to watch, both visually and in terms of performance.

The movie is interesting not only as one of the "woman in peril" film common in the era but as a reflection of the late '40s cinematic obsession with psychology, with SPELLBOUND (1945) and THE LOCKET (1946) being just two other examples.

In the end, despite its flaws and a questionable REBECCA-like ending, I find SECRET BEHIND THE DOOR a very enjoyable watch, especially given that Bennett is onscreen for the vast majority of the film.

This film was the final collaboration between Bennett and director Fritz Lang, who teamed with Bennett on THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW (1944) and SCARLET STREET (1945) as well as MAN HUNT (1941); he's also said to have done uncredited work on CONFIRM OR DENY (1941).

For additional thoughts on the film, please visit my 2013 review.

Kino Lorber's Blu-ray print is from a 2022 HD master by Paramount Pictures from a 4K scan. It's a very good, if slightly soft, print. There's one strange moment where Bennett gets up from a chair and the shot blurs; I'm not certain if it's the way the movie was originally shot and edited or a print issue.

This is a Special Edition with a cardboard slipcase. The extras consist of a new commentary track by the always-excellent Alan K. Rode, plus an eight-film trailer gallery.

Thanks to Kino Lorber for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray.

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