Orson Welles had a column in the New York Graphic (sic), called “Orson Welles’ Almanac,” in which he wrote: “Plant things that grow above the ground today, and go immediately to the Strand Theatre in Brooklyn and see a “B” minus picture called When Strangers Marry. It’s A plus entertainment but because it’s a quickie without any names on it, When Strangers Marry hasn’t had much of a play. Making allowances for its bargain-price budget, I think you’ll agree with me that it’s one of the most gripping and effective pictures of the year. It isn’t as slick as Double Indemnity or as glossy as Laura, but it’s better acted and better directed by William Castle than either.” (Wellesnet)
Betrayed (aka When Strangers Marry) is a William Castle revelation. We usually peg Castle as the carnival midway-styled showman and director who gave us memorably classic (albeit cheaply) rendered movies promoted with theater gimmicks. But Castle, who was smart enough to nab film rights to, and desperately yearned to direct, Rosemary’s Baby, and who collaborated with Orson Welles on Lady From Shanghai (a noir that beats other noirs silly), was one hell of a director without the gimmicks too. He also was greatly disappointed to find out he wouldn’t be directing Lady, although he had nabbed the film rights to that one too. Not only was he a good director, he also knew a good movie prospect when he saw one.
In Betrayed, Robert Mitchum, Kim Hunter, and Dean Jagger stretch the noir shadows when the obscenely rich guy wearing the Lion’s head mask and flashing thousands of dollars he hated to go home with winds up dead. Castle keeps the short running time (61 minutes) ticking by with suspense and creative use of the camera as it prowls around the threadbare sets and setups. His foreshadowing nods are a master class; simple but direct. With three (“without any names”) killer actors to help him, and a filmed story that stays razor-focused, and a nice-touch Hitchcockian cameo by Castle, this movie deserves more respect and inspection. Here’s the pressbook from Monogram.
