John Dickson Carr Movies
- 1962
Set in an old German castle where an elderly paterfamilias lies on his deathbed, this conventional murder mystery by director Julien Duvivier has a veneer of the supernatural about it. As the heirs to the dying man's estate come together at the castle, a woman among them stands out for her heritage. It so happens that an ancestor of the dying man betrayed one of her long-dead female relatives, and after the old man finally dies, the woman starts having strange visions. At the same time, it begins to look like the old man did not die a natural death, but was in fact, murdered. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean-Claude Brialy, Perette Pradier, (more)
- 1957
The British That Woman Opposite is better known by its American title City After Midnight. Dan O'Herlihy stars as detective Kinross, presently investigating the murder of antique dealer Sir Maurice (Wilfred Hyde-White). The principal suspects are the dead man's son Toby (Jack Watling) and Toby's American fiancee Eve (Phyllis Kirk). Digging a bit deeper, Kinross discovers that Eve's ex-husband Ned (William Franklyn) had a vested interest in a rare snuff box owned by the murder victim--and it's just possible that Eve would have been his accomplice if he he'd wanted to commit the murder. Based on a novel by John Dickson Carr, That Woman Opposite bears some resemblance to the 1962 Kim Novak-Jack Lemmon starrer The Notorious Landlady. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Phyllis Kirk, Dan O'Herlihy, (more)
In this suspenseful drama, based on a John Dickson Carr novel, blissfully happy newlywed Ruth Bowman (Jeanne Crain) boards a transatlantic ocean liner with her new husband John (Carl Betz). A few days later, however, John suddenly disappears. Ruth quickly discovers that her cruise ticket was made out under her maiden name, and that her "husband" never even bought one. To make matters worse, no one on board admits to ever having seen them together. Only the ship's doctor (Michael Rennie) believes the distraught bride's story. Together they discover the truth about her husband's disappearance. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeanne Crain, Michael Rennie, (more)
- 1951
Set in 19th-century New York, this mystery begins when a Frenchwoman shows up at the home of one of Napoleon's former marshals. The alcoholic man is badly crippled and slowly dying, but this doesn't stop the forthright lady from pushing him to change his will to include his estranged grandson so that he can help out the struggling French Republic. Unfortunately, the dying man's conniving housekeeper and butler, already planning murder to get the money themselves, overhear her and begin plotting her demise. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joseph Cotten, Barbara Stanwyck, (more)
