Lured (1947)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Douglas Sirk

Writers:

Jacques Companéez (story)
Simon Gantillon (story)
(more)

Release Date:

5 September 1947 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Film-Noir | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

A serial killer in London is murdering young women whom he meets through the personal columns of newspapers;...

Plot Keywords:

Personals Column | Serial Killer | Poetry | Dance Hall | Taxi Dancer

Cast

George Sanders	...	Robert Fleming
Lucille Ball	...	Sandra Carpenter
Charles Coburn	...	Inspector Harley Temple
Boris Karloff	...	Charles van Druten
Cedric Hardwicke	...	Julian Wilde (as Sir Cedric Hardwicke)
Joseph Calleia	...	Dr. Nicholas Moryani
Alan Mowbray	...	Lyle Maxwell
George Zucco	...	Officer H. R. Barrett
Robert Coote	...	Officer Barret
Alan Napier	...	Detective Gordon
Tanis Chandler	...	Lucy Barnard
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jimmy Aubrey	...	Nelson (uncredited)
Lynn Baggett	...	Robert's rejected girlfriend (uncredited)
Brooks Benedict	...	Concertgoer (uncredited)
Colin Campbell	...	Wilberforce (uncredited)
Jack Chefe	...	Pierre, the Headwaiter (uncredited)
Ann Codee	...	Matilda (uncredited)
Charles Coleman	...	Sir Charles (uncredited)
James Conaty	...	Concertgoer (uncredited)
Sayre Dearing	...	Concertgoer in Lobby (uncredited)
Cyril Delevanti	...	Medical Examiner (uncredited)
Herbert Evans	...	Fleming's Butler (uncredited)
Alex Frazer	...	Prof Harkness (uncredited)
Gerald Hamer	...	Harry Milton (uncredited)
Sam Harris	...	Old Man at Concert Asking For Whiskey (uncredited)
Mike Lally	...	Mike, Nightclub Bartender (uncredited)
Isabel La Mal	...	Dowager shushing Fleming at Concert (uncredited)
Ethelreda Leopold	...	Blonde nightclub singer (uncredited)
Harold Miller	...	Concertgoer in Lobby (uncredited)
Eddie Parks	...	Oswald Pickering (uncredited)
Jeffrey Sayre	...	Concertgoer (uncredited)
Wyndham Standing	...	Asst. Medical Examiner (uncredited)
Dorothy Vaughan	...	Mrs. Miller (uncredited)
Eric Wilton	...	Ticket Booth Clerk (uncredited)
Florence Wix	...	Bus Passenger (uncredited)

Directed by
Douglas Sirk

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Jacques Companéez		story
Simon Gantillon		story
Ernest Neuville		story
Leo Rosten		writer

Produced by
Henry S. Kesler	....	associate producer (as Henry Kesler)
James Nasser	....	producer
Hunt Stromberg	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Michel Michelet

Cinematography by
William H. Daniels		(as William Daniels)

Film Editing by
John M. Foley
James E. Newcom

Production Design by
Nicolai Remisoff

Costume Design by
Eloise Jensson		(as Elois Jenssen)

Makeup Department
Don L. Cash	....	makeup artist
Josephine Sweeney	....	hair stylist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Clarence Eurist	....	assistant director

Sound Department
John R. Carter	....	sound (as John Carter)
H. Connors	....	sound
Joseph I. Kane	....	sound (as Joe Kane)

Music Department
David Chudnow	....	music supervisor
Herschel Burke Gilbert	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Hunt Stromberg Productions (as Oakmont Pictures, Inc.)

Distributors

• United Artists (1947) (USA) (theatrical)
• Bagnall Associates (1953) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Kino Video (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Kino Video (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Synimex (1950) (France) (theatrical)
• Kinowelt Home Entertainment (2007) (Germany) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Personal Column (UK)

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #12267)

Company:

Hunt Stromberg Productions

Trivia:

The title was changed to "Personal Column" midway through the original U.S. theatrical release because staff at the Production Code Administration thought the word "lured" sounded too much like "lurid". Director Douglas Sirk felt the title change confused potential audiences and led to the film's box-office failure.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Sandra goes to visit Julian towards the end of the movie, she removes her left glove. After a while, she lies down on the sofa, wearing both gloves again.

Movie Connections:

Version of Pièges (1939)

Soundtrack:

You Stole My Peace of Mind

All For Love

This excellent noir film was somewhat copied forty years later as "Sea of Love," with several changes bringing it up-to-date. One surprise in store for viewers is the comic talents of George Zucco, obviously kept hidden throughout most of his brilliant acting career. He is an excellent comedic sparring partner for Lucille Ball. They work well as a team, providing laughs that are sorely needed in an otherwise serious murder mystery thriller. Boris Karloff adds to the fun as well, giving a monster performance as an insane dress designer--can you believe? The stellar lineup also includes the likes of George Sanders, Charles Coburn, Cedric Hardwicke, and Alan Mowbray. The cast alone is worth the price of admission.

Directed with savvy by Douglas Sirk, the film has a script put together by a hodgepodge of writers. Still, the dialog is filled with witty and intelligent lines. The mystery will keep the viewer guessing until the serial killer is revealed. There are red herrings along the way to lead the best sleuth astray. Even when the movie seems to be ending with the mystery solved, it becomes the wrong solution to the case under investigation. The film proceeds to fool the viewer a second time before the ultimate meanie is apprehended. There are thrills aplenty throughout this delicious cinematic whodunit.

The story involves a serial killer running amok in London who kills beautiful young women lured by newspaper ads. The madman fancies himself a poet copying his style from the dark poetry of Charles Baudelaire, who once wrote about a tempting woman being more beautiful in death. One such poem is sent to Scotland Yard before each murder. Inspector Harley Temple (Coburn) is determined to catch the psycho any way possible, even using a young woman, Sandra Carpenter (Ball), as a decoy to lure the monster out into the open. Sandra is chosen when she inquires about her good friend's disappearance. Coincidentally, her friend's moniker is Lucy. In the process of finding the perpetrator of the crimes, Sandra makes several interesting encounters, eventually meeting a stranger named Robert Fleming (Sanders) with whom she falls in love. Their favorite song becomes "All For Love," which serves as a clue in the mystery.