Tuesday, October 24, 2017

A Quick Look: TORMENTED (1959)


   TORMENTED is my favorite ghost movie. Doesn't hurt that it stars Richard Carlson, who I've been a fan of since childhood! Carlson plays Tom Stewart, a jazz pianist who intends to get married and tries to break things off with his old girlfriend, Vi. She makes it clear she's going to hound him until he comes back to her, then the lighthouse railing she's leaning on gives way. Tom hesitates to save her (an excellently-played scene in which Tom comes off as both guilty and innocent), and Vi falls to her death in the surf below. Even after death, though, Vi isn't ready to call things off with Tom! A marvelous under-rated gem from director Bert Gordon, filled with familiar faces and a unique, jazz-influenced score. I really can't say how much I like this picture. Now, if only a nice clean print would get released! Being a public domain film, there're several releases on disk, but all the ones I've seen have been really rough.

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