Sorry, Wrong Number stars Barbara Stanwyck, in an Oscar nominated performance, as Leona Stevenson, a rich, invalid woman who accidentally overhears a phone call about a murder of a woman later in the evening. As the story unfolds, Stanwyck begins to believe that she is the target of the murder and is unable to escape the house.The film is based on a very popular radio program of the same name that was originally performed by Agnes Moorehead, who is better known to my generation as Tabitha's witch mother of Bewitched fame.
As Stanwyck desperately tries, at first, to report the potential crime and then unravel the true mystery behind it, begins to suspect her husband, played by the handsome and young Burt Lancaster, may be behind her future death. Stanwyck does an admirable job playing Stevenson, who is actually a bratty rich girl who manipulates and demands her way through life. But, at the heart of her agressive behavior are deep-seeded fears of loneliness. And here she is, alone in the house, unable to leave her bed, the potential target of a killer. Her Oscar nomination is worthy of her performance as she carries the film.
The end is extremely suspenseful and satisfying as you find yourself peering into the large, empty house, looking at shadows for movement of a killer who may or may not be out there. Stanwyck lost the Oscar to her friend, Jane Wyman. Every time she visited Wyman's house and spotted the Oscar statue, she would jokingly state "that is really mine, you know."A good flick with excellent writing and nice acting. Sorry, Wrong Number is worth a peek.
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1 comment:
Pete,
Agnes Moorehead played Endora who was Samantha's mother and Tabitha's grandmother.
(This is a result of many teenage-years watching Channel 44)
Paul
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