Written and directed by Delmer Daves
Based on the novel by George Agnew Chamberlain
Starring Edward G. Robinson, Lon McCallister, Judith Anderson, Rory Calhoun, Allene Roberts, Julie London, Ona Munson and Harry Shannon
USA, 1947
When a reclusive farmer's (Edward G. Robinson) teenage adopted daughter (Allene Roberts) gets her high school friend (Lon McCallister) a job as a farmhand on the family farm, the duo become increasingly obsessed with finding out what exactly is hiding in the nearby woods. On a dark and stormy night, when the farmhand wants to take a shortcut through the woods, the farmer warns him off with tales of a red house in the woods where mysterious screams can be heard and accidents befall those who dare go near it.
I'd never heard of this little human drama with some mystery and horror thrown in before and it'd fit just as well among the ranks of famous noir films as it does alongside horror movies. Perhaps I say noir because I'm used to seeing Edward G. Robinson as either a hard-bitten gangster or other similarly cynical characters in crime and detective movies, and not so used to seeing him as a humble farmer.
Of course, as the movie unfolds, Robinson gets many chances to flex his tough guy chops, because it turns out his character's directly embroiled in the mysterious tragedy that took place in the elusive red house in the woods. It's not just a tough guy turn, though. Robinson gets a great role to play here as he gets to be paranoid, delusional, manic and murderous, all in turn. No one else in the cast quite lives up to this performance, and the direction and cinematography are pretty rote, but Robinson's performance and the intriguing story are enough to warrant a watch.
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