Dragonwyck

As Miranda and Van Ryn dance through the doorway from the balcony into the ballroom, she holds her closed fan in her hand.

When the shot changes after they enter the room, the fan dangles from her wrist.

Dragonwyck combines elements of Rebecca and Jane Eyre and transports the action from England to New York state in around 1840. I learned from it some facts about American history which I did not know previously.

Set in the year 1844, Dragonwyck, from my point of view, was nothing but a silly piece of overwrought, melodramatic fluff.Regardless of it having an expensively polished look to it, Dragonwyck (from 1946) was worthless trash that was obviously being backed by big, Hollywood bucks.

Vincent Price excels in this sinister romance that has shades of Hitchcock's "Rebecca" (1940) about it. Gene Tierney ("Miranda") is brought up in a devoutly religious family under the auspices of the zealous "Ephraim" (Walter Huston) when she is offered the chance of a lifetime by her distant cousin Nicholas van Ryn (Price) to go and live in his mansion "Dragonwyck" to help care for his wife.

This is one of my all time favorite movies! I know some people who don't think it's that great, but personally I love it.

Lots of plot holes in this Jane Eyre re-write which others have already outlined expertly. As Gene Tierney's parents Walter Huston the fastidious religious father and Anne Revere re-creating her role from National Velvet as the strong but loving mother are superb.

There is greatness all around. Unfortunately the script doesn't deliver.

Walter Huston is billed over Vincent Price in Dragonwyck, but Mr. Price has much more screen time and prominence in this film.

This is an entertaining if slightly confused Gothic melodrama with murderous overtones. The plotting owes a bit to the likes of recent hits of the day like "Wuthering Heights", "Rebecca" and "Jane Eyre" but sometimes does so a little too blatantly.

Although "Dragonwyck" is not a perfect film (one could quibble regarding it's over-long length), it certainly succeeds as a showcase for period atmosphere and melodrama. Gene Tierney is pretty successful in projecting a character who evolves from a wide-eyed innocent to disillusioned spouse of a cold, meglomaniac addict.