The Man in the Net
Encyclopedia
The Man in the Net is an American
film noir
starring Alan Ladd
and Carolyn Jones
. The taut drama was directed by Michael Curtiz
.
Then his alcoholic and psychologically disturbed wife disappears one day. When she does John is suspected of killing his wife.
, liked the film's dialogue and theme, if not the story, and Carolyn Jones's acting, writing, "More interesting is the dialogue by Mr. Rose and his preoccupation with injustice. The lines show a keen love for kids and an honest regard for the need to interject reality into a yarn that is tediously familiar once it settles down into its melodramatic formula. Miss Jones plays the wife with controlled fanaticism. Mr. Ladd, on the other hand, performs in his usual, cool style, which under the hectic circumstances mutes his personality to the point of unreality.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
starring Alan Ladd
Alan Ladd
-Early life:Ladd was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas. He was the only child of Ina Raleigh Ladd and Alan Ladd, Sr. He was of English ancestry. His father died when he was four, and his mother relocated to Oklahoma City where she married Jim Beavers, a housepainter...
and Carolyn Jones
Carolyn Jones
Carolyn Sue Jones was an American actress.Jones began her film career in the early 1950s, and by the end of the decade had achieved recognition with a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for The Bachelor Party and a Golden Globe Award as one of the most promising actresses...
. The taut drama was directed by Michael Curtiz
Michael Curtiz
Michael Curtiz was an Academy award winning Hungarian-American film director. He had early creditsas Mihály Kertész and Michael Kertész...
.
Plot
The film tells the story of John Hamilton (Ladd) who's retreated to Stoneville, Connecticut, in the New England countryside, to pursue a career as a commercial artist, but his wife Linda (Carolyn Jones) wants to go back to New York. She is observed as being both drunk and a little strange by the town-folk.Then his alcoholic and psychologically disturbed wife disappears one day. When she does John is suspected of killing his wife.
Cast
- Alan LaddAlan Ladd-Early life:Ladd was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas. He was the only child of Ina Raleigh Ladd and Alan Ladd, Sr. He was of English ancestry. His father died when he was four, and his mother relocated to Oklahoma City where she married Jim Beavers, a housepainter...
as John Hamilton - Carolyn JonesCarolyn JonesCarolyn Sue Jones was an American actress.Jones began her film career in the early 1950s, and by the end of the decade had achieved recognition with a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for The Bachelor Party and a Golden Globe Award as one of the most promising actresses...
as Linda Hamilton - Diane BrewsterDiane BrewsterDiane Brewster was an American television actress most noted for playing three distinctively different roles in US TV series of the 1950s and 60s: confidence trickster Samantha Crawford in Maverick; pretty young second-grade teacher Miss Canfield in Leave It to Beaver; and doomed wife Helen...
as Vicki Carey - John LuptonJohn LuptonJohn Rollin Lupton was an American film and television actor.Upon graduation from New York's American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Lupton secured immediate stage work. Then he was signed as a contract player at MGM in Hollywood...
as Brad Carey - Charles McGrawCharles McGrawCharles Butters , best known by his stage name Charles McGraw, was an American actor, who made his first film in 1942, albeit in a small, uncredited role. He was born in Des Moines, Iowa.-Career:...
as Sheriff Steve Ritter - Tom HelmoreTom HelmoreTom Helmore was an English film actor. He appeared in over 50 films between 1927 and 1972, including three directed by Alfred Hitchcock.He was born in London and died in Longboat Key, Florida.-Selected filmography:...
as Gordon Moreland - Betty Lou HollandBetty Lou HollandBetty Lou Holland is an American actress.Born in New York City, she began acting on the stage in the 1940s and appeared in some plays on Broadway....
as Roz Moreland - John AlexanderJohn Alexander (actor)John Alexander was an American stage and film actor.Perhaps his most memorable performance was as Teddy Brewster, a lunatic who thinks he is Theodore Roosevelt, in the 1944 classic film Arsenic and Old Lace opposite Cary Grant. He had previously portrayed that role in the 1941 Broadway play of the...
as Mr. Carey, Brad's father - Ed BinnsEd BinnsEdward Binns was a stage, film, and television actor.Binns was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After appearing in a number of Broadway plays, Binns began appearing in films in the early 1950s...
as State Police Capt. Green - Kathryn Givney as Mrs. Carey, Brad's mother
- Barbara Beaird as Emily Jones
- Susan Gordon as Angel Jones
- Michael McGreevey as Buck Ritter
- Charles Herbert as Timmie Moreland
- Steve Perry as Leroy, Alonzo's son
Critical reception
When the film was released, Richard W. Neson, film critic for The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, liked the film's dialogue and theme, if not the story, and Carolyn Jones's acting, writing, "More interesting is the dialogue by Mr. Rose and his preoccupation with injustice. The lines show a keen love for kids and an honest regard for the need to interject reality into a yarn that is tediously familiar once it settles down into its melodramatic formula. Miss Jones plays the wife with controlled fanaticism. Mr. Ladd, on the other hand, performs in his usual, cool style, which under the hectic circumstances mutes his personality to the point of unreality.
External links
- The Man in the Net film trailer at Turner Classic MoviesTurner Classic MoviesTurner Classic Movies is a movie-oriented cable television channel, owned by the Turner Broadcasting System subsidiary of Time Warner, featuring commercial-free classic movies, mostly from the Turner Entertainment and MGM, United Artists, RKO and Warner Bros. film libraries...
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