By Dennis Hartley

(Originally posted on Digby’s Hullabaloo on December 21, 2019)

The Reckless Moment – Indicator

Max Ophul’s 1949 film noir stars Joan Bennett as an overly-protective mother who gets sucked into a maelstrom of blackmail and deceit as she tries to cover up her teenage daughter’s accidental killing of her shady middle-aged lover. Adding to Joan’s headache is the appearance of a mysterious stranger (James Mason) who threatens to spill the beans on her daughter’s affair with the recently deceased gentleman (who Mason confirms did have criminal ties). Can Joan tidy this mess before her husband returns from his overseas business trip?

Despite standard noir trappings, the story sustains an interesting moral ambiguity, with subtle shifts in character motivations (your assessment of who the “villain” is may vacillate throughout the piece).

Indicator is a UK-based outfit that puts out mostly Region “B” locked discs, but I’ve noticed on occasion they put out titles that are all-region-luckily, this is the case with The Reckless Moment (i.e., it is compatible with North American Blu-ray players). Extras include a 44-minute featurette on Max Ophul’s career by artist and author Lutz Bacher.