Arsaib

30Mar13

Though I don't think 'Phantom Lady' was technically a 'B' movie, the obvious budgetary constraints only seem to have further highlighted its expressionistic elements. I'm especially thinking of the long, wordless chase sequence through the shadowy backstreets that culminates at the lonely subway station. It's remarkable to behold, but is topped not long thereafter by that Dionysian jam session! For some reason, I had always thought of Raines as a poor man's (or woman's) Lauren Bacall, so it was a pleasant surprise to see her let her hair down, so to speak, at least during the first half, which I found to be much more interesting than the second. Have you read much from Woolrich? The consensus seems to be that his premises were the primary attraction, not necessarily their elaborations. One could also detect his stamp in the underlying humanism of the story, not to mention in its low-key realism. We probably also need to credit producer Joan Harrison (I believe this was her first credit in this role), who may have helped emphasize Raines's character.