Love from a Stranger (2024)

Cecily Harrington (Sylvia Sidney), struggling along on a small allowance, wins a fortune in a lottery. She decides to travel rather than marrying her fiance Nigel Lawrence (John Howard.) A stranger, Manuel Cortez (John Hodiak), comes to rent her flat and she falls in love with him, and they are married. For their honeymoon, they go to an isolated English college where she, unlike the audience, doesn't realize she has married a fortune-hunting Bluebeard with a few murdered wives in his past. The question is will she be able to repent in leisure her decision to marry in haste.

Film Details

Genre

Release Date

Nov 15, 1947

Premiere Information

not available

Production Company

Eagle-Lion Films, Inc.

Distribution Company

Eagle-Lion Films, Inc.

Country

United States

Screenplay Information

Based on the play Love from a Stranger by Frank Vosper (London, 31 Mar 1936) and the short story "Philomel Cottage" by Agatha Christie in the collection The Listerdale Mystery and Other Stories (London, 1934).

Technical Specs

Duration

1h 21m

Sound

Mono

Color

Black and White

Theatrical Aspect Ratio

1.37 : 1

Film Length

7,290ft (9 reels)

Synopsis

At the turn of the century, in England, a blonde South American fortune hunter named Pedro Ferrara kills his first, second and third wives for their money. Later, in London, middle-class Cecily Harrington wins £50,000 in the Calcutta sweepstakes. Determined to use her money to travel around the world with her roommate, Mavis Wilson, Cecily prepares to let their apartment. One prospective tenant is Manuel Cortez, a dark-haired adventurer. As soon as Manuel learns that Cecily has won the sweepstakes, he begins to court her aggressively. At the same time, Cecily awaits a reunion with her fiancé, Nigel Lawrence, whom she has not seen in two years. Over protests from her aunt Loo-Loo, Cecily breaks her engagement when Nigel arrives, and in a few days, she and Manuel are married. For their honeymoon, Manuel takes Cecily to a secluded cliffside cottage in Devonshire, and asks that she not give out the address. Upon their arrival, Manuel's charming facade begins to crack, revealing his furtive, volatile nature. He insists that his basem*nt "laboratory" is off-limits to Cecily and the house servants, Ethel and Billings, and immediately begins digging a grave in the cellar, where he also keeps black hair dye to maintain his disguise. He methodically notes the date August 31st and time nine o'clock p.m. on his calendar. Soon, Cecily notices that her checkbook is missing, and Manuel tricks her into signing papers that give him control over her money. One day, Cecily sprains her ankle and is tended by local doctor Horace Gribble, who notices that, like him, Manuel has a collection of books on criminology. Dr. Gribble points out to Manuel that an article in a recent journal on wife-killer Pedro Ferrara contained a picture of the killer, which is missing from Manuel's copy of the journal. The article states that Ferrara always murdered his victims at nine o'clock, and reportedly died by drowning, although his body was never found. After a short visit with Mavis and Loo-Loo in London, Cecily returns to the cottage with Manuel to pack for their voyage to the Persian Gulf, India and Baghdad. On August 31st, while Manuel is out making arrangements to have their trunks picked up by a carter, Dr. Gribble drops off his copy of the Ferrara article to prove his point about the picture. Although Manuel had told her earlier that it is bad luck to open a steamship ticket envelope prior to a journey, Cecily opens theirs when she accidentally spills ink on it. Finding the envelope empty, she then opens a letter from a bank, which states that her fortune has been converted into bearer bonds that are now ready for Manuel to pick up in Scotland. Terrified, Cecily finds the key to the basem*nt, and there discovers hair dye, her check book and a box of jewels, which Manuel had collected from other women. Next, Cecily opens the article on Ferrara and is horrified to see Manuel's likeness in the sketch. Meanwhile, Nigel has gone to Scotland Yard to report Cecily's sudden marriage and their secret honeymoon and subsequent voyage, for which he could find no steamship reservations. Inspector Hobday tells him that a murderer matching Ferrara's description recently escaped from South America. Loo-Loo then remembers Cecily's mentioning Dr. Gribble, and Hobday and Nigel search for the location of his practice. As a storm brews, Cecily runs from the cottage just as Manuel returns and forces her into the house. He soon discovers that she knows his true identity, and she bides her time until nine o'clock by making him dinner. When she tries to trick him into believing that she has poisoned his coffee, Manuel starts to strangle her. Nigel and Hobday arrive in time to rescue her, and Hobday pursues Manuel as he flees the cottage, and fights him. As the carter's carriage approaches, Manuel falls into the street and is crushed to death by the horses. Inside the cottage, Cecily embraces Nigel.

Director

Cast

Crew

Film Details

Genre

Release Date

Nov 15, 1947

Premiere Information

not available

Production Company

Eagle-Lion Films, Inc.

Distribution Company

Eagle-Lion Films, Inc.

Country

United States

Screenplay Information

Based on the play Love from a Stranger by Frank Vosper (London, 31 Mar 1936) and the short story "Philomel Cottage" by Agatha Christie in the collection The Listerdale Mystery and Other Stories (London, 1934).

Technical Specs

Duration

1h 21m

Sound

Mono

Color

Black and White

Theatrical Aspect Ratio

1.37 : 1

Film Length

7,290ft (9 reels)

Quotes

Trivia

Notes

This film marked the first producing effort of James J. Geller, who had been the head of the story department at Warner Bros. since 1942. The Agatha Christie short story and Frank Vosper play were also the source for the 1937 United Artists British film of the same title, directed by Rowland V. Lee, and starring Basil Rathbone and Ann Harding (see AFI Catalog of Feature Films, 1931-40; F3.5389). In the earlier version, the wife does poison the husband's coffee, and he dies from a heart attack. Vosper, playwright and adaptor of Christie's story, starred in the London stage version of the play, as well as in the Broadway production, which opened September 29, 1936. Eagle-Lion borrowed Sylvia Sidney from William Cagney's company for this production, and according to Hollywood Reporter, Michael Woulfe was also borrowed from Cagney's company.