The Big Bluff, Never Trust a Man

Smooth...with a hint of a Latin flair. He probably does the Tango, lights your cigarette, opens doors for you, orders for you at restaurants, skin dives, plays tennis, never interrupts, doesn't snore...he's perfect. Too good to be true?  Do you need to ask? Ah, the gadabout, con-man, or dandy...a woman needs discernment to keep away from these fellows.  So sad, the vulnerable Martha Vickers won't have that discernment. Our feature today is 1955's "The Big Bluff," directed by W. Lee Wilder (Billy Wilder's brother).

So sad. The very wealthy, and quite beautiful widow Valerie (Vickers) is dying. Bad heart. Has a year, max. Her doting valet, Marsha (Eve Miller) is heartbroken.  She is Valerie's bestie and watchdog. The doctor tells her to take Valerie away from New York to a warm climate. Marsha also insists no one tell Valerie her illness is terminal. The gals go to L.A. Mind you, this is L.A. before peaceful protesting ruled the day. There, the gals meet her new attending physician, Dr. Peter Kirk (Robert Hutton). He's a hunk and Marsha and him will get quite close. Valerie? Okay, here's where it gets precarious. Gadabout con-man Ricardo De Villa (John Bromfield), call him Rick, sees Valerie.  He finds out she's loaded and that she will die soon.  The heel smells opportunity.  Rick's current GF is Fritzie Darvel (Rosemarie Stack), a sultry nightclub singer.  She's married to a short fat guy and is banking on Rick to take her away from him.

Now Rick and Fritzie plot. Fritzie is not happy about Rick romancing Valerie, but is told it will not be for long. Rick does a fine job and ends up married to Valerie, against Marsha's objections. Rick knows Valerie has only a short time to live.  Once the beauty drops dead, all her money is his and he can take Fritzie away. Of course, Rick keeps Valerie up late, pours her a lot of adult beverages, lights her cigarettes, and involves her in strenuous activities.  Bad news for Rick.  Dr. Kirk advises him Valerie is improving and may not die. Rick is not happy about this and concocts a plan. A bad plan. A vicious and bloody plan.  But what happens next will be one of the most shocking endings in any crime drama.

Does Valerie have a prayer at living happily ever after?  Will Fritzie and Valerie enter a catfight with Rick's affections as the prize?  Will Marsha, Valerie's protector, either kill Rick or be killed by Rick? This is a clever Film Noir film that will have you cheering at the surprise ending. Ultimately a morality tale, one may find some similarities to this one and "The Postman Always Rings Twice." See "The Big Bluff" and beware any man who is good at the Tango.    

Blonde Ice, A Femme Fatale Goes Bad

Leslie Brooks! Sultry, to say the least. In the 1940s this was a tough country and our dames were... sultry! Sultry and a little dangerous, just the way we like them. Today we have the 1946 winner of the International Mathematics Society's Girl With the Best Figure award! Really!  Can you imagine if the International Mathematics Society gave an award for the Girl With the Best Figure here in 2025? That would be so priceless, but today, we are a nation of wimps and milquetoast men. Ms. Brooks is our Femme Fatale today and she does it so well.  So what if she is pure evil, and murders at will...her figure is so good I should think any man would be willing to overlook that.  Let us take a peek at 1948's "Blonde Ice," directed by Jack Bernhard.

Setting?  1948 San Francisco.  A San Francisco filled with real men and real dames...none of this Harvey Milk girly man types. A dame must be tough to survive here, and Claire (Brooks) is. As the film begins, the society columnist of the San Francisco Examiner is marrying Carl (John Holland), and he's loaded. He gets smart on their honeymoon and realizes his new wife is a two-timing slut.  Carl tells Claire he will divorce her and leave her penniless. Bad move, as Claire is a Femme Fatale with ambition and guile. Claire murders Carl, but does not do a great job making it look like a suicide. Now the cops are blaming her real love, Les (Robert Paige). Les is a sportswriter for the same paper and quite the stooge. In fact, everyone assumes Les murdered Carl and the cops refuse to close the case. 

Claire does a pretty good job at winning back Les' affections. He was kind of put off when she dumped him and married someone with a decent visible means of support. Uh oh...Claire sees Stanley Mason (Michael Whalen), a rich lawyer who is about to be elected to congress.  He also has a very visible means of support. Yep...she seduces him and has him propose.  Les is bummed out again.  Even worse for Les, the cops are about ready to arrest him for Carl's murder.  Uh oh...a mysterious figure from Claire's past emerges and he has inconvenient knowledge of Claire's homicidal tendencies.  What will Claire do to him?  As a future congressman is about to wed Claire...and the cops are about to arrest Les ...and the San Francisco Examiner is about to have an awkward holiday party (we never use the term 'Christmas' in the City by the Bay)...Claire bares her fangs as a classic Femme Fatale.

Does Claire have a prayer of getting away with murder?  Is the sultry Femme Fatale too beautiful for the electric chair?  Will the International Mathematics Society put out a 2026 swimsuit calendar at the end of the year?   Most of us see a Claire and run the other way...sultry but bad news all the way. Perhaps the stiffs in this film deserved their fate.  Either way, for a great morality lesson against murder and dangerous dames, see "Blonde Ice." 

 

Woman on the Run, Ann Sheridan in Peril

Ann Sheridan may be the greatest actress we never seem to talk about.  In our film today, she is given the titular role, though in reality, the film should be titled "Man on the Run." The gritty Film Noir film we will discuss today is set, mostly at night, in San Francisco.  Not the San Francisco of today, but a time when brute sailors dictated the toughness and grit of a soon to fall American metropolis. For every good man, there is a trail of sultry dames he ran away from.  In our film today, a good man smartens up and flees the sultry woman who always tells him what a dweeb he is.  Let us take a look at 1950's "Woman on the Run," directed by Norman Foster.

Poor Frank (Ross Elliott).  The artist and dreamer is detested by his wife, Eleanor (Sheridan). He is kind hearted, altruistic, and creative...she is materialistic and quick to sneer and criticize.  It gets worse for Frank. Walking the dog one night he is eyewitness to a gangland execution.  A government witness was just offed by the mob boss he was supposed to testify against. Now Frank is the government witness, and he flees. Knowing the mobster needs him dead, Frank disappears. Inspector Ferris (Robert Keith) needs to find him so he can put Smiley Freeman behind bars for good. Ferris finds Frank's wife who is kind of glad her husband is gone...and maybe the target of killers.  She is mad that she is living in a two-room apartment and her husband has no earning power.  Insp. Ferris, knows dames, and posits that Frank may not be running from mobsters, but from Eleanor. Eleanor is mildly insulted by this.

As the night turns to day, Eleanor finds out some surprises about Frank.  One, he is dying.  Two, everyone who meets him loves him.  Now Eleanor has a bout with her conscience and accepts the assistance of a nosy reporter, Legget (Dennis O'Keefe) to find her Frank.  Legget wants the story and now, suddenly, Eleanor needs Frank back so she can earn some redemption. Eleanor meets person after person whose eyes light up when Frank's name is mentioned.  They are all excited to meet her because Frank always talked so glowingly about his lovely wife. Now Eleanor feels like a real heel, and with Legget by her side gets closer and closer to finding Frank.  Uh oh...trust no one...especially if you are a sultry dame in a Film Noir film.

Just who is this reporter that is so anxious to help an unhappy dame find her husband?  Should Frank keep running rather than be found by the demoness who has humiliated him so much during the brief marriage?  Will redemption be found by Eleanor before the evils that stalk her husband catch up to her?  This is a guy film, and Ann Sheridan provides nice eye candy for those guys.  This film also is a powerful message for the sanctity of marriage, and that message comes across with gunfire, fights, and desperation. Also, in this film, enjoy the most unsettling rollercoaster ride ever put on film.  See "Woman on the Run," and understand what a great Film Noir film is made of.