Moviecut—Lisbon

source: Lisbon

Lisbon

Seeing Ray Milland, Claude Raines and Maureen O'Sullivan together is good, but add the on-location photography and a haunting Nelson Riddle score and you have a fun viewing experience. This was the first of 4 films directed at Republic by Milland. It is an excellent example of how Republic grew from one step above Poverty Row to near A stature.

Great actors, great scenery, great filming - but oh, so dreary - this is one for the insomniacs amongst us. I never did get to see the end of the movie, about half way had me in the land of nod without any desire to find out what happened, that is if indeed, anything at all happened. Claude Rains looked glassy eyed and appeared that he was wishing he was elsewhere. The whole thing would have been better off as a travelogue with the actors posing for the different scenes. This movie is slow ........ Torturously slow! Those having a yen to watch paint dry will find that this fits well with their desire. 1/10 - and that's for the scenery.

I've been to Lisbon and it looked nothing like this Lisbon of this movie filmed in the mid-50's. The Lisbon in this film is gorgeous. Today, it's rather gritty and contrary to this movie where everyone speaks English, no one does. The illiteracy rate is like 40%. The film is a romance/drama/film noir. Claude Rains is really odd. He was born in England but has a really non-English way of speaking. He also looks rather old. Ray Miland who also directed this film is also looking rather old. Every time I see him I think of he and Rosie Greer in the 2-Headed Man. He plays a really horny smuggler. Anyway, on to the movie. It's capably directed. Well acted and reasonably well done. Some of it stretches believability. And segments are really hokey. The subplots are not needed at all --especially the one with the hot sexed up secretary. And some of the writing could have been improved. But it sure does look nice in Technicolor.

I also saw this movie and it's an excellent spy movie. I saw this movie because my Mom Anita Guerreiro plays the singer at the restaurant that Ray Milland and Maureen O'Hara's character's are having dinner. I also knew Hummberto Madeira who played Tio Rabio Ray Milland's ship mate. If you are a fan of spy movies you have to see this one. It is great. This movie was shot on location in Portugal and that was great to be able to see beautiful Lisbon in the good old days. Portugal is a beautiful country and it has been shown in several movie thru out the years. Pepita

I consider Ray Milland was a much more influential director and actor than the afficiandos estimate. A good sound actor who could carry the lead particularly well and as this film and "A Man Alone" indicate he had the ability to create watchable,logical movies that had good camera work and never over egged the pudding.The Camera work in Lisbon is particularly good as are the sets which convey the aura of the time. The story line is clever without being to complex and an air of authenticity pervades the production which was done in an age where the backlot was normally everything.Splendid acting from Claude Rains as usual with Milland and the rest matching it perfectly. A good rainy day movie even now and worth my score of 8.