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They Won’t Believe Me Blu-ray Review

“They Won’t Believe Me” is a good old fashioned film noir.

1947’s “They Won’t Believe Me” begins with a man (Larry) on trial for murder. When he takes the stand to tell the true story of what happened, the film flashes back to Larry’s past. We learn that Larry is married to a kind, rich woman named Greta but that he’s also seeing a magazine writer named Janice on the side. His fling ends when Greta makes some moves to ensure the marriage keeps going. After landing a new job at a brokerage firm, Larry’s adulterous ways come back into the fold again when he falls for a gold digging employee (Verna). Larry finds himself falling for Verna, but things don’t exactly turn out the way Larry hopes as matters take a dark turn to say the least.

Although comparisons to “Double Indemnity” are inevitable, director Irving Pichel’s “They Won’t Believe Me” fully stands on its own. Yes, this is another film noir about adultery, but writer Jonathan Latimer’s script has a very different story that also offers up a few twists in the last half hour. I won’t spoil what happens, but Latimer’s exploration of themes about guilt, lust, lies, and consequences of actions were nothing short of impactful. I was also drawn to the fact that there is an element of tragedy to this film noir as unfortunate circumstances befall the innocent as a result of bad decisions that were made. 

The cast is filled with talented actors such as Robert Young, Susan Hayward, Rita Johnson, Tom Powers and Jane Greer. Robert Young is a fine lead as the sleazy Larry whose actions lead to serious consequences. The real scene stealer here is Susan Hayward as the quintessential femme fatale Verna. 

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 1.37:1 1080p. How does it look? The B&W film gets a super crisp hi-def transfer.

Audio Track: 2.0 DTS-HD MA. How does  it sound? The audio is a little too snowy for my liking but it’s still decent nonetheless.

No extras have been included.

“They Won’t Believe Me” will be released May 11 on Amazon and other sellers.

May 1, 2021 - Posted by nicklyons1 | Blu-Ray review | Film Noir, Susan Hayward, They Won't Believe Me Blu-ray Review