Strong and Moving!

Just perfect...

An absolute waste of money

A Brilliant Conflict

Albert Dekker stars in a dual role in "Among the Living" from 1941, which also stars Susan Hayward and Francis Farmer.Dekker plays John and Paul Raden, part of an important family - in fact, the town is called Radentown. Paul supposedly died when he was 10 years old. However, he was discovered to be mentally unstable and was locked in a secret room in the Raden Mansion.When John Raden and his wife (Farmer) return for the Raden patriarch's funeral, they learn that Paul is alive.Paul escapes after killing his caretaker and takes off into town, renting a room, where he meets the landlady's daughter (Hayward). Childlike and unschooled in social graces, Paul gives her money and tells her to buy a new dress. She's no idiot and takes him for a real ride.After a night in a club, a woman is found murdered, and the hunt for the killer is on.Decent film with noir touches and a dash of horror, and an excellent performance by Dekker who gives an individuality to both twins. Susan Hayward really pops - frankly, I prefer her earlier films, when she was fresh and sexy, as opposed to the harder characters she played later. Here she's a real scene-stealer.I have a quibble with what happened toward the end - I really didn't understand the lynch mob mentality. It seemed over the top.Albert Dekker was a prominent stage actor who died a strange death. During his career, he turned in some very good film, television, and Broadway performances. This was a good showcase for him.All in all, pretty good.

Where does insanity start? It truly varies from patient to patient, but in many cases, it's obviously child abuse, and that is the theme here as one of two twin brothers ends up in a straight jacket in the family mansion's attic because of abuse he went through at the hands of his evil father. Years later, the old man has died, and now he's out on the street where havoc, death and destruction are sure to follow. Albert Dekker, who the year before played the equally menacing Dr. Cyclops, plays two sides of the coin; The sane brother who managed to escape his father's wrath and the brain damaged twin who only ended up in a straight jacket because he defended his mother against an equally brutal attack by his father. Moving into a boarding house run by spunky Maude Eburne, he fells in love with her daughter (a young Susan Hayward) but after a visit with his brother (whom he viciously attacks in front of sister-in-law Frances Farmer) goes on a rampage, stalking and brutally killing a young blonde he saw in a tavern. The insane brother shows gentility and total sanity when he's with Hayward, but that's most likely going to snap at any moment, especially when Hayward decides she's going to find the mysterious killer on the loose and asks him for his help. Harry Carey is excellent as the family doctor who knows the truth about the troubled family's past and tries to help the insane brother to no avail. Hayward is her typical tough cookie, claiming "For $5000, I'm not afraid of anything, including death", but unfortunately, Farmer (who around this time was dealing with serious mental issues herself) is totally wasted. Her small role does give the indication, however, how great she would have been in the same types of roles which were given to newcomers such as Veronica Lake, Lauren Bacall and Lizabeth Scott with her husky voice and seemingly tough demeanor. The tension builds up as does the pressure with Dekker in getting caught in his own trap, and this makes for a very exciting conclusion. An early example of film noir which mixes in elements of horror, Dekker's insane brother could be described as a live version of Frankenstein's monster as his gentility and madness are mixed to provide him with a very hair-raising performance. This is a forgotten sleeper which very much deserves to be re-discovered.

Long before 'The Parent Trap' we get some great split-screen special effects of Albert Dekker playing twins in this 1941 early Noir. But, it seems Dekker did such a great job of playing two starring roles in this film, that he spent most of the rest of his long career playing bit parts. He wasn't really that bad . . . or that good. Not the greatest film ever but worth a watch just for the wild vigilante mob that becomes the star of the show and is reminiscent of 'Frankenstein.' Plus how can you go wrong with a sweet innocent lead heroine named Mollie Pickens and several scenes with a newsboy walking down the street shouting, "Extra, Extra . . ." to help move the plot along?

Stuart Heisler had been a film editor for over 24 years with one directorial credit before Paramount let him direct a low budget entry "The Biscuit Eater" (1940) - it became the sleeper of the year with the National Board of Review naming it among it's top ten movies. Although he was later thrust into directing "A" movies, none of them found the critical praise that came his way with the release of the masterful psychological thriller "Among the Living". Susan Hayward, poised on the brink of stardom had had mainly nondescript roles, only her part as malevolent Hester in "Adam Had Four Sons" gave any indication of her explosive talent. Now, given the role of the sluttish Milly Pickens, Susan was given something she could really get her teeth into.After the death of his father, Maxim Raden, hated owner of the lately closed Radentown Mills, John (Albert Dekker) is told that his twin brother, whom he thought dead, is still alive. Paul is a hopeless lunatic kept straight jacketed in a secret room at Radenhouse. Many years before, in trying to defend his mother against his father's brutality, he was dashed against a wall and his only lasting memory is that of his mother's scream. When John and Saunders (Harry Carey), who has kept the secret for 25 years in exchange for a share of Maxim's estate, go to Radenhouse they find Paul has escaped after killing Pompey, his keeper. He wanted to see for himself that his father was not buried near his mother and what he finds sends him on a murderous rampage.He finds himself at a rooming house where his gentlemanly ways find favour with Ma Pickins (Maude Eburne) and her sluttish daughter Millie (Hayward). His clothes may be shabby but he is "refined"!!! "If I had a wad of folding dough like that I'd go right out and buy an outfit that would knock this neighbourhood cockeyed"!!! So says Millie when she sees Paul's cash!! but before he take Millie dancing he makes the acquaintance of a "B" girl (Jean Phillips, who bears a strong resemblance to Ginger Rogers). In a surreal sequence he wanders into the swinging "Riverbottom Cafe" where the laughter, music and jitterbugging all combine to send Paul into a frenzy. When the blonde floozy not only rejects him but laughs in his face (after he says he wishes Millie was there instead of her) - it leads to a terrifying chase, she running faster and faster, Paul gaining on her until, down a darkened alley all you hear is a piercing scream.Next day, when out with Millie, who is discreetly taking him for all she can get, news comes over the radio that John Raden is offering $5,000 reward for capture of the murderer. "Yahoo, $5,000!!! I could get a fur coat for that - all for little Millie"!! The town is whipped into a frenzy of mob rule and Millie convinces Paul to go with her to Radenhouse, she is convinced the murderer will be hiding out there and no one will suspect!! But they do and the mob go there too and Millie, excited to a fever pitch, misidentifies the innocent John, turning against Paul as easily as she had turned on to him!!!Albert Dekker really rose to the challenge of playing twins. His Paul was a mastery of understatement and he avoided the leers, ogles and grimaces that actors usually bought out when portraying madness. You felt only pity for him and what he had gone through and also for the fact that the doctor, his so-called friend, had only kept the secret for his own selfish reasons. Frances Farmer, initially one of the most beautiful of starlets, had gone through some severe emotional and alcohol problems. By the time of "Among the Living" she could barely function and later said her mental state was such that she hardly knew what she was doing. Fortunately she didn't need to do much, her portrayal of John's wife only required that she look frightened and scream at different times. Also seen in the cafe and "kangeroo court" scene was Dorothy Sebastian, bewitching beauty of the silents.