Sorry, this movie sucks

Not even bad in a good way

Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

Blistering performances.

I wonder how the conversation at Warner Brothers went the day they dreamed up this movie. Was it something like: "Hey, Casablanca was a big hit. I wonder if we could cash in on that? Let's try retelling the same story, and just change a few superficial things, so it isn't too obvious. You know, keep the story about the woman who has an affair with another guy during the war because she thought the man she was in love with had been killed. And then he comes back, and meets the interim guy, and there's jealousy and all that. Maybe have her pull a gun on the interim guy again, the way Bergman did on Bogart. That was a good scene! And then she finally goes off with her first love again. Something like that, you know, but we just change a few details. And say, we've still got Paul Heinried under contract. We can get him to play the guy who gets cheated on again. He was good at that. And maybe use Claude Raines again. We'll just change a few of the details." And so they did, and so Deception was born.This time, we see more of it through the woman's eyes, this time played by Bette Davis. And this time, the man and the woman weren't actually married before, so if she had an affair with another guy when she thought the first one was dead, there wasn't actually anything wrong with that. But the first guy still gets jealous.Did Heinreid get tired of playing the noble cuckold? I wonder.Did Davis object to having to play a watered down, less attractive version of a role Ingrid Bergman had already immortalized? This isn't a bad movie, though it is often VERY melodramatic. Unlike Casablanca, I don't know how many men could have sat through it.It shows the difference you get with even very fine actors when the script just isn't that interesting.

I was so looking forward to this one but when I was finished I was glad it was over.A former European Cello Player finally comes to America after the war. His old girlfriend sees his name in a recital advertisement and she goes and sees if it's actually him...it is.They reminisce a bit and catch up on how he'd been in a prison camp for a while. They go back to her place and he notices for a girl who says she's broke or doesn't have much money she sure has a lot of nice things. She tells him she teaches students who give her these things instead of money but he is suspicious. He trusts her, barely, then they immediately get married. After this, she basically lies through her teeth the rest of the film. That's it. For the "Deception"...read below.The real Deception in this film is that she's a "kept" women of a famous composer. She still loves her old flame from back when and they decide to get married and this displeases her Sugar Daddy. He proceeds to do everything to pull the strings in her life to prevent him from telling her new husband what she really is. Bette Davis had a run of these films in the 40's but this one is not on the top of her best list. She has great chemistry with Claude Rains with the films they did and in this...it's no different. This is Claude Rains film though folks. Plain and simple. Bette Davis is good like she always is but Claude Rains over the topness is just that...over-the-top. He pokes and prods her throughout and she can do nothing about it. He's a composer genius and he thinks that's enough to do whatever he wants...whenever he wants and he does this...with flare. Paul Henreid is wasted in this. He has done so many other better films. He's just nothing special in this.I won't spill on the ending but it's a good one. This is not even remotely close to my favorite Bette Davis film and for good reason. It's nothing to write home about imo. For a title like Deception I expected a lot more but got a loss less. It comes down to this...girl finds long lost love...they marry...she's a kept women...her sugar daddy lover is not pleased at her marriage...she lies and prevents her new husband from finding out...pretty good ending. (Fin)

Deception (1946)A marvelous chamber piece, in a way, involving orchestral music. The cast begins with two principals, played with usual intensity by Bette Davis and with usual restraint by Paul Henreid. This broods a bit and suggests trouble, and then comes the third player, who outdoes them both, in the form of Claude Rains. The rest of the movie is an interplay between the three, a push and pull and game of dodging and, of course, deception.So how to judge this kind of tightly woven enterprise? It feels as though William Wyler could have directed it, so polished and rich it all is. But this is a Warner Brothers drama, so there is another kind of layer of dark danger, and of a noir inspired lighting and camera-work. This visual aspect, in a way, is the real star of the film, which says a lot, considering the high level of acting involved. In all it's purely an entertainment, but at the highest level. The backdrop of classic music and classical musicians hasn't worn well over the years, but I grew up with this kind of scene and it brought back a lot of those vibes. A terrific movie within its own genre.

"Deception" released in 1946, is a mildly entertaining film that has some top-notch stars. Bette Davis stars again with Claude Rains and Paul Henried. The three principle actors had previously starred together four years earlier in "Now Voyager" a superior film to this one. This was the fourth film Davis and Rains did together, and their last. In this film, Davis plays a pianist who finds an old love, played by Henried, a cellist. Rains plays an arrogant symphony conductor. The film centers around the world of music, of the classical variety. Davis and Henried marry in the film, much to the dismay of Rains, who was Davis' mentor and lover. It all gets somewhat complicated, with the arrogant Rains playing games with the two other stars, or is he? One is never sure whether he is out to destroy the career of the up and coming Henried out of jealousy or is he just playing his usual obnoxious games. Davis has never told her new husband about the true nature her relationship with Rains, although he seems to always suspect it. Davis and Rains have it out at the end, and the film ends rather strangely as well. "Deception" starts out rather flat and dull, does manage to pick up steam, but certainly does not live up to the standard of prior films of Bette Davis. It is a pity the film also lost money upon its release, for it gives Claude Rains one of the finest performances of his career. Paul Henried is also in fine form. Ms. Davis seems to take a bit of a backseat here to let the others actors shine, whether intentional or not. This was the beginning of the end for Davis at Warner Brothers, as her next few films would be flops and she would leave the studio by 1950. But what a run she had there!