Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

After getting to know her for an hour or so, Richard Widmark, as air pilot Jed, remarks that Nell(Marilyn) is like silk on one side and sandpaper on the other, in her case, meaning that she seems coherent at times , but delusional at others. When Nell finds out that Jed is an air pilot, she goes berserk inside, and begins calling him Philip: her deceased boyfriend pilot. Despite his denials, she persists in this belief. She even tries to get rid of the girl(Bunny) she is babysitting for, so she won't interfere in her getting further acquainted with Jed. Thus, Jed rescues Bunny when it appears Nell is trying to pusher her out the open window, while she is looking out. When this fails, Nell resorts to tying up and gagging Bunny with scarves(I think). We didn't see this operation, so I wonder how she accomplished it! Her Uncle Eddie, an elevator operator she lives with, makes her take off the negligee, earrings, bracelet, and lipstick she 'borrowed' from Bunny's mother. When Eddie discovers Jed hiding in the bathroom, Nell beans him with a heavy object to prevent him from escorting Jed out. Poor Jed: he was just bored and frustrated with his former girlfriend, telling him he'd make a lousy husband because he doesn't have sufficient empathy for people. Seeing Nell through his window to the court yard, he decided to try to strike up a little action to pass the time. Pretty soon he realizes this shy lonely young woman has a few loose screws. Instead of politely leaving against her protests, he decides to stay, perhaps concerned that she might harm Bunny. Meanwhile, he has another talk with his ex-girlfriend Lyn about rekindling their relationship. He finally strikes pay dirt at the end, when Lyn sees the concern he has in trying to do what's best for Nell. Clearly, her 3 years in a mental ward failed to cure her mental problems. Probably, she was just warehoused there. He, along with some police, arrange for her to spend some time in a NYC hospital, where she might get better treatment. Thus, there is an apparently happy ending for Jed and Lyn. Marilyn's status at the end might seem tragic, but was possibly the best they could do for her. Unfortunately, they didn't have the various drugs we have today to suppress such symptoms, so I don't know what they could have done to help her.Widmark was bored and boring until he got acquainted with Nell. Fortunately, during this time, Anne Bancroft(Lyn)was singing some nice songs in the bar/restaurant area. Hard to tell, but I think Marilyn was just so-so in a role that provided only a few moments of excitement. On the other hand, she probably more represented a typical schizophrenic than a more animated performance. She was in the age range when most cases of Schizophrenia begin. Sometimes, they maybe instigated by a traumatic event, although more often this occurred in childhood rather than in the recent past. This certainly has the earmarks of a mild form of film noire, all the action taking place in a dark evening inside a hotel, and sometimes the action occurring in a dark room.To my knowledge, this was a rare film of the times that dealt seriously with mental illness. "The Snake Pit" is another, which takes a look inside an asylum.Available as part of the Marilyn Premier DVD Collection.

While the movie was artfully crafted it was not necessarily enthralling. The plot sort of dragged on, only peaking interest with Marilyn's acting. In this film she was slightly deeper than her previous roles, moving beyond simple sex appeal. her role in this film is deeper, darker. She is a babysitter, yet she is involved with a random man. she is deceptive in that she had spent time in a mental institution, she hid this from the bosses. the lighting and cinematography in this film were important in the making of marilyn's character. the shadows kept her hidden in certain points, attaining the certain feel of film noir.

"Don't Bother To Knock" was decently entertaining, if somewhat short. The fact that it's entirely set in one location doesn't help it any - more than halfway through the movie I began to wonder when it'd leave the hotel, but to my surprise (and dismay) it never did. I suppose it turned out to be a very different movie than I was led to believe it was (but that's more the fault of whoever wrote the description for it on Netflix than of the movie itself). I thought it was interesting how Nell's mental illness was portrayed. In some scenes she's detached from reality, in others she borders on deranged (such as when she almost pushes the kid out the window), but in the end she's seen as tragic. I don't know if this is the first film to portray mental illness in such a light, but I'd imagine it's among the first to portray the mentally ill as more than just "crazy."

In 1952's "Don't Bother To Knock" a very alluring, 26 year-old, Marilyn Monroe puts in one of the quirkiest character portrayals of her entire acting career.Even though this film stars the likes of Richard Widmark (and a young Anne Bancroft) - It's definitely Monroe and her performance as the mentally-unhinged babysitter, Neil Forbes, that the viewer will, no doubt, be paying the closest attention to.Now, I would never admit that Monroe's portrayal here was, in any way, "legendary" - But, hey! - Due to this being something of a B-Picture, I'd confidently say that she certainly fulfilled her obligation, in my books, of playing a "subdued" psycho (1950's-style) quite satisfactorily.