Other reviewers of The Doctor and the Girl have rightfully praised its excellent treatment of a plot-line that at first glance seems familiar, even hackneyed. Of course, the sterling performances of everybody on screen are a huge asset to the picture. But for me, the gold medal has to be given to Curtis Bernhardt's expert handling of Theodore Reeves' adroit screenplay.
It's a tightly-paced film, with very few exteriors. But Bernhardt's brilliant interiors give superb depth to each scene and each character, from stern Charles Coburn to sylphlike Janet Leigh to earnest Bruce Bennett (in a great supporting role as an unassuming ENT specialist). The director keeps everybody's performance low-key and believable. In her first scenes, sickly Janet Leigh seems to be wearing no makeup at all. And even Charles Coburn isn't allowed to milk his scenes to the limit.
A master of lighting and camera angles, Bernhardt was one of the numerous excellent filmmakers in exile from Nazi Germany. His filmography is a strong one, studded with many entertaining films of the forties and fifties. Conflict, starring a quintessential Humphrey Bogart, and My Reputation with Barbara Stanwyck at her best, are two goodies that come to mind. And let's not forget Possessed, highlighted by Joan Crawford's hallucinatory performance.
But unlike some other exiled directors - such as Wilder, Lubitsch, Lang and Sirk - Curtis Bernhardt hasn't got any universally acclaimed masterpieces on his résumé, so he is often neglected by movie historians. But he was certainly a talent to reckon with, and any of his pictures deserve a careful look.
P.S. I totally concur with EliotTempleton's comments about Hollywood having a very long history of movies with medical themes. In fact Theodore Reeves, the main writer for this film, was the author of many medical screenplays dating back to the 1930s.
It's a tightly-paced film, with very few exteriors. But Bernhardt's brilliant interiors give superb depth to each scene and each character, from stern Charles Coburn to sylphlike Janet Leigh to earnest Bruce Bennett (in a great supporting role as an unassuming ENT specialist). The director keeps everybody's performance low-key and believable. In her first scenes, sickly Janet Leigh seems to be wearing no makeup at all. And even Charles Coburn isn't allowed to milk his scenes to the limit.
A master of lighting and camera angles, Bernhardt was one of the numerous excellent filmmakers in exile from Nazi Germany. His filmography is a strong one, studded with many entertaining films of the forties and fifties. Conflict, starring a quintessential Humphrey Bogart, and My Reputation with Barbara Stanwyck at her best, are two goodies that come to mind. And let's not forget Possessed, highlighted by Joan Crawford's hallucinatory performance.
But unlike some other exiled directors - such as Wilder, Lubitsch, Lang and Sirk - Curtis Bernhardt hasn't got any universally acclaimed masterpieces on his résumé, so he is often neglected by movie historians. But he was certainly a talent to reckon with, and any of his pictures deserve a careful look.
P.S. I totally concur with EliotTempleton's comments about Hollywood having a very long history of movies with medical themes. In fact Theodore Reeves, the main writer for this film, was the author of many medical screenplays dating back to the 1930s.