The version of "The Stranger Came Home" which I saw was renamed "The Unholy Four"...which is unfortunate, as I THOUGHT it was a remake of the old Lon Chaney films (a silent and a sound remake) of the same title. But the story is completely different...and much duller.
Four years ago, Philip Vickers was on a trip to Portugal with four friends when he was apparently tossed overboard by one of them and left for dead. The resulting trauma brought on amnesia, so the events leading to his attack are unclear in his mind and he's back to solve the crime. And, to get maximum effect, he shows up unannounced! Well, pretty soon one suspect is murdered...presumably because they knew too much! Will Philip be the next? Or, perhaps one of the remaining three?
Even though the story is set in the UK, Paulette Goddard is cast as Angie...Philip's wife. I assume they cast her to give the film a bit more international appeal but Goddard's career was on the rocks and her participation in the picture must have been relatively cheap. Now, I am NOT attacking Goddard...just pointing out that by 1954, her career was almost completely over...even though she was in her mid-40s.
So is this movie any good? Well, it certainly is contrived and how much you buy the plot will depend on if you like the film. To me, the plot seems like a one in a billion type situation and films based on the notion of amnesia like this are difficult to love. Yes, amnesia is possible but like the way it happened in this story...not likely. Normally, amnesia is very short-term unless there is serious brain damage...and Philip came back looking fine and apparently with no after-effects from the attack.
Otherwise, I wasn't thrilled by the overall tempo of the film or the various cliches which really made the film seem LESS real than the Easter Bunny. It also really lacked energy and perhaps SHOWING the attack in some way would have given the movie energy or, perhaps, have some violent murders after Philip's return...but they are done in the most disconnected manner...off-screen.
The bottom line is that this is not a terrible film but the basic plot really left a lot to be desired. Watchable...but it really should have been better.
Four years ago, Philip Vickers was on a trip to Portugal with four friends when he was apparently tossed overboard by one of them and left for dead. The resulting trauma brought on amnesia, so the events leading to his attack are unclear in his mind and he's back to solve the crime. And, to get maximum effect, he shows up unannounced! Well, pretty soon one suspect is murdered...presumably because they knew too much! Will Philip be the next? Or, perhaps one of the remaining three?
Even though the story is set in the UK, Paulette Goddard is cast as Angie...Philip's wife. I assume they cast her to give the film a bit more international appeal but Goddard's career was on the rocks and her participation in the picture must have been relatively cheap. Now, I am NOT attacking Goddard...just pointing out that by 1954, her career was almost completely over...even though she was in her mid-40s.
So is this movie any good? Well, it certainly is contrived and how much you buy the plot will depend on if you like the film. To me, the plot seems like a one in a billion type situation and films based on the notion of amnesia like this are difficult to love. Yes, amnesia is possible but like the way it happened in this story...not likely. Normally, amnesia is very short-term unless there is serious brain damage...and Philip came back looking fine and apparently with no after-effects from the attack.
Otherwise, I wasn't thrilled by the overall tempo of the film or the various cliches which really made the film seem LESS real than the Easter Bunny. It also really lacked energy and perhaps SHOWING the attack in some way would have given the movie energy or, perhaps, have some violent murders after Philip's return...but they are done in the most disconnected manner...off-screen.
The bottom line is that this is not a terrible film but the basic plot really left a lot to be desired. Watchable...but it really should have been better.