The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946)

A ruthless, domineering woman is married to an alcoholic D.A., her childhood companion who is the only living witness to her murder of her rich aunt seventeen years earlier.

Director:

Lewis Milestone

Writers:

Robert Rossen (screenplay), John Patrick (story),

Stars:

Barbara Stanwyck, Van Heflin, Lizabeth Scott

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Barbara Stanwyck	...	Martha Ivers
Van Heflin	...	Sam Masterson
Lizabeth Scott	...	Antonia 'Toni' Marachek
Kirk Douglas	...	Walter O'Neil
Judith Anderson	...	Mrs. Ivers
Roman Bohnen	...	Mr. O'Neil
Darryl Hickman	...	Sam as a Boy
Janis Wilson	...	Martha as a Girl
Ann Doran	...	Bobbi St. John
Frank Orth	...	Hotel Clerk
James Flavin	...	Detective #1
Mickey Kuhn	...	Walter as a Boy
Charles D. Brown	...	McCarthy - Private Detective

Storyline

In 1928, young heiress Martha Ivers fails to run off with friend Sam Masterson, and is involved in fatal events. Years later, Sam returns to find Martha the power behind Iverstown and married to "good boy" Walter O'Neil, now district attorney. At first, Sam is more interested in displaced blonde Toni Marachek than in his boyhood friends; but they draw him into a convoluted web of plotting and cross-purposes.

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Plot Keywords:

aunt | heiress | district attorney | tutor | industrial town | 

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Taglines:

Fate drew them together... and only murder could part them!

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Genres:

Drama | Film-Noir

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 July 1946 (USA)

Also Known As:

Love Lies Bleeding

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hal Wallis Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The failure of the original copyright holder to renew the film's copyright resulted in it falling into public domain, meaning that virtually anyone could duplicate and sell a VHS/DVD copy of the film. Therefore, many of the versions of this film available on the market are either severely (and usually badly) edited and/or of extremely poor quality, having been duped from second- or third-generation (or more) copies of the film.

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Goofs

The same loop of film repeats, although subtly, the street scene by the Ivers factory as seen through Martha Ivers's office window.

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Quotes

Martha Ivers: A sure thing is never a gamble.
Sam Masterson: No? What odds you give that that's a fact?

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Connections

Featured in Love and a .45 (1994)

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Soundtracks

"Strange Love"
Written by Eddie Heyman & Miklós Rózsa

User Reviews

Don't Ever Look Back

In 1928, in Iverstown, the heiress Martha Smith Ivers is caught by the police for the fourth time while trying to runaway home with her friend Sam Masterson. She hates her aunt Mrs. Ivers (Judith Anderson) and while in her room with her tutor's son Walter O'Neil and Sam later, the power runs out and she asks Sam to bring her cat back to the room. When Sam is trying to catch the cat in the dark, her aunt comes to the staircase and Sam hides himself. Mrs. Ivers hits the cat with a stick, Martha pushes her in the staircase and Mrs. Ivers dies. Martha lies to Mr. O'Neil and tells that a man had killed her aunt, and Walter confirms the lie. Eighteen years later, Sam (Van Heflin) is driving in the road nearby Iverstown, but he does not pay attention in a curve and hits his car in a post. He brings his car to a body shop in the industrial town, and while waiting for the repair, he meets the gorgeous Antonia Marachek (Lizabeth Scott) in front of the house where he lived. When Antonia loses her bus to her hometown, she accepts the invitation of Sam for a drink and later she goes to his hotel. On the next morning, Antonia is arrested for violation of probation, and Sam decides to pay a visit to Walter O'Neil (Kirk Douglas), now a successful district attorney and married with the wealthy Martha Ivers (Barbara Stanwyck), to ask him to release Antonia. When Walter sees Sam, he believes Sam wants to blackmail Martha and him, and his misunderstanding leads the former friends to tragic revelations about the fatal night and discloses dirty secrets about the couple Martha and Walter.

"The Strange Love of Martha Ivers" is an amazing underrated film-noir. The flawless story is excellent, disclosed in an adequate pace and developing perfectly the despicable characters. The black & white cinematography is magnificent, and the fatal character of Barbara Stanwyck is one of the most dangerous and manipulative villains I have ever seen in a film-noir. Kirk Douglas is great in his debut, but Van Heflin and Lizabeth Scott steals the movie with their performances and chemistry. My vote is ten.

Title (Brazil): "O Tempo Não Apaga" ("The Time Does not Erase")