By Love Possessed

Posted by Reinaldo Massengill on Wednesday, February 21, 2024

James Gould Couzzen's thoughtful novel has been reduced to a complex soap opera. In barest outline, the screenplay seems much like the source material: a look into the lives of a half-dozen socially prominent, well-to-do citizens in a small eastern town.

James Gould Couzzen’s thoughtful novel has been reduced to a complex soap opera. In barest outline, the screenplay seems much like the source material: a look into the lives of a half-dozen socially prominent, well-to-do citizens in a small eastern town.

The focal point is a successful lawyer (Efrem Zimbalist Jr) who, in the course of several climactic days, finds that his perfectly ordered life is, in reality, as full of self deception and chaos as the lives of some of his less stable friends. The latter include his law partner (Jason Robards) who, after a crippling accident, refuses the love-pity of his wife (Lana Turner) who subsequently turns to double scotches and solace with Zimbalist.

Further complications involve Zimbalist’s inability to understand his son (George Hamilton) who seeks release with the town hussy, who charges the boy with rape.

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Turner looks beautiful in a great wardrobe, but can only suggest the ironic, gutsy dame the character might have been. Zimbalist spends most of his time looking thoughtful while chomping on his pipe, and Robards just limps and looks pained. Scoring nicely is Yvonne Craig as the town trollop who persists in talking about herself in the third person.

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By Love Possessed

  • Production: United Artists/Mirisch. Director John Sturges; Producer Walter Mirisch; Screenplay John Dennis; Camera Russell Metty; Editor Ferris Webster; Music Elmer Bernstein; Art Director Malcolm Brown
  • Crew: (Color) Available on VHS. Extract of a review from 1961. Running time: 115 MIN.
  • With: Lana Turner Efrem Zimbalist Jr Jason Robards George Hamilton Susan Kohner Barbara Bel Geddes

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