The Unholy Wife
Encyclopedia
The Unholy Wife is a color film noir
drama film produced and directed by John Farrow
at RKO Radio Pictures and released by Universal Pictures
as RKO was in its final stages of closing down. The screenplay was written by William Durkee and Jonathan Latimer
.
The film is about a femme fatale
named Phyllis (Diana Dors
) who tells her sordid story from her prison cell.
) telling her story in flashbacks. It begins how she meets rich vintner
Paul Hochen (Rod Steiger
) from Napa Valley in a bar and marries him soon after.
Not long after the marriage, Phyllis begins having an affair with a local rodeo rider, seeing him every time her husband is away, which is frequently. One night, Phyllis' elderly mother-in-law (Beulah Bondi
) thinks a burglar is breaking into the house, so she calls the police.
Phyllis sees this as an opportunity to kill her husband and blame the burglar for the crime. The plan backfires a day later when Phyllis instead kills her husband's best friend. Not wanting to go to jail, she convinces her husband to confess to the killing and they concoct a story that would set him free after the trial.
Unfortunately for her husband, Phyllis lies at the trial and he is put away for murder. The "unholy" wife finally gets the punishment she deserves when her mother-in-law dies of poisoning and the blame goes to Phyllis, who is sent to prison—for a crime she had nothing to do with. Later, she faces her execution in the electric chair
. The film ends with Paul showing his and Phyllis's son Michael (Gary Hunley) the vineyard that will someday be his.
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
drama film produced and directed by John Farrow
John Farrow
John Villiers Farrow, CBE was an Australian, later American, film director, producer and screenwriter. In 1957 he won the Academy Award for Best Writing / Best Screenplay for Around the World in Eighty Days and in 1942 he was nominated as Best Director for Wake Island.-Life and career:Farrow was...
at RKO Radio Pictures and released by Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures
-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...
as RKO was in its final stages of closing down. The screenplay was written by William Durkee and Jonathan Latimer
Jonathan Latimer
Jonathan Wyatt Latimer was an American crime writer-Life:Born in Chicago, Illinois, he attended the Mesa Ranch School in Arizona from 1922-1925 and later studied at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1929...
.
The film is about a femme fatale
Femme fatale
A femme fatale is a mysterious and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers in bonds of irresistible desire, often leading them into compromising, dangerous, and deadly situations. She is an archetype of literature and art...
named Phyllis (Diana Dors
Diana Dors
Diana Dors was an English actress, born Diana Mary Fluck in Swindon, Wiltshire. Considered the English equivalent of the blonde bombshells of Hollywood, Dors described herself as: "The only sex symbol Britain has produced since Lady Godiva."-Early life:Diana Mary Fluck was born in Swindon,...
) who tells her sordid story from her prison cell.
Plot
The film begins with Phyllis (Diana DorsDiana Dors
Diana Dors was an English actress, born Diana Mary Fluck in Swindon, Wiltshire. Considered the English equivalent of the blonde bombshells of Hollywood, Dors described herself as: "The only sex symbol Britain has produced since Lady Godiva."-Early life:Diana Mary Fluck was born in Swindon,...
) telling her story in flashbacks. It begins how she meets rich vintner
Vintner
A vintner is a wine merchant. You pronounce it like this In some modern use, in particular in American English, the term is alsoused as a synonym for winemaker....
Paul Hochen (Rod Steiger
Rod Steiger
Rodney Stephen "Rod" Steiger was an Academy Award-winning American actor known for his performances in such films as On the Waterfront, The Big Knife, Oklahoma!, The Harder They Fall, Across the Bridge, The Pawnbroker, Doctor Zhivago, In the Heat of the Night, and Waterloo as well as the...
) from Napa Valley in a bar and marries him soon after.
Not long after the marriage, Phyllis begins having an affair with a local rodeo rider, seeing him every time her husband is away, which is frequently. One night, Phyllis' elderly mother-in-law (Beulah Bondi
Beulah Bondi
Beulah Bondi was an American actress.Bondi began her acting career as a young child in theater, and after establishing herself as a stage actress, she reprised her role in Street Scene for the 1931 film version...
) thinks a burglar is breaking into the house, so she calls the police.
Phyllis sees this as an opportunity to kill her husband and blame the burglar for the crime. The plan backfires a day later when Phyllis instead kills her husband's best friend. Not wanting to go to jail, she convinces her husband to confess to the killing and they concoct a story that would set him free after the trial.
Unfortunately for her husband, Phyllis lies at the trial and he is put away for murder. The "unholy" wife finally gets the punishment she deserves when her mother-in-law dies of poisoning and the blame goes to Phyllis, who is sent to prison—for a crime she had nothing to do with. Later, she faces her execution in the electric chair
Electric chair
Execution by electrocution, usually performed using an electric chair, is an execution method originating in the United States in which the condemned person is strapped to a specially built wooden chair and electrocuted through electrodes placed on the body...
. The film ends with Paul showing his and Phyllis's son Michael (Gary Hunley) the vineyard that will someday be his.
Cast
- Diana DorsDiana DorsDiana Dors was an English actress, born Diana Mary Fluck in Swindon, Wiltshire. Considered the English equivalent of the blonde bombshells of Hollywood, Dors described herself as: "The only sex symbol Britain has produced since Lady Godiva."-Early life:Diana Mary Fluck was born in Swindon,...
as Phyllis Hochen - Rod SteigerRod SteigerRodney Stephen "Rod" Steiger was an Academy Award-winning American actor known for his performances in such films as On the Waterfront, The Big Knife, Oklahoma!, The Harder They Fall, Across the Bridge, The Pawnbroker, Doctor Zhivago, In the Heat of the Night, and Waterloo as well as the...
as Paul Hochen - Tom TryonTom TryonTom Tryon was an American film and television actor, best known for playing the title role in the film The Cardinal and the Walt Disney television character Texas John Slaughter...
as San Sanders - Beulah BondiBeulah BondiBeulah Bondi was an American actress.Bondi began her acting career as a young child in theater, and after establishing herself as a stage actress, she reprised her role in Street Scene for the 1931 film version...
as Emma Hochen - Marie WindsorMarie WindsorMarie Windsor . Born as Emily Marie Bertelson in Marysvale, Piute County, Utah, Windsor was an actress known as "The Queen of the Bs" because she appeared in so many film noirs and B-movies like Cat-Women of the Moon...
as Gwen - Arthur FranzArthur FranzArthur Franz was a B-movie actor whose most notable role was as Lieutenant, Junior Grade H. Paynter, Jr. in The Caine Mutiny. He also appeared in Roseanna McCoy , Invaders from Mars , Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man and The Unholy Wife , among others...
as Father Stephen Hochen - Luis Van RootenLuis van RootenLuis van Rooten, was an American film actor. He was christened Luis d'Antin van Rooten.Van Rooten earned his BA at the University of Pennsylvania and worked as an architect before deciding to pursue film work in Hollywood during World War II...
as Ezra Benton - Joe De SantisJoe De SantisJoseph Vito DeSantis was an American radio, television, movie and theatrical actor and sculptor.-Biography:Joe DeSantis was born Joseph Vito Marcello DeSantis to Italian immigrant parents in New York City...
as Gino Verdugo - Argentina BrunettiArgentina Brunetti-Biography:Brunetti was born Argentina Ferrau in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She began her show business career at the age of three with a walk on role in the opera, Cavalleria Rusticana and followed Mimi Aguglia, her famous mother's footsteps in the theater performing supporting roles on stages...
as Theresa - Steve Pendleton as Deputy Bob Watkins
- Douglas SpencerDouglas SpencerDouglas Spencer was an American film actor. Starting in the mid 1930's and going through the 40's, he appeared in dozens of films as an extra, then cameo roles and uncredited roles. He worked as a Stand-In and in Production Departments...
as Judge - Gary Hunley as Michael
- James Burke as Sheriff Tom Watling
- Tol AveryTol AveryTol Avery was an American film and television character actor with more than a hundred screen appearances between 1950 and 1974...
as Dist. Atty. Carl Kramer
Critical reception
The film has received mixed reviews. Dennis Schwartz at the "Ozus' World Movie Reviews" web site called the film, "A ponderous melodrama that even becomes more awkward by the film's end."External links
- The Unholy Wife film trailer at Back Alley Noir