Dr. Stewart McIver (Richard Widmark) is newly in charge of a private psychiatric clinic taking over from Dr. Devanal (Charles Boyer). He is dedicated to his patients but his wife Karen (Gloria Grahame) is angry at coming in second in his life. It's the comings and goings of various people there. Stewart works closely with staff member Meg Rinehart (Lauren Bacall). Karen injects herself into the hospital business with new drapes angering old-timer Victoria Inch (Lillian Gish).
I sat up and noticed when Gloria Grahame threw her first hissy-fit. The movie needs more of that drama. Otherwise, this is more a TV hospital drama with interconnecting characters. The story has a scatter shot effect as it follows so many characters on so many levels. It's fun when the drama goes crazy. Lillian Gish is wonderfully petty. She's a bit of a standout. An unhinged Gloria Grahame is also pretty fun. On the other hand, Lauren Bacall is rather flat by comparison. She doesn't have much heat with Widmark. The problem with Stewart is that he should be clearer and more open. He's mostly getting frustrated at people not doing what he wants and that's fine. It seems the frustration can be lessen if he just sit down and discuss the issues calmly. His issue with his wife is another matter. I like her chaos which is the source of a lot of fun. I'm more ambivalent about Stewart. Widmark's acting has too much anger to be a good psychiatrist. All in all, some of this is fun. A lot of it is interesting. Most of this is melodramatic chaos.
I sat up and noticed when Gloria Grahame threw her first hissy-fit. The movie needs more of that drama. Otherwise, this is more a TV hospital drama with interconnecting characters. The story has a scatter shot effect as it follows so many characters on so many levels. It's fun when the drama goes crazy. Lillian Gish is wonderfully petty. She's a bit of a standout. An unhinged Gloria Grahame is also pretty fun. On the other hand, Lauren Bacall is rather flat by comparison. She doesn't have much heat with Widmark. The problem with Stewart is that he should be clearer and more open. He's mostly getting frustrated at people not doing what he wants and that's fine. It seems the frustration can be lessen if he just sit down and discuss the issues calmly. His issue with his wife is another matter. I like her chaos which is the source of a lot of fun. I'm more ambivalent about Stewart. Widmark's acting has too much anger to be a good psychiatrist. All in all, some of this is fun. A lot of it is interesting. Most of this is melodramatic chaos.