The Reckless Moment

"It could happen to so many married women!"

1949 1h 22m EN

👍

6.8

SOLID

★6.8TMDB · 141

DramaThrillerCrime

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

After discovering the dead body of her teenage daughter's lover, a housewife takes desperate measures to protect her family from scandal.

“It could happen to so many married women!”

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Cast

James Mason
Martin Donnelly
Joan Bennett
Lucia Harper
Geraldine Brooks
Bea Harper
Henry O'Neill
Tom Harper
Shepperd Strudwick
Ted Darby
David Bair
David Harper
Roy Roberts
Nagel
Jessie Arnold
Old Lady (uncredited)

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Max Ophüls
Writers: Elisabeth Sanxay Holding, Robert Soderberg, Henry Garson
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

82 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

77 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Max Ophüls, shot by Burnett Guffey. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Hans J. Salter. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Gene Havlick shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

ERA

Did you know

James Mason and Joan Bennett and Geraldine Brooks carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "It could happen to so many married women!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0041786 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Max Ophüls directs. Burnett Guffey behind the camera. Hans J. Salter scores. Gene Havlick cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

182 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
277 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by Max Ophüls, shot by Burnett Guffey. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Hans J. Salter. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Gene Havlick shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6James Mason and Joan Bennett and Geraldine Brooks carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "It could happen to so many married women!".
8IMDB entry: tt0041786 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Burnett Guffey
Original score: Hans J. Salter
Editing: Gene Havlick
Makeup / hair: Newt Jones
Runtime: 82 min · 1h 22m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: The Reckless Moment (1949)

Also by

Max Ophüls

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-07-09
★ 7/10
What is it about folks in movies who find dead bodies? Rather than just call the police and rely on them to adequately do their jobs, they always find themselves embroiled in silly, self-inflicted plots that almost always cause far more trouble... Here is another such example. Joan Bennett is "Lucia", a rather bored housewife whose husband is always away, and whose young daughter "Bea" (Geraldine Brooks) is having a fling with the rather roguish "Ted" (Shepperd Strudwick). Her mother tries to put a stop to the relationship, be he wants paying off - she tells him to get lost. Next day, he confronts poor old "Bea" with the truth, a tussle ensues and soon "Ted" is down with the fishes, the daughter having tried to cover her tracks. Police find the corpse, and enter James Mason ("Donnelly") and his even more unscrupulous partner "Nagel" (Roy Roberts) who have some incriminating letters and want $5,000 to keep them from the investigation. Mother, determined to save her irresponsible child, tries to accommodate the blackmailer and over time their dynamic changes somewhat... It's quite a quirky story with two good performances - Mason, quite understated and Bennett measured - even when under quite a bit of pressure, and the direction from Max Opuls keeps the pace well. Sadly, he struggles to see it off the rocks of melodrama as we near the end, but even that is a bit different.

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