Lured

Rating:
Summary: LUCY & NOIR= GOOD THRILLER
Review: Fans of Lucy will be surprised to see her in this "re-discovered" thriller as I was. I knew she had done one film noir in 1946-"The Dark Corner" where she played a private dick's secretary. She was good in it, playing it straight. But this one I had read about but it was so obscure (not even turning up on TV) that I figured I'd probably never see it. I had also read that she didn't like this film because it was so morbid. Kino has resurrected it on video then DVD and it's wonderful. Not really morbid (maybe to her it was) but it is a serial killer tale set in foggy London and she is a tough, been-around American showgirl stranded there when her show folds. While working as a taxi-dancer, her roommate disappears and is later found to have fallen prey to a madman who lures pretty girls to their deaths through the personals and then sends Scotland Yard twisted clues based on morbid poetry. Ball is excellent as the detectives use her as a decoy to trap the killer and the cast features Boris Karloff as a mad clothes designer(!) who tries to use her to model his designs for his "critics"---actually an empty room save for his dogs. Karloff is one of many strange characters she encounters answering the personals looking for the killer...great cast all around. Lucy is just wonderful.

Rating:
Summary: An Unexpected Classic!
Review: In 1947 Lucille Ball didn't have a studio home from which to make movies. She had just left MGM due to the lackluster treatment she had been subjected to during her stay there. So during this period of her film career she was forced to freelance in order to keep working. The lack of studio influence on who and what she played allowed her the rare opportunity to play way out of character from her standard movie roles which had been dominated by chorus girls and wise-cracking, hard-nosed secretaries.

First she starred opposite Mark Stevens in the little know film noir classic "The Dark Corner" and after recieving excellent reviews was given the lead role in "Lured" a Douglas Sirk directed murder mystery. The top-notch cast including Boris Karloff, Cedric Hardwick, George Sanders and George Zucco are all excellent in supporting roles but make no mistake about it "Lured" is arguably the best film of Lucille Ball's movie career.

It's the story of a stranded American Taxi Dancer in London who helps Scotland Yard trap a serial killer who lures his victims through the personal columns. The movie features intricate plot twists, great atmospheric sets, beautiful gowns and enough red herrings to satisfy the most avid murder mystery buffs.

Finally, it is a real joy to see Lucille Ball in a quality film with a real dramatic character to play, acting like she should have been given these kinds of good roles all along. I highly recommend this gem.

Rating:
Summary: "I was on guard against everyone except myself."
Review: In the Douglas Sirk film "Lured" a series of young girls disappear after responding to personal ads. The killer taunts Scotland Yard by sending poems describing the girl and announcing the upcoming murder. The police are left with a handful of clues--the personal ads, the flaws of the typewriter used for the poems, and the fact that the killer has a penchant for Baudelaire.

Sandra Carpenter (Lucille Ball) plays an unflappable dance-hall girl whose friend is the latest victim of the killer. Inspector Temple (Charles Coburn) recruits Sandra to operate undercover through the personal ads. Sandra meets a lot of peculiar men through the ads, and soon she's juggling dates with bizarre dress designer Charles van Druten (Boris Karloff) and smooth playboy Robert Fleming (George Sanders).

This is an interesting role for Lucille Ball. Here she's worldly-wise and savvy to every pick-up line in the book. Inspector Temple sagaciously assesses Sandra's character and realizing she can handle men effectively, he adds her talent to his investigation. Lucille Ball fans will be pleasantly surprised by her role in "Lured," and Douglas Sirk fans should enjoy the film too. The characters are well defined, and the plot kept my attention throughout. It's in glorious black and white, and that complements the story and the setting--displacedhuman

Rating:
Summary: What a wonderful surprise!
Review: Lucille Ball as the dramatic heroine of a murder mystery--who would have thought it? I'd only known her daffy "I Love Lucy" role, which I never liked much (forgive me, but I'm not a fan of slap-stick comedy). I bought this DVD for George Sanders. I had no idea Lucy could pull off a dramatic role, but she does--brilliantly.

Even if you've never been a fan of "I Love Lucy", give Lucy a chance with this DVD. You won't regret it.

Rating:
Summary: A Preview of "I Love Lucy"?
Review: Lucille Ball starred in Hunt Stromberg's independent production of "Lured" in 1947, four years before she began her long and eminently successful run starring with husband Desi Arnez in the hilarious sitcom "I Love Lucy," which broke TV records for longevity. In "Lured" Lucille is cast as an undercover police decoy in London seeking to help capture a twentieth century "Jack the Ripper" serial killer of women.

On the surface it would appear highly unlikely that "Lured" would serve as a genesis or prelude to Lucy's comedy triumph which began four years later. Ironically the similarities are paramount. While the dramatic vehicle is devoid of the kind of hilarious slapstick that helped make "I Love Lucy" a big hit, one sees the same wisecracking lady in action. In "Lured" using humor and delivering the proper one-liners enable her to survive.

At the story's beginning Lucy, an actress whose London show bombed early, gets a job at a taxi dancing establishment at night to survive. When her closest friend and fellow dancer is killed, she visits detective Charles Coburn at Scotland Yard. Coburn is impressed by her native intelligence coupled with her beauty. He finds her the perfect lure to trap the brutal killer who has been terrorizing London women.

Leo Rosten, who later wrote the novel "Captain Newman," which became a successful film starring Gregory Peck and Tony Curtis, penned a rapidly moving script while German emigre Douglas Sirk, who would later direct Rock Hudson in his two major dramatic triumphs at Universal, "The Magnificent Obsession" and "Written on the Wind," directed deftly and provided the kind of moody settings of nocturnal London that makes viewers feel a part of the scene. The accomplishment is all the more remarkable in that the film was shot entirely in Hollywood on a frugal budget.

Lucy meets a fascinating band of characters before the mystery is ultimately resolved with the unmasking of the brutal killer. Boris Karloff appears early. Lucy is able to keep the emotionally disturbed Londoner at bay until help arrives. She later is able to help crack a white slavery operation headed by Alan Mowbray.

The plot thickens when the man with whom Lucy falls in love, suave and witty playboy George Sanders, emerges as a suspect, as does his lawyer, Sir Cedric Hardwicke. When Lucy finally does manage to bring the killer into the open, she is compelled to use her wiles one last time to survive before Scotland Yard detectives arrive. She is at her best using her intuition in cat-and-mouse games with dangerous men, culminating with the twentieth century Jack the Ripper.

Rating:
Summary: not a typical Lucy movie
Review: this is not your typical Lucy movie. but dont get me wrong it was still very good. its good to see that Lucille Ball can do something besdies comide. even though comdey is what she is remembered for. this movie is deffinitly recommened for a lucy fan or a murder mystry fan or both of that matter. it keeps you guessing until the very end. you think its one thing but they throw a cerve ball and its the total oppisite. i'm going to tell you what you can expect because then you wont get it. but i would recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: not a typical Lucy movie
Review: this is not your typical Lucy movie. but dont get me wrong it was still very good. its good to see that Lucille Ball can do something besdies comide. even though comdey is what she is remembered for. this movie is deffinitly recommened for a lucy fan or a murder mystry fan or both of that matter. it keeps you guessing until the very end. you think its one thing but they throw a cerve ball and its the total oppisite. i'm going to tell you what you can expect because then you wont get it. but i would recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Lucy in film noir
Review: Wonderful suspense/thriller. Lucille Ball's performance proves she's not only a gifted actor in the field of comedy; Lucy does an outstanding job bringing drama to the screen. Perfect for any Lucy fan.