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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 18, 2017 16:20:19 GMT
On one of the other forums that came up in the wake of the IMDb Boards' demise, I've been trying to help a poster there who has an "I Need to Know" question, but I have not yet been able to come up with the correct answer. I'm just wondering if any of you, most of whom have probably seen more movies than I, would happen to know the answer. The poster remembers the plot like this: a man and his mistress have either just killed, or are about to kill, the man's wife. The wife was about to go on a train trip, so the mistress impersonates the wife to create an alibi, etc. The man also sent a fake letter to himself, pretending it to be from the wife. However, some passengers on the train somehow figured out the mistress wasn't the wife, and the train was stopped, the police started investigating the missing wife. The poster thinks the movie was black-and-white but gave a range as wide as 1930-1970. Naturally, I leaned towards 1940-1960 as the plot seemed apt for a film noir. In fact, the plot as described sounded to me like a mixture of the off-screen plot Thorwald comes up with in Rear Window and the on-screen murder plot in Double Indemnity, but the original poster insists it's neither of those. I did some searching and came up with the '47 film noir They Won't Believe Me, which I haven't seen but which, according to Wikipedia, has a similar plot, but the poster said that wasn't it either. Anyone happen to know this one? Thanks! Link to OP: moviechat.org/bd0000001/I-Need-To-Know/58b45ce7606b74001187d5e4/Old-suspense-movie-a-woman-pretend-to-be-the-wife-on-a-train?reply=59ad425f82b5cc001176d70c |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 18, 2017 17:07:41 GMT
That plot is almost identical to The first pilot episode of Columbo called Prescription Murder made in 1968. The plot is exactly the same except that its a plane instead of a train and there's no letter but there's a similar red herring gambit involving the mistress dropping off the Wife's clothes to be laundered by the hotel to make it seem like the Wife did that. This episode is feature length (about 94 mins) but its not black and white. I dont think its the answer, but worth checking out until I can think of something better.
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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 18, 2017 18:27:03 GMT
That plot is almost identical to The first pilot episode of Columbo called Prescription Murder made in 1968. The plot is exactly the same except that its a plane instead of a train and there's no letter but there's a similar red herring gambit involving the mistress dropping off the Wife's clothes to be laundered by the hotel to make it seem like the Wife did that. This episode is feature length (about 94 mins) but its not black and white. I dont think its the answer, but worth checking out until I can think of something better. Thanks, Takeshi. I don't think that's the one--the original poster there is quite sure it's in B&W and on a train--but thanks anyway for taking the time to search for this! |
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Post by fangirl1975 on Mar 18, 2017 19:23:23 GMT
Could be Strangers On A Train.
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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 18, 2017 19:27:28 GMT
Could be Strangers On A Train. A definite possibility, recommended early on, but the original poster there said no. He/she/they is quite sure it was a woman who boarded the train, posing as the wife. Actually a bit like The Lady Vanishes, also recommended--and not it. Thanks, though! |
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Post by Pete on Mar 19, 2017 1:25:33 GMT
That plot is almost identical to The first pilot episode of Columbo called Prescription Murder made in 1968. The plot is exactly the same except that its a plane instead of a train and there's no letter but there's a similar red herring gambit involving the mistress dropping off the Wife's clothes to be laundered by the hotel to make it seem like the Wife did that. This episode is feature length (about 94 mins) but its not black and white. I dont think its the answer, but worth checking out until I can think of something better. Little known fact - Peter Falk was actually the third actor to play Columbo. The pilot Prescription Murder began as a short story, May I come In by Levison & Link. A nameless policeman appears at the end. The story was then adapted as an episode of The Chevy Mystery Show, titled " Enough Rope". (1960) The policeman is named C olumbo, played by Bert Freed and given an extended role. The episode was then adapted for the stage, starring Thomas Mitchell. Finally it was made as a TV Movie with Peter Falk, and the rest is history. So, maybe the questioner saw the original 1960 TV version. |
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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 19, 2017 2:50:39 GMT
That plot is almost identical to The first pilot episode of Columbo called Prescription Murder made in 1968. The plot is exactly the same except that its a plane instead of a train and there's no letter but there's a similar red herring gambit involving the mistress dropping off the Wife's clothes to be laundered by the hotel to make it seem like the Wife did that. This episode is feature length (about 94 mins) but its not black and white. I dont think its the answer, but worth checking out until I can think of something better. Little known fact - Peter Falk was actually the third actor to play Columbo. The pilot Prescription Murder began as a short story, May I come In by Levison & Link. A nameless policeman appears at the end. The story was then adapted as an episode of The Chevy Mystery Show, titled " Enough Rope". (1960) The policeman is named C olumbo, played by Bert Freed and given an extended role. The episode was then adapted for the stage, starring Thomas Mitchell. Finally it was made as a TV Movie with Peter Falk, and the rest is history. So, maybe the questioner saw the original 1960 TV version. Thanks, Pete. I can ask the original poster, but he has said earlier on that thread that it was not on TV was not a television episode, and is in fact a feature film. Could he be misremembering things? Yes. But I just thought I'd let you know that. Speaking of which, it does seems like the perfect plot for a film noir, so I'm somewhat surprised very little is turning up for the plot detail. The poster could be conflating different movies, absolutely. Yet, I mean, I don't know: I went through a long period of people telling me I was conflating movies for a certain post on IMDb, and then eventually, after much research, I found I wasn't, it was just that the movie was extremely low budget and wasn't well-known at all! (It's called Sarah Landon and the Paranormal Hour, by the way.) So I'm reluctant to play that card so early in the search. I know you weren't, I'm just trying to clarify my own thoughts on these things! Best, Salzmank |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 19, 2017 11:21:55 GMT
That plot is almost identical to The first pilot episode of Columbo called Prescription Murder made in 1968. The plot is exactly the same except that its a plane instead of a train and there's no letter but there's a similar red herring gambit involving the mistress dropping off the Wife's clothes to be laundered by the hotel to make it seem like the Wife did that. This episode is feature length (about 94 mins) but its not black and white. I dont think its the answer, but worth checking out until I can think of something better. Little known fact - Peter Falk was actually the third actor to play Columbo. The pilot Prescription Murder began as a short story, May I come In by Levison & Link. A nameless policeman appears at the end. The story was then adapted as an episode of The Chevy Mystery Show, titled " Enough Rope". (1960) The policeman is named C olumbo, played by Bert Freed and given an extended role. The episode was then adapted for the stage, starring Thomas Mitchell. Finally it was made as a TV Movie with Peter Falk, and the rest is history. So, maybe the questioner saw the original 1960 TV version. I didn't know all that thanks Pete. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 19, 2017 15:33:59 GMT
Bump all you want. This is a good one. One bump per day is considered normal though.
P.S. its funny you mentioned conflating movies because I at first I thought your friend was conflating Rear Window/Vertigo/Dial M For Murder.
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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 20, 2017 11:21:18 GMT
Just so you all know, I notified the OP on the other forum about Prescription: Murder in both its forms, but he has yet to get back to me.
P.S. As for conflating movies, Takeshi, as I said, I thought the OP was mixing up Rear Window and Double Indemnity. I mean, it's all possible, but I would be amazed if there weren't a 40s-50s film noir with a plot like that!
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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 20, 2017 17:15:49 GMT
I've been given relative dispensation (  ) to do this, so BUMP! |
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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 21, 2017 3:23:16 GMT
The poster at the other forum let me know that it's not the Columbo episode, and she (I think it's a "she," actually, though I know I wrote "he" before--a bit indecorous to ask) doesn't think it's Enough Rope either!
Thanks again, though, guys!
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Post by carlcarlson1 on Mar 21, 2017 14:40:42 GMT
That does sound like a noir I've watched and IMDb rated in the past few years.
I'd suggest they do an IMDb keyword search.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 21, 2017 15:06:13 GMT
There was a whole rash of Noir and Crime films that came out from the late 40s to the early 60s that often involved scheming Femme Fatales and dishonourable Husbands. I'd focus on that area. The fact that its a color film we are looking for, might mean its a colorised movie that was original shot in Black and White.
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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 21, 2017 16:22:45 GMT
That does sound like a noir I've watched and IMDb rated in the past few years. I'd suggest they do an IMDb keyword search. Thanks, Carl! According to the original poster, she did exactly that and couldn't find it after much searching, which led her to think she'd dreamt it or made it up or something. But, if you even vaguely remember seeing it, that strikes against that theory, no? (Apologies if I'm so resistant to the "dreamt it" theory; as I've said, I got that answer a few times, just to find the movie in the long run.) By the way, I've forgotten the obvious course of action: to post a link to the original thread! moviechat.org/movies/bd0000001/posts/58b45ce7606b74001187d5e4There's another one with which I've been trying to help on there, but the OP remembers so little of it, and this one seemed much more likely to be discovered by the people around who might have seen it. |
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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 21, 2017 16:24:50 GMT
There was a whole rash of Noir and Crime films that came out from the late 40s to the early 60s that often involved scheming Femme Fatales and dishonourable Husbands. I'd focus on that area. The fact that its a color film we are looking for, might mean its a colorised movie that was original shot in Black and White. Right. But it's not a color film we're looking for, Takeshi: it is B&W. I'm pretty sure I wrote that in the original post: yes, I wrote, "The poster thinks the movie was black-and-white but gave a range as wide as 1930-1970. Naturally, I leaned towards 1940-1960 as the plot seemed apt for a film noir." As always, thanks. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 21, 2017 16:38:03 GMT
Sorry I poorly worded that. I meant that it might be a colorised film that was originally shot (and seen) in black and white. In other words your friend may have seen the black and white version, but someone here might have seen the colorized version, which would mean its wrong to rule out either type of film. Does that make sense?
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Post by mszanadu on Mar 21, 2017 19:06:07 GMT
On one of the other forums (fora? I'm still having trouble knowing which pluralized form is accurate) that came up in the wake of the IMDb Boards' demise, I've been trying to help a poster there who has an "I Need to Know" question, but I have not yet been able to come up with the correct answer. I'm just wondering if any of you, most of whom have probably seen more movies than I, would happen to know the answer. The poster remembers the plot like this: a man and his mistress have either just killed, or are about to kill, the man's wife. The wife was about to go on a train trip, so the mistress impersonates the wife to create an alibi, etc. The man also sent a fake letter to himself, pretending it to be from the wife. However, some passengers on the train somehow figured out the mistress wasn't the wife, and the train was stopped, the police started investigating the missing wife. The poster thinks the movie was black-and-white but gave a range as wide as 1930-1970. Naturally, I leaned towards 1940-1960 as the plot seemed apt for a film noir. In fact, the plot as described sounded to me like a mixture of the off-screen plot Thorwald comes up with in Rear Window and the on-screen murder plot in Double Indemnity, but the original poster insists it's neither of those. I did some searching and came up with the '47 film noir They Won't Believe Me, which I haven't seen but which, according to Wikipedia, has a similar plot, but the poster said that wasn't it either. Anyone happen to know this one? Thanks! This of course is a real wild guess here and it may be altogether wrong too ( just giving the old college try here too )  . Could it have been this movie here ? The Postman Always Rings Twice 1946 Actually rereading you subject post here salzmank and from your description it does seem to really match the second movie mentioned here . Double Indemnity 1944 I remember watching that one last year on the channel TCM ( Turner Classic Movies ) . I only hope your friend will be able to find this lost treasure of a film too   . Good luck to you both on this too !  |
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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 21, 2017 20:29:01 GMT
Sorry I poorly worded that. I meant that it might be a colorised film that was originally shot (and seen) in black and white. In other words your friend may have seen the black and white version, but someone here might have seen the colorized version, which would mean its wrong to rule out either type of film. Does that make sense? OK, I think I understand better now, Takeshi. Thanks for the explanation! Yes, I agree, it is possible that someone watched a colorized version, so it's a good idea not to rule out anything. By the way, she just confirmed it's not Enough Rope. |
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Post by Nalkarj on Mar 21, 2017 20:35:11 GMT
On one of the other forums (fora? I'm still having trouble knowing which pluralized form is accurate) that came up in the wake of the IMDb Boards' demise, I've been trying to help a poster there who has an "I Need to Know" question, but I have not yet been able to come up with the correct answer. I'm just wondering if any of you, most of whom have probably seen more movies than I, would happen to know the answer. The poster remembers the plot like this: a man and his mistress have either just killed, or are about to kill, the man's wife. The wife was about to go on a train trip, so the mistress impersonates the wife to create an alibi, etc. The man also sent a fake letter to himself, pretending it to be from the wife. However, some passengers on the train somehow figured out the mistress wasn't the wife, and the train was stopped, the police started investigating the missing wife. The poster thinks the movie was black-and-white but gave a range as wide as 1930-1970. Naturally, I leaned towards 1940-1960 as the plot seemed apt for a film noir. In fact, the plot as described sounded to me like a mixture of the off-screen plot Thorwald comes up with in Rear Window and the on-screen murder plot in Double Indemnity, but the original poster insists it's neither of those. I did some searching and came up with the '47 film noir They Won't Believe Me, which I haven't seen but which, according to Wikipedia, has a similar plot, but the poster said that wasn't it either. Anyone happen to know this one? Thanks! This of course is a real wild guess here and it may be altogether wrong too ( just giving the old college try here too )  . Could it have been this movie here ? The Postman Always Rings Twice 1946 Actually rereading you subject post here salzmank and from your description it does seem to really match the second movie mentioned here . Double Indemnity 1944 I remember watching that one last year on the channel TCM ( Turner Classic Movies ) . I only hope your friend will be able to find this lost treasure of a film too   . Good luck to you both on this too !  Thank you, Mszanadu. Your postings are always very kind (much-too-kind to silly ol' me and the ridiculous questions I ask! ). One of the posters there also recommended Double Indemnity, a favorite of mine, and the plot is awfully close, but the OP said it's not the one. I went looking through Double Indemnity knock-offs (there was even one originally titled Single Indemnity!), a surprising many of which rose up after the film was made, but I could find none to match the plot she recalled. It's not The Postman Always Rings Twice, I'm fairly certain, because in that one they're planning to kill the husband, not the wife, and there's no letter sequence. But it is definitely that noir kind of movie, same sort of feel. My thanks again! |
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) to do this, so BUMP!
