{"id":36067,"date":"2016-02-04T11:22:48","date_gmt":"2016-02-04T18:22:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=36067"},"modified":"2021-01-08T14:07:10","modified_gmt":"2021-01-08T21:07:10","slug":"stranger-on-the-third-floor-1940","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=36067","title":{"rendered":"Stranger on the Third Floor (1940)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;I&#8217;m not guilty &#8212; the stranger killed him!&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-on-the-Third-Floor-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-on-the-Third-Floor-Poster-190x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"190\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-36068\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-on-the-Third-Floor-Poster-190x300.jpg 190w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-on-the-Third-Floor-Poster-81x128.jpg 81w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-on-the-Third-Floor-Poster.jpg 580w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 190px) 100vw, 190px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nWhen a reporter (John McGuire) testifies against a man (Elisha Cook, Jr.) seen leaving a diner after its owner (Charles Judels) is killed, McGuire&#8217;s girlfriend (Margaret Tallichet) is distressed that his testimony may be responsible for sending an innocent man to jail. Soon McGuire realizes a mysterious scarf-wearing man (Peter Lorre) likely killed both the diner owner and McGuire&#8217;s annoying neighbor (Charles Halton) &#8212; but as someone present at both crime scenes, will the murders be tagged on McGuire instead?\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Elisha Cook, Jr. Films<\/li>\n<li>Falsely Accused<\/li>\n<li>Journalists<\/li>\n<li>Living Nightmare<\/li>\n<li>Morality Polics<\/li>\n<li>Peter Lorre Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nThis obscure B-level horror-drama by unknown Latvian director Boris Ingster presents a Kafka-esque living nightmare of sexual repression, moral condemnation, shadowy strangers, and rampant corruption, running in some truly surreal directions while building a storyline predicated on <em>noir<\/em>-esque voiceovers and explanatory flashbacks-within-flashbacks. McGuire is an &#8220;everyman&#8221; who simply wants to marry his girl, but needs money to get out of his claustrophic boarding house, where his shrewish landlady (Ethel Griffies) and self-righteous neighbor (Charles Halton) won&#8217;t give him a break &#8212; even the sound of his typing annoys them. His conscience is at first fine with the fact that his testimony against a cabbie (Cook, Jr.) is pivotal in a laughably inept court case while also conveniently providing enough sensational news to afford him financial freedom as a reporter; but his girlfriend has a very different take on the situation, and soon he&#8217;s plagued with guilt and insecurity. Lorre&#8217;s rat-like character (check out those teeth) lurks in the corners, and &#8212; naturally &#8212; turns out to play a pivotal role in the proceedings, though not without plenty of suspense in the meantime. (Does McGuire&#8217;s righteous anger at his neighbors represent thinly-veiled hostility that may be &#8220;outing&#8221; itself unconsciously?) The film&#8217;s memorable highlight is McGuire&#8217;s Expressionist nightmare, with all elements of his recent existence showing up in stylized fashion to literally haunt his dreams and spur him to &#8220;do the right thing&#8221;.  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Nick Musuraca&#8217;s cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-36072\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography2.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography2-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography2-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-36071\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Creative direction<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Direction2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Direction2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-36069\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Direction2.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Direction2-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Direction2-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Direction3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Direction3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-36075\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Direction3.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Direction3-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Direction3-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>The truly surreal Expressionist dream sequence<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-36073\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography3.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography3-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Cinematography3-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Dream.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Dream.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-36070\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Dream.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Dream-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Stranger-Third-Floor-Dream-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, for its visual ingenuity and narrative creativity. Listed as a Sleeper in the back of Peary&#8217;s book. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Historically Relevant<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0033107\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.chicagoreader.com\/chicago\/stranger-on-the-third-floor\/Film?oid=1059658\">Chicago Reader Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/moria.co.nz\/horror\/strangeronthethirdfloor.htm\">Moria Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1940\/09\/02\/archives\/the-screen-stranger-on-the-third-floor-murder-mystery-at-rialtogold.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thespinningimage.co.uk\/cultfilms\/displaycultfilm.asp?reviewid=1208&#038;aff=13\">Spinning Image Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.timeout.com\/london\/film\/stranger-on-the-third-floor-1940\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;I&#8217;m not guilty &#8212; the stranger killed him!&#8221; Synopsis: When a reporter (John McGuire) testifies against a man (Elisha Cook, Jr.) seen leaving a diner after its owner (Charles Judels) is killed, McGuire&#8217;s girlfriend (Margaret Tallichet) is distressed that his testimony may be responsible for sending an innocent man to jail. Soon McGuire realizes a mysterious scarf-wearing man (Peter Lorre) likely killed both the diner owner and McGuire&#8217;s annoying neighbor (Charles Halton) &#8212; but as someone present at both crime&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=36067\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36067","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36067","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=36067"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36067\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":62309,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36067\/revisions\/62309"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=36067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=36067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=36067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}