{"id":5674,"date":"2008-06-10T17:04:41","date_gmt":"2008-06-11T00:04:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5674"},"modified":"2021-01-31T11:43:03","modified_gmt":"2021-01-31T18:43:03","slug":"niagara-1953","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5674","title":{"rendered":"Niagara (1953)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;For a dress like that, you have to start laying plans when you&#8217;re about thirteen.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/Niagara-Poster.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/Niagara-Poster-193x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"193\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-67373\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/Niagara-Poster-193x300.png 193w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/Niagara-Poster-657x1024.png 657w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/Niagara-Poster-82x128.png 82w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/Niagara-Poster-173x270.png 173w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/Niagara-Poster.png 713w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 193px) 100vw, 193px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nWhile in Niagara Falls, a honeymooning couple (Jean Peters and Casey Adams) becomes unwittingly involved in the deadly marital tensions of their troubled neighbors, sexy Rose Loomis (Marilyn Monroe) and her husband George (Joseph Cotten).\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>Henry Hathaway Films<\/li>\n<li>Homicidal Spouses<\/li>\n<li>Infidelity<\/li>\n<li>Jean Peters Films<\/li>\n<li>Joseph Cotten Films<\/li>\n<li>Marilyn Monroe Films<\/li>\n<li>Newlyweds<\/li>\n<li>Plot to Murder<\/li>\n<li>Veterans<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary&#8217;s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nAs Peary notes, this &#8220;taut melodrama&#8221; &#8212; best known for starring Marilyn Monroe in one of her few &#8220;bad girl&#8221; roles &#8212; benefits from director Henry Hathaway&#8217;s &#8220;strong use of color, sharp camera angles, and location shooting &#8212; particularly around the falls.&#8221; The pulpy noir screenplay (co-written by Charles Brackett, Walter Reisch, and Richard Breen) is clever, with several unexpected twists along the way, and a refreshingly three-dimensional, psychologically ambiguous &#8220;villain&#8221; (Cotten). Monroe is as sexy as ever, and Hathaway manages to captures her at her sultry best, whether writhing nude under the covers or flaunting her bodacious curves in form-fitting dresses and skirts; although she&#8217;s not the primary protagonist (that designation goes to Peters), she&#8217;s clearly the main attraction of the film. Peters, meanwhile, is effectively gutsy as the &#8220;all American housewife&#8221; who finds herself drawn into her neighbors&#8217; dysfunction; it&#8217;s too bad she&#8217;s saddled with such a lame-brain husband (Adams, a.k.a. Max Showalter), whose very presence grates on one&#8217;s nerves. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Marilyn Monroe in a rare &#8220;wicked woman&#8221; performance<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/niagara-monroe.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/niagara-monroe.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5677\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Jean Peters as Polly Cutler<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/niagara-peters.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/niagara-peters.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5679\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Excellent use of Niagara Falls locales<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/niagara-scenery.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/niagara-scenery.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5680\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Several genuinely tense and exciting scenes<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/niagara-tension.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/niagara-tension.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5681\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Effective &#8220;Technicolor noir&#8221; cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/niagara-noir.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/niagara-noir.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5678\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, simply to see Monroe in a rare &#8220;bad girl&#8221; performance. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Noteworthy Performance(s)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0046126\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1953\/01\/22\/archives\/niagara-falls-vies-with-marilyn-monroe.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.noiroftheweek.com\/2006\/08\/niagara-1953.html\">Film Noir of the Week<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s478monroe.html\">DVD Savant Review (scroll down to third review)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/P2I3_Mw5864\">Tired Old Queen at the Movies Video Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;For a dress like that, you have to start laying plans when you&#8217;re about thirteen.&#8221; Synopsis: While in Niagara Falls, a honeymooning couple (Jean Peters and Casey Adams) becomes unwittingly involved in the deadly marital tensions of their troubled neighbors, sexy Rose Loomis (Marilyn Monroe) and her husband George (Joseph Cotten). Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Henry Hathaway Films Homicidal Spouses Infidelity Jean Peters Films Joseph Cotten Films Marilyn Monroe Films Newlyweds Plot to Murder Veterans Response to Peary&#8217;s Review:&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5674\"> 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":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5674","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5674","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=5674"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5674\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67374,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5674\/revisions\/67374"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}