Another one of the many great things about watching movies on The Criterion Channel is the window into Old Hollywood. Movies are, of course, great in any era. If you didn’t agree, you probably wouldn’t be reading a piece like this. But there is an allure, a mystery to that era which we don’t have anymore. Aside from maybe Pitt, DiCaprio, or Jolie, I could argue that the age of the movie star is dead. There are a lot of reasons for this, which would be another long article. But one of the reasons, in my opinion, is our 24-hour entertainment cycle paired with both a desire to know and nearly unrestricted access to their lives via the internet. And that desire for mystery, the unknown, brings to a star of Hollywood past, Lana Turner. Even if you are not well versed in older film, you have likely heard the name. And if there is anywhere to start, it is with The Postman Always Rings Twice.
In this film, Turner plays the femme fatale, but there is subtlety to her performance that is hard to match. She is not the lead character, but certainly the most memorable. The protagonist, Frank Chambers (John Garfield) is a drifter, a man who freely admits he cannot stay in one place for too long. When he wanders into the gas station and diner owned by her husband, Nick Smith (Cecil Kellaway), the film wastes no time in introducing the two. After all, the marriage is clearly mismatched. Cora (Turner) is a young bombshell and Nick is a pleasant, older, overweight man and there seems to be little passion. And the film makes you wait to see her, as Nick and Frank meet when the job offer is tendered.
But her introduction is one of those Hollywood magic moments. Frank sits at the counter by himself, hears a noise, and the camera tracks an object rolling towards him on the ground. As the focus narrows, we see it is a tool of beauty, specifically a tube of lipstick. As he leans down, the camera travels along the ground and halts at her legs, before panning up, mimicking the way in which we know his eyes are traveling. As the camera stills on her, she gazes into her mirror and simply holds her hand out, waiting for her lipstick to be returned. The clear inference is that this is a woman who has been worshipped, who expects certain treatment. The surprise here, and the reason for all the pain that follows, is that he refuses and instead beckons her. This covers maybe 15 seconds of a two-hour film but is the lynchpin upon which everything rests.
But Cora is not simply a woman who is unhappy and will find solace in Frank. This is a character of depth, of ever changing motives, and Turner handles these twists and turns perfectly. She is not a femme fatale who just can’t wait to do the deed, whether that be sex or death. She wants to be a good person. For my money, the most important scene in the film is a conversation between Frank and Cora about her past. It is needed because, as mentioned, her marriage makes no sense. She is a woman, naturally beautiful, that was hounded by men. She was exhausted and she settled for safety sans love. As Nick told her, I think she hoped that she would love him eventually. It is important to remember that she doesn’t begin this plot to kill him because she simply has sexual desires; instead, it is because she wants to make something of herself and will not be allowed to accomplish anything.
And unlike many femme fatales, there is true sorrow and regret in her. She is willing to do terrible things, but either goes back on them or is gutted by this regret. When she first leaves with Frank, she quickly realizes that the life of a drifter is not for her. She has worked too hard and given up too much to start over, even for love. After Nick’s death, she is changed internally, and not for the better. Much of the plot is taken up by the twists and turns of the court case, but more interesting is Turner’s ability to communicate her terror and sorrow, even when silenced by her sleazy attorney (a wonderfully slimy Hume Cronyn). These moments are why the ending work, and in lesser hands, it could be eye-roll inducing.
The Postman Always Rings Twice plays with our expectations of her, particularly when she is caught by Frank with a knife. We, like him, assume that she has finally had it and is going to kill her husband in cold blood. But no, the knife was for her, as she was ravaged by guilt. This choice pushes the drama all the way until the end when she gives voice to these feelings. She knows that his death was immoral and that someone must pay for it, life for life. She vacillates between this and simply living a good life from here on out. To add complexity, neither one of the romantic leads is sure if they can trust one another and in a climactic scene at the beach, they find a clever way to solve it. It is to the film’s credit that seeing Cora exhausted, bobbing in the ocean, we are still not sure if Frank will carry her back to safety. When he does the right thing for the woman that he loves (finally!), there is a jubilation and that is also shown in our lead’s fatal drive home. They share tender kisses and there is a moment when maybe, just maybe everything will be alright. She says, simply “When we get home, Frank. Then there’ll be kisses. Kisses with dreams of them. Kisses that come from life, and not death.”
Of course, it is not ok. This is a noir film, after all. A noir film made during the infamous production code of the day. Killers and adulterers simply cannot get away scott free. His eyes are on her instead of the road and they crash. This time, a real crash, not a faked one like when they murdered Nick. And in a beautiful, dark twist, Cora exits as she entered. As Frank gets out the twisted vehicle in shock, her lithe hand drops in her last breath and that same tube of lipstick drops out of her hand, onto the floor of the car, and rattles out into the road.
Yes, The Postman Always Rings Twice punishes its leads. Yet, it feels kind. Cora dies while in love for the first time, looking forward to life. Frank dies, headed to the gas chamber, but in speaking with the District Attorney knows that he is truly dying for the murder of Nick, not for the woman he loves. Given the codes, the book it was based on, and the genre, this is what passes for a happy ending. Cora was able to make something of herself and Frank finally stayed in one place, when he had every opportunity to leave after the original trial. They both grew and changed, becoming slightly better people in a dark, terrifying, world.
Check back next month for two more fantastic films leaving The Criterion Channel!