They Met in the Dark (1945)

You won't be disappointed!

Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

Blistering performances.

A rather fishy intrigue going at any lengths to cause as much confusion as possible, as it basically only consists of loose ends all over, but it all starts at sea in the second world war, then proceeds to a court martial where James Mason appears to be convicted and dismissed from service, whereupon he shaves his beard and tries to get hold of a girl 'Mary' who has some awful things to tell him, which she never gets a chance to, as the old lorn house she has made an appointment with him in is empty except for a dead girl with a mysterious paper note clutched in her hand, which body is discovered by another girl, leading them to some circle of spies disguised as an entertainment company with mind readers, harmonica players and another singing girl, while James Mason is more interested in one girl than another, or is it the other way around? Anyway, there is nothing wrong with the acting or the intrigue-making, James Mason is always worth enjoying, but that's about all in this film - the death mystery in the desert house provides the only excitement, which never is satisfied, as the body disappears and never is recovered... Is it a comedy, a satire, just an entertainment made for kicks, is it seriously meant at all, or was it just made to fill some gap? The film inspires as many questions as an almost total lack of answers, but it provides at least some momentary entertainment...

***SPOILERS*** We see an almost unidentifiable looking James Mason wearing what looks like a cheap clip-on beard as British Naval officer Richard Heritage get canned from the Royal Navy for having his ship with all aboard sunk by a Nazi U-Boat because of not following the instructions he was given. It turns out that the orders that Heritage was given was switched by a pro-German spy while he was having a few drinks at a local pub.It's when Heratige tracks down the mysterious but now dead bar girl at a sleazebag hotel in the country he runs into Canadian Laura Verity, Joyce Howard,who was visiting her sick uncle at the very same hotel room who feels that he in fact murdered her. This has Laura on the run feeling that she'll end up being Heritage's next victim. It doesn't take long for Heritage to convince Laura with his good looks and British manners, as well as puppy dog brown eyes, that he's on the up and up and not the cold blooded killer that she thinks he is. It's then that Laura with Heritage's urging who then gets a job as a singer and dancer at the place that the murdered bar girl last worked for "The Child Talent Agency" run by Christopher Child, Tom Well. It's Well who was using it as cover for his Nazi Liverpool spy ring!***SPOILERS**** Not much if any action for a film supporting the allied war effort at the height of WWII but more like a 1930's screwball comedy instead.It's later in the movie that were told, by the Royal Navy officials, that Heritage was in fact an innocent stooge made to look like he screwed things up so the Nazis won't take him seriously. The fact that Laura came into the picture or movie made things that much more complicated for the British who now had two people to save from the Nazis one-Richard Heritage- who had some idea of what was going on in the movie and another-Laura Verity-who was totally clueless!P.S Breath taking performance by the great Ronald Chesley who steals the show as he blows everyone away and off their feet as the film's show stopping main attraction "Max the Mouth" the wild & crazy harmonica player.

The career that James Mason had before being discovered by Hollywood was quite prolific. Thanks to TCM, audiences have had the opportunity to see some of his British films. This one, "They Met in the Dark," is a 1943 noir, and has both elements of drama and humor. The film begins with a trial, after which, found guilty of treason, Richard Heritage (Mason) is stripped of rank and thrown out of the Navy. He sets out, with one of his crew who believes in him, to prove his innocence. He backtracks, repeating his actions from the day he was arrested.He finds one woman (Patricia Medina) dead, another woman (Joyce Howard) positive that he had something to do with it, and a talent agent (Tom Walls) who has some interesting acts on his roster as well as a sophisticated singer (Phyllis Stanley).Mason is handsome, elegant, and vital in the lead role. He handles the lighter moments very well and has lots of charm. It's easy to see why he eventually went to Hollywood. Stanley does some nice singing, and Ronald Chesney plays a great harmonica.Different and enjoyable, with a good plot and British atmosphere that will keep the viewer interested.

I have just read Patricia Medina Cotten's book entitled "Laid Back In Hollywood" (1998)and was anxious to see the wife of the late Joseph Cotten when she was an actress, preferably in the 1940's when she was at her most glamorous.I chanced upon this title "They Met In the Dark" (1944) after searching through her titles for sale on Imdb.com.I have never seen this film on UK tv, so as I like all of James Mason's films, (his voice is so unique), I obtained a VHS video copy of this film from Blackstar.co.uk. Patricia plays Mary, a manacurist girlfriend of James Mason and appears at the beginning of the film but I was sorry to see her demise in the next reel! The plot sees Mason a naval commander found guilty of negligence in not acting under orders from the high command in the merchant Navy during WWII, and losing one of His Majesty's cargo ships as a result of enemy action.Mason claims he was acting under revised orders but cannot furnish the necessary proof to the court marshall tribunal.He is determined to prove his innocence and is told that if he wishes to see his girlfriend, to meet her at a nearby cottage.Once there, he meets the film's heroine, Joyce Howard, who thinks Mason is the killer as she too has seen the body of Mary upstairs.She rushes off to report the murder but when the police arrive at the cottage and investigate, no body! Joyce is accused of the very serious wartime crime of wasting police time.The plot then moves to Liverpool as there was a card with the inscription, "Child's Theatrical Agency", Liverpool, clutched in the deceased's hand. Mason "palms this off" at the cottage as it lies on the floor, so Joyce Howard cannot even show this as evidence to the police who get even more annoyed with her.The two principal actors have an off and on relationship throughout most of the film as there is mutual suspicion between them.They become involved with fifth columnists who are seeking to obtain vital information for Germany about the departure/destination and time of the next convoy, commanded by its flotilla leader played by David Farrar (who later played the squire, Jack Reddin, in "Gone to Earth" (1950)). I won't provide a spoiler but this is perfect Sunday afternoon watching for those like me who love classic 1940's films, especially James Mason fans who are unfamiliar with this title.I gave it 3/5 stars.