Hangover Square (film)
| Hangover Square | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | John Brahm |
| Produced by | Robert Bassler |
| Screenplay by | Barré Lyndon |
| Based on |
Hangover Square 1941 novel by Patrick Hamilton |
| Starring |
Laird Cregar Linda Darnell |
| Music by | Bernard Herrmann |
| Cinematography | Joseph LaShelle |
| Edited by | Harry Reynolds |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
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Release date
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Running time
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77 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $850,000 |
Hangover Square is a 1945 film noir directed by John Brahm, based on the novel Hangover Square (1941) by Patrick Hamilton. The screenplay was written by Barré Lyndon who made a number of changes to the novel, including the transformation of George Harvey Bone into a classical composer-pianist and filming the story as an early 20th-century period piece.
The movie was released in New York City on February 7, 1945, two months after its star, Laird Cregar, suffered a fatal heart attack.
In Victorian London (the date 1899 is shown in the opening scene), the police suspect that a composer who suffers from periods of amnesia may be a murderer.
The period setting creates a dark mood, especially in the key scene when Bone (portrayed by Laird Cregar), having strangled Netta (Linda Darnell) on Guy Fawkes Night, carries her wrapped body through streets filled with revelers and deposits it on top of the biggest bonfire.
The final scene shows Cregar as Bone, playing his piano concerto (composed by Bernard Herrmann), unmindful of the conflagration around him, as flames consume everything.
Laird Cregar, a fan of the original novel, encouraged 20th Century Fox to buy the film rights. Fox relented, but wanted to recreate the success they had enjoyed with The Lodger the previous year and made several changes to the story, including the main character's personality and the setting. Cregar, George Sanders and John Brahm, who had all worked together in The Lodger, were announced as working on the film.
Cregar, who had ambitions of being a leading man and was worried that he would always be cast as a villain, refused the role and was put on suspension. Glenn Langan was announced as his replacement. However, Cregar realized he could use his romantic scenes with Linda Darnell and Faye Marlowe to his advantage in order to change his public image into a more romantic one. He thus accepted the role, but began a radical crash diet to give his character more physical appeal.
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Wikipedia