Dangerous Crossing | |
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Theatrical release poster
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Directed by | Joseph M. Newman |
Produced by | Robert Bassler |
Screenplay by | Leo Townsend |
Based on | the radio play "Cabin B-13" by John Dickson Carr |
Starring |
Jeanne Crain Michael Rennie |
Music by | Lionel Newman |
Cinematography | Joseph LaShelle |
Edited by | William H. Reynolds |
Production
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Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release date
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Running time
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75 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $500,000 |
Dangerous Crossing is a 1953 black-and-white film noir mystery film, directed by Joseph M. Newman and starring Jeanne Crain and Michael Rennie, based on the 1943 play Cabin B-13 by John Dickson Carr. The plot of the film centers on the gaslighting of a female protagonist aboard a cruise vessel.
Attractive newlywed Ruth (Stanton) Bowman (Jeanne Crain) joyously starts a honeymoon cruise to Europe with her husband John (Carl Betz), only to have him go missing shortly after they check into their room on board. Compounding her confusion, Ruth finds that she is registered solo under her maiden name in a different cabin and that none of the crew members who could have seen her husband on the ship remember him. These include the ship's purser, (Gayne Whitman), stewardess Anna Quinn (Mary Anderson), and second officer Jim Logan (Max Showalter). When she talks to the captain (Willis Bouchey), he notices that Ruth isn't even wearing a wedding ring, and the crew begins to suggest that she is mentally unbalanced.
That night, John calls Ruth with a cryptic warning not to trust anyone. A divorcee traveling solo (Marjorie Hoshelle) and the stewardess take an interest in Ruth. And Dr. Manning (Michael Rennie) spends time with her, assuming a clinical demeanor and getting her to open up about the recent death of her father, a wealthy steel executive.
Ruth decides to put on an act and agrees that she's been foolish, but mysterious things continue to happen. Ruth and Dr. Manning get closer, and a man who walks with a cane seems to stalk her.
Then the stewardess is revealed as conspiring with someone (by phone) to make Ruth seem unstable. Dr. Manning confronts Ruth over the fact that her marriage was either secret or non-existent. She explains that John wanted it to be quick and quiet and talks about an uncle who might scheme to get her inheritance.