Moonrise (1948)
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
A small-town fable about violence and redemption, 'Moonrise' is the final triumph of Frank Borzage, one of Hollywood's most neglected masters. Stigmatized from infancy by the fate of his criminal father, young Danny (Dane Clark) is bruised and bullied until one night, in a fit of rage, he kills his most persistent tormentor. As the police close in around him, Danny makes a desperate bid for the love of the dead man's fiancée (Gail Russell), a schoolteacher who sees the wounded soul behind his aggression. With this postwar comeback, Borzage recaptured the inspiration that had animated his long and audacious early career, marrying the lyrical force of his romanticsensibility with the psychological anguish of film noir, in a stunning vindication of faith in the power of love - Actors:
- Dane Clark, Gail Russell, Ethel Barrymore, Allyn Joslyn, Rex Ingram, Harry Morgan, David Street, Selena Royle, Harry Carey Jr., Irving Bacon, Lloyd Bridges, Houseley Stevenson, Phil Brown, Harry Cheshire, Lila Leeds, Virginia Mullen, Oliver Blake, Tom Fadden, Charles Lane, Clem Bevans
- Directors:
- Frank Borzage
- Producers:
- Charles F. Haas
- Writers:
- Charles F. Haas, Theodore Strauss
- Others:
- Daniel J. Bloomberg
- Genres:
- Classics, Drama, Romance, Thrillers
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- Not released
- Run Time:
- 88 minutes
- Languages:
- English
- Subtitles:
- None
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.37:1
- Colour:
- B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
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Reviews (1) of Moonrise
Swamp Fog and Excuses - Moonrise review by griggs
Living under your father’s noose isn’t the subtlest metaphor, but Moonrise still manages to fumble what it’s trying to say about guilt and grace. On the surface it’s a moody small-town noir, all swamp fog and whispers, yet the story keeps asking you to forgive behaviour it never properly looks in the eye.
Danny and Gilly’s relationship is the main sticking point. He treats her badly more than once and puts her in real danger, but the film insists on framing it as a grand, tragic romance she must stay loyal to. Around them, the only Black character lives alone in the woods dispensing “wisdom” that even stretches to empathising with a rapist, and there’s a disabled character who mostly exists to soak up Danny’s anger.
Borzage clearly wants a tale of a wounded soul redeemed by love. What ends up on screen feels more like a pile of excuses, wrapped in pretty shadows and swamp mist.