A film noir absolutely dripping in atmosphere, "Phantom Lady" stars a fetching Ella Raines as a woman determined to track down a mysterious witness who can provide the alibi that will save her boss from prison. She goes out into the grimy, shadow-lit streets of NYC, visiting a few dives along the way, collecting clues that eventually lead her to the woman (and the hat -- don't ask, it's a long story) she's been looking for. Why exactly the hat is such a key piece of evidence, and what exactly she's hoping it will prove without the woman the hat belongs to in tow, I'm still not entirely clear on, but want it she does, and so does Franchot Tone, the film's psycho. The climactic scene, in which she realizes she's in the lair of the very villain behind the killing her boss is accused of, is supposed to be a nail biter, but the movie leading up to that moment is more engaging than the moment itself.And this may be the only film noir in history to feature an orgasm by drum solo. Just take a watch and you'll see what I mean.Grade: A-

Scott (Alan Curtis) has a bad marriage and things are about to get a lot worse. Instead of going out with his wife, Scott spends the evening with a lady he's met in a bar. They got to a show together and then he returns home...only to find the cops there! It seems his wife is dead...and Scott is having a horrible time coming up with an alibi. The folks who could prove his innocence say they cannot recall him and the woman he was with cannot be found. Not surprisingly, he's convicted of her murder and he's soon on death row. His secretary, Kansas (Ella Raines), believes her boss is innocent and spends most of the movie trying to prove it. However, what she doesn't realize is that the man helping her (Franchot Tone) is actually a maniac and he's framed Alan! By the time she's finally realized what's happened...it might just be too late, as he's more than willing to kill EVERYONE who can prove Alan isn't the killer!This is a really good relatively low budget film. The only complaint, and it's a minor one, is that the identity of the real killer is seen way too early and some of the suspense is missing. Still, well done and very enjoyable if you like film noir and suspense films.By the way, the Brazilian singer you see on stage near the beginning is Aurora Miranda--sister of Carmen. She never even came close to Carmen's fame in America and you wonder if it perhaps could have been since Aurora had much darker skin and looked more black. Sad if it was the case.

"Phantom Lady" is notable for having provided legendary film noir director Robert Siodmak with his first American success. Its story, which was adapted from a Cornell Woolrich novel, involves an innocent man who's wrongly accused of murdering his wife and his loyal secretary who embarks on a race against time to prove his innocence. This tale of murder, bribery and betrayal features some extraordinary scenes and the action (which is set in New York City) takes place in locations which often look dark and threatening.After having quarrelled with his wife on the evening of their wedding anniversary, despondent civil engineer Scott Henderson (Alan Curtis) consoles himself with a drink at a local bar and starts to reflect on the fact that he has a couple of tickets for a Broadway show. On the spur of the moment, he asks a lady sitting next to him if she'd like to accompany him to the show and she agrees subject to the condition that they don't disclose or discuss any personal information. The show is eventful because, not only does the drummer in the orchestra try to flirt with Scott's mystery lady but also one of the stars of the show, Estela Monteiro (Aurora Miranda) shows her extreme annoyance when she realises that the lady with Scott is wearing a hat identical to her own. At the end of the evening, Scott and his companion part company and he goes home.When Scott arrives at his apartment, he finds three detectives there and is informed that his wife has been strangled to death with one of his ties. He immediately becomes the prime suspect and when his alibi doesn't stand up, he's charged and subsequently found guilty of murder.Scott's devoted secretary, Carol "Kansas" Richman (Ella Raines) is secretly in love with him and utterly convinced that he wouldn't be capable of murder and so sets out to find the real killer before Scott's executed. On the night of the murder a bartender, a cab driver and Estela Monteiro had all seen Scott but they all denied seeing a lady with him. Carol uses an unorthodox method to try to persuade the bartender to change his testimony but he's accidentally killed when he gets run down by a car. To her surprise, Police Inspector Burgess (Thomas Gomez) who'd been involved in Scott's case also comes to the conclusion that Scott is innocent and unofficially assists with her investigation.Carol subsequently discovers that the orchestra drummer at the theatre had been bribed to say that no-one was with Scott on the night of the murder and when she eventually discovers the identity of Scott's mysterious woman it unfortunately doesn't provide the simple solution to the case that she'd hoped for or expected.Ella Raines' performance is astonishingly good because of the way that she changes her demeanour so successfully in a variety of different situations. She goes from being convincing as a typical secretary to showing the psychological strength needed to totally unnerve the bartender who'd perjured himself and then flaunts herself outrageously in a scene where she tries to seduce the drummer Cliff Milburn (Elisha Cook Jr.).At one juncture of the movie, Cliff takes Carol to a jam session where he launches into an improvised drum solo which is so sexually charged and intense that it goes well beyond the level of mere innuendo and the way that Carol responds is equally strong and provocative. This scene is highly entertaining and provides a marvellous example of the kind of innovation and originality that filmmakers employed to express themselves powerfully in times when censorship standards made their job more difficult."Phantom Lady" is well directed and the scenes in which low-key lighting is used provide a perfect backdrop for the type of action on show as well as contributing strongly to the ominous atmosphere of the piece.

A mysterious woman wearing an odd hat escorts a stranger to a Broadway musical revue and totally disappears after the date when he needs her most. You see, his wife has been murdered, and he has no alibi. Even the bartender where they met insists that he was there alone, a drummer who ogled her from the orchestra pit denies seeing her with him, and the Brazilian spitfire who spat fire upon seeing her wearing the same hat she was denies having seen her. Now he's on death row for murder, and his devoted secretary (Ella Raines) must do everything she can to find this missing woman, revealed to the audience to be much troubled in the scene, agreeing to go with the accused man (Alan Curtis) on the premise that they don't exchange names, only a night at the theater. Curtis's chum (Franchot Tone) shows up to give Raines support and seems to know more than he's admitting.This was 1944, and film noir exploded on cinema after a few minor tries. This year gave movie audiences some unforgettable classics in this genre: "Laura", "Double Indemnity", "Ministry of Fear", "Murder My Sweet", "The Mask of Dimitrios", "Betrayed" and "Experiment Perilous" to name just a few. "Phantom Lady" has some of the greatest elements of noir through its mystery, vision of night life in a big city, and characters that can definitely be described as unconventional.Take for example Rains as the secretary. She is visited by the police detective (Thomas Gomez) who initially questioned Curtis and has now changed his opinion about Curtis's guilt. At his suggestion, she disguises herself as a Times Square floozy, gets a front row seat in front of drummer Elisha Cook Jr., and seduces him from there into taking her out so she can get some information. This is after she literally stalks the bartender who denied seeing Curtis with the mysterious woman, spooking him into a guilt complex with results that prove fatal. The mystery part of the story is actually solved long before the film is over, but it is the motivations and "how was it done" that dominate the second half and keep you hooked. Robert Siodmark, who would direct some other great film noir, gives this a pacing that is eerie and at the same time, somewhat romantic.