Some films cannot overcome the trappings of their origins on the stage. Anna Lucasta is one of those films. From the very first frame, it is obvious this was where this film originated, and it never quite overcomes the claustrophobia associated with that. Nothing in this picture expands the narrative away from the proscenium, opening it up to a more cinematic feel. Instead, it feels content to be nothing more than a filmed version of the play. While that can work in certain instances, this is not one of them.
The Lucasta family is poor, living in Pennsylvania. They receive word that a friend’s son, Rudolf (William Bishop), is coming to town to find a wife, and they see this as an opportunity to make some money. Rudolph brings with him $4,000, and they believe they can get that money if they can pair him with their estranged daughter, Anna (Paulette Goddard), who is away in New York City. The only one against the idea is her alcoholic father, Joe (Oscar Homolka), but son-in-law Frank (Broderick Crawford) persuades him by beating him. Anna does come home, begrudgingly, and she does fall in love with Rudolph, but machinations by Joe put her in a bad position shortly after she and Rudolph are married, causing her to flee back to New York. The film spends the rest of its runtime building up the suspense over whether these two will ever be able to come together as a couple and have a happy life.
Paulette Goddard is always a welcome presence on screen. She had a long and varied career that spanned nearly fifty years, but for me, she will always be the highlight of two wonderful Charlie Chaplin films, Modern Times and The Great Dictator. Here, she has more of a chip on her shoulder, and after seeing the opening sequence with her family scheming to get that money, it is obvious why. Without her, though, this film would be hard to watch. It takes its time getting going and is far too talkative for a large amount of the time. That, coupled with William Bishop’s lackluster performance that lacks any real chemistry with Goddard, makes this film a struggle to get through. This story would be filmed again the following decade, this time with Eartha Kitt in the lead, but that film doesn’t fare any better. 1949 - 86 minutes
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