Based on the play "Uncle Harry" by Thomas Job, this movie is a gripping psychological drama in which romance, obsession and murder all feature prominently. Its story charts how the mundane, well- ordered lives of three siblings who live together are suddenly disrupted by the arrival of someone who provokes strong emotions in two of them, and in so doing, brings the presence of some very dark desires to the surface.
Middle-aged bachelor Harry Melville Quincey (George Sanders) leads a desperately dull existence in the small town of Corinth, New Hampshire where he spends his working days as a fabric designer in the local mill until he returns to his home where he lives with his two squabbling sisters, Lettie (Geraldine Fitzgerald) and Hester (Moyna MacGill). Lettie is a spoilt and selfish young woman who spends her days in bed complaining about a series of imaginary illnesses and bickering with her older, widowed sister, who she criticises for gossiping with some of the townsfolk. Harry's life suddenly brightens up when Deborah Brown (Ella Raines), a designer from the company's New York City office, arrives on the scene and is obviously instantly attracted to the man who the younger employees at the mill affectionately call "Uncle Harry".
Harry and Deborah soon get to know each other better, fall in love and decide to get married. Hester is genuinely happy for her brother but Lettie, who's very attached to Harry and likes to monopolise his attention, easily becomes jealous of anyone (even his dog) who takes his attention away from her. As a cultivated person, she doesn't overtly show her displeasure at the presence of Deborah but instead, in her own refined and affected way, tries to discourage or undermine the relationship. When her scheming fails and it becomes clear that the two sisters should vacate the house for the future newlyweds to move in, Lettie uses the opportunity to frustrate the couple's plans by saying that every house that's offered to her is unsuitable. This goes on for so long that Harry and Deborah decide, in desperation, to elope together. On the day when they're ready to leave town and get married, Lettie fakes a collapse, gets rushed into hospital and Harry's conscience compels him to abandon his plans and instead, rush to her side.
Harry's actions result in Deborah returning to New York City alone and he later hears that she has new marriage plans in place. In his sadness, he reflects on Deborah's words when she said that "Lettie has no intention of setting you free, not as long as she lives" and this inspires him to take revenge on his evil sister by using the poison that she'd bought to administer to his sick old dog called "Weary". The ramifications of his actions, however, go far beyond anything he could ever have imagined.
As a rather passive man who'd felt a great responsibility to support his two sisters, Harry had tolerated their arguments and eccentricities and dutifully did what he considered to be the right thing until he realised how destructive Lettie's feelings for him had become and this provoked a profound change in him (which is contradicted by the movie's absurd censor-imposed ending). George Sanders, in an excellent performance, makes his character's descent to the dark side understandable and Ella Raines, whose expressions are priceless, is a pleasure to watch as her character never, even for a second, gets taken in by Lettie's antics. Sanders and Raines are also good in their scenes together and generate a few laughs when they launch into a rather risqué conversation about stargazer Harry's 9" telescope.
Geraldine Fitzgerald is also perfectly cast as the manipulative Lettie who asserts that she has always known what's best for Harry and says that her devotion to him was the main reason why she never married.
"The Strange Affair of Uncle Harry" is a fine, well-acted movie which features a tagged-on ending which was necessary to placate the demands of the censor who, it seems, must have been totally unconcerned about the story's various allusions to Lettie's incestuous feelings for her brother.
Middle-aged bachelor Harry Melville Quincey (George Sanders) leads a desperately dull existence in the small town of Corinth, New Hampshire where he spends his working days as a fabric designer in the local mill until he returns to his home where he lives with his two squabbling sisters, Lettie (Geraldine Fitzgerald) and Hester (Moyna MacGill). Lettie is a spoilt and selfish young woman who spends her days in bed complaining about a series of imaginary illnesses and bickering with her older, widowed sister, who she criticises for gossiping with some of the townsfolk. Harry's life suddenly brightens up when Deborah Brown (Ella Raines), a designer from the company's New York City office, arrives on the scene and is obviously instantly attracted to the man who the younger employees at the mill affectionately call "Uncle Harry".
Harry and Deborah soon get to know each other better, fall in love and decide to get married. Hester is genuinely happy for her brother but Lettie, who's very attached to Harry and likes to monopolise his attention, easily becomes jealous of anyone (even his dog) who takes his attention away from her. As a cultivated person, she doesn't overtly show her displeasure at the presence of Deborah but instead, in her own refined and affected way, tries to discourage or undermine the relationship. When her scheming fails and it becomes clear that the two sisters should vacate the house for the future newlyweds to move in, Lettie uses the opportunity to frustrate the couple's plans by saying that every house that's offered to her is unsuitable. This goes on for so long that Harry and Deborah decide, in desperation, to elope together. On the day when they're ready to leave town and get married, Lettie fakes a collapse, gets rushed into hospital and Harry's conscience compels him to abandon his plans and instead, rush to her side.
Harry's actions result in Deborah returning to New York City alone and he later hears that she has new marriage plans in place. In his sadness, he reflects on Deborah's words when she said that "Lettie has no intention of setting you free, not as long as she lives" and this inspires him to take revenge on his evil sister by using the poison that she'd bought to administer to his sick old dog called "Weary". The ramifications of his actions, however, go far beyond anything he could ever have imagined.
As a rather passive man who'd felt a great responsibility to support his two sisters, Harry had tolerated their arguments and eccentricities and dutifully did what he considered to be the right thing until he realised how destructive Lettie's feelings for him had become and this provoked a profound change in him (which is contradicted by the movie's absurd censor-imposed ending). George Sanders, in an excellent performance, makes his character's descent to the dark side understandable and Ella Raines, whose expressions are priceless, is a pleasure to watch as her character never, even for a second, gets taken in by Lettie's antics. Sanders and Raines are also good in their scenes together and generate a few laughs when they launch into a rather risqué conversation about stargazer Harry's 9" telescope.
Geraldine Fitzgerald is also perfectly cast as the manipulative Lettie who asserts that she has always known what's best for Harry and says that her devotion to him was the main reason why she never married.
"The Strange Affair of Uncle Harry" is a fine, well-acted movie which features a tagged-on ending which was necessary to placate the demands of the censor who, it seems, must have been totally unconcerned about the story's various allusions to Lettie's incestuous feelings for her brother.