This movie says some interesting things about gambling, but it's way too melodramatic and suffers from scattershot plotting.
Joan's (Barbara Stanwyck) descent into pathological betting happens too quickly to be believed, and her preternaturally understanding husband (Robert Preston) conjures his "Music Man" personality much more than that of a credible spouse.
We must also sit through the histrionics of Joan's hyper-neurotic sister (Edith Barrett), and a casino thug (Stephen McNally) who alternately abuses Joan and tries to seduce her.
For a far more convincing depiction of how gambling can wreck a woman's life, see 1963's "Bay of Angels," with the mesmerizing Jeanne Moreau.
Joan's (Barbara Stanwyck) descent into pathological betting happens too quickly to be believed, and her preternaturally understanding husband (Robert Preston) conjures his "Music Man" personality much more than that of a credible spouse.
We must also sit through the histrionics of Joan's hyper-neurotic sister (Edith Barrett), and a casino thug (Stephen McNally) who alternately abuses Joan and tries to seduce her.
For a far more convincing depiction of how gambling can wreck a woman's life, see 1963's "Bay of Angels," with the mesmerizing Jeanne Moreau.