STRANGE LOVE OF MARTHA IVERS, THE

(July 1946, U.S.)

Every once in a while on my blog, I end up straying off into other cinematic worlds for so long (in the most recent case, STAR TREK and STAR WARS films) that I almost forget to acknowledge the true pleasure I experience in black and white classics from Hollywood's Golden Age. THE STRANGE LOVE OF MARTHA IVERS falls into that category of film noir that many have probably never even heard of, despite its star Barbara Stanwyk. If absolutely nothing else, fans of Kirk Douglas (yes, the man is still alive!) should know that this was his film debut (today, it's one of many classic films in the United States public domain).

Beginning in 1928 in Iverstown, Pennsylvania, thirteen year-old Martha Ivers tries to escape the clutches of her wealthy and domineering Aunt Ivers by running away with her street-smart friend Sam Masterson. The two are quickly caught by police and sent home where her tutor and his timid son, Walter O'Neil Jr. also reside. During a power failure, Martha discovers her aunt beating her cat with a cane. Driven to the point of no return, Martha wrestles the cane away and repeatedly strikes her aunt across the head, killing her. Of course, just as Aunt Ivers hits the floor at the bottom of the stairs, the lights come back on, and it's time to make a decision about who did what and who ultimately takes the blame. Greedy opportunist Walter Sr. makes it clear to both his son and Martha that he knows what really happened, but that as long as he and his son stand to benefit, he'll play along and see that some stranger takes the blame and is convicted for Aunt Iver's killing. Meanwhile, little Sam Masterson has hopped a freight train and left town.

Now we come to the present day, which is 1946 and Martha (Stanwyk) has inherited her aunt's wealth and practically controls the entire town. She's also a spoiled bitch who's married to town district attorney Walter Jr. (Douglas) out of convenience and pretty much has the poor, powerless bastard by the balls! Despite this bizarre situation, he still loves her, even though his love is not returned. Sam (played by Van Heflin), a former World War II soldier, unexpectedly returns to Iverstown after some car trouble. While in town, he meets platinum blonde Antonia (played by Lisabeth Scott) who's just been released from prison for theft. Circumstances drive Sam to contact Martha and Walter to see if they can help his new girlfriend, but such a request doesn't come cheap without unleashing the past and reopening old wounds of crime and conspiracy. Walter is convinced that Sam intends to blackmail them, while Martha harbors romantic feelings for her long, lost friend.

While Sam is merely just passing through his hometown and just trying to help his new love interest, what truly strikes him is just how ugly and detestable his two old childhood friends have become. Greed, lust, jealousy and murder soon follow, because let's face it, film noir just would be what we expect it to be without those glamorous human emotions and actions. Even as Sam is torn between his new love and the strange past he once shared with Martha, he still can't shake the reality that he may not leave Iverstown alive. In the end, though, the ultimate price is paid by Martha and Walter, and one can't help but feel that even they know that violent death is the proper justice for two persons of such low moral fiber and convictions as themselves. But even as things end on a predictably dark note in this film, the story still needs to remind us of even the smallest triumph, as Sam and Antonia drive out of town together.

Getting back to films in the public domain for a moment, it's easy to see how too many of these films are overlooked outside of their occasional airing on Turner Classic Movies. They're often grainy, low quality prints that test one's visual patience in a world where high definition rules. Still, cinema is about history, and history should never be ignored simply because the picture doesn't look as good as we'd like. THE STRANGE LOVE OF MARTHA IVERS continues to prove what a domineering presence Barbara Stanwyk was on screen. In fact, when I think of women who had a natural talent for keeping men under their spell and authority, Stanwyk is often the first to come to mind (hell, she might have made a great dominatrix, if that was her thing!). Kirk Douglas, even as he played a weak and immoral, little weasel, was off to a great start to his long and distinguished career (because we all gotta start somewhere!).

Favorite line or dialogue:

Martha Ivers: "It would have been so different if you hadn't run away. It would have been you instead of Walter. Or if you had stopped me. When I lifted the cane, why didn't you stop me? You know how much I hated her! Why didn't you stop me?"
Sam Masterson: "I wasn't there, Martha."
Martha: "And then I stood there after it was over...you... you weren't there?"
Sam: "No, Martha. I wasn't there. I left when your aunt came into the hallway. I didn't want to stick around. I was in enough trouble as it was. I never saw what happened. I never knew until tonight about your aunt or that man...the one they hung...the man that you and Walter killed."