Lady in the Lake

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See also Lady of the Lake.

Lady in the Lake
Directed by	Robert Montgomery
Produced by	George Haight
Written by	Raymond Chandler (novel) Steve Fisher
Starring	Robert Montgomery, Audrey Totter, Lloyd Nolan Tom Tully Leon Ames Jayne Meadows
Music by	David Snell
Cinematography	Paul Vogel
Distributed by	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
Release date(s)	January 23, 1947 (U.S. release)
Running time	105 min.
Language	English
IMDb profile

Lady in the Lake is the title of a 1947 crime film noir from MGM Studios.

Based on the 1944 Raymond Chandler novel The Lady in the Lake, the film marked the directorial debut of the actor Robert Montgomery who also starred in the film. The cast included Audrey Totter, Lloyd Nolan, Tom Tully, Leon Ames and Jayne Meadows.

The storyline revolved around a conventional murder mystery similar to many others of the period, however it was notable for the perspective presented to the viewer. The entire film was seen from the viewpoint of the central character, the detective Philip Marlowe, played by Montgomery. The gimmick was that the audience would see only what the character saw, and MGM in its promotion of the film claimed that it was the first of its kind and the most revolutionary style of film since the introduction of the talkies.

[edit] Critical reaction

The gimmick was criticized by many reviewers of the day, although Montgomery received some positive comments for the inventiveness of his direction, and the contrivances he employed to enable his face to appear on-camera, by catching himself in reflections. Regarded as something of a curiosity and an oddity in its day, the film has retained that reputation, although some modern critics, while maintaining that the storyline itself is routine, assess the film overall as more worthwhile than did its contemporary critics.