The Strange Love of Martha Ivers

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The Strange Love of Martha Ivers
Movie poster
Directed by	Lewis Milestone
Produced by	Hal B. Wallis
Written by	John Patrick (story Love Lies Bleeding) Robert Rossen Robert Riskin (uncredited)
Starring	Barbara Stanwyck Van Heflin Lizabeth Scott Kirk Douglas
Music by	Miklós Rózsa
Cinematography	Victor Milner
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date(s)	July 24, 1946 U.S. release
Running time	116 min
Language	English
IMDb profile

The Strange Love of Martha Ivers is a black-and-white film noir motion picture released in the United States in 1946, starring Van Heflin, Barbara Stanwyck, Lizabeth Scott and Kirk Douglas (in his film debut). The movie is based on a short story, titled Love Lies Bleeding by playwright John Patrick (using the pseudonym Jack Patrick), produced and brought to the screen by Hal B. Wallis. The screenplay was written by Robert Rossen and Robert Riskin (uncredited), and was directed by Lewis Milestone.

1 Plot
2 Cast
3 Notes
4 External links

[edit] Plot

On a rainy night in 1928 in a Pennsylvania factory town called Iverstown, Martha Ivers (Barbara Stanwyck), a rich young girl yearning to escape from the guardianship of her domineering aunt, is caught attempting to run away with her friend, the street-smart, poor Sam Masterson (Van Heflin).^[1] Martha is taken home. There, she stops her aunt from attacking her cat with a cane by turning it on her aunt, with fatal consequences. The crime is witnessed by Walter O'Neil (Kirk Douglas). His scheming father (Roman Bohnen) blackmails her into marrying his son and arranges for an innocent man to be framed for the crime and executed. Meanwhile, Sam leaves town.

Eighteen years later, Walter is the district attorney, while Martha used the money she inherited from her aunt to built a large business empire. However, their marriage is one-sided; he loves her, but the reverse isn't true. Sam, now a drifter and gambler, returns to the small town, where he meets vulnerable bad girl Toni Marachek (Lizabeth Scott), who has just been released from jail.

When Walter and Martha learn that Sam is back, they worry that he has returned to blackmail them. Walter uses his influence to try to run him out of town, but Sam is too tough to intimidate. Martha, on the other hand, is very glad to see him again.

When all else fails, Walter makes a half-hearted attempt to kill Sam himself, but he is easily disarmed. Martha then inadvertently blurts out the couple's fears, but they prove to be groundless: Sam never witnessed the homicide. Martha breaks down and laments that he left without her all those years ago, taking with him her only chance for love and freedom. She tries to get him to kill her husband, but Sam leaves them to contemplate the wreckage of their lives. Before he goes, he gives Walter back his gun and turns his back on him, but Walter does nothing.

After Sam leaves, Walter embraces Martha, then points his gun at her. She, oddly relieved, puts her hand over Walter's hand on the trigger and presses. Outside, Sam hears first one shot, then soon after, a second.

[edit] Cast

Barbara Stanwyck as Martha Ivers
Van Heflin as Sam Masterson
Lizabeth Scott as Antonia "Toni" Marachek
Kirk Douglas as Walter O'Neil. Hal B. Wallis was on his way to New York to look for new talent when Lauren Bacall suggested he look up her old drama school classmate, Issur Demsky, better known as Kirk Douglas.
Roman Bohnen as Mr O'Neil, Walter's father
Judith Anderson as Mrs Ivers