Opportunity for the doomed "Lightning strikes twice" is noir, and it begins as a film of another genre might end: a priest visits a condemned man to death. The execution is due to take place soon. The evidence is indisputable, but Richard Trevelyan continues to deny his guilt.
And then there is a scenario twist, and the hero has a chance: the case is sent for review. Richard is eventually acquitted and released, but law-abiding citizens still believe he killed his wife.
I must say, all attempts to convince the audience of the opposite do not look too convincing. It is understandable: “Lightning strikes twice” belongs to the few noirs, where the place of the “femme fatale” is taken by the “fatal man”. Among these films are “Shadow of Doubt”, “Roadside Institution”, as well as “The Mask of Dimitrios”, “Danger Signal” and “Ruthless”, in which Zachary Scott played the main roles. He is also busy in Lightning, but here his character appears closer to the final and can hardly be recorded as an actor as an asset - rich people who sniffle at each skirt, Scott played more than once and not twice. Scenario stamp instead of the role, and this is all the more sad that the rest of the supporting characters are written out wonderfully. Here we have an energetic hostess of the hotel (Katherine Givney) and her reasonable husband - the couple love Richard as their own son and are very worried that he cut off contact with them. Here’s Father Paul (Riz Williams) picnicing for the poor in his parish—a priest who believes one of his guests will come to God. And then there is the strange brother and sister (Mercedes McCambridge), living on a secluded ranch – this couple brings to mind the film “On Dangerous Land”, but their storyline will develop quite differently.
King Vidor shot a strong second-row noir – dynamic, exciting and tense, with good acting work. The advantages of “Lightning” can be attributed to the visual range, even if it is more associated with the Western than with the “black film”. The action takes place in Texas, so we will be shown mountain ranges, desert plains, and huge cacti – in short, everything that the Lone Star State is famous for. There are, however, their "buts." Noir as a genre suggests a number of assumptions, in connection with which the plot of “Lightning” is not always plausible. At first sight, the hostess of the hotel realizes that it is her guest with the poetic name Shelley who will be able to find Richard and prove his innocence. The guest, we note, is not a private detective, but an ordinary actress, but such trifles are not taken into account. And now Shelley's car breaks down in ' the right' place, and in the yard a rainfall, those same lightning strike, and only in the distance a vague light burns ... "Fate, ma tan," as Ostrovsky says. The relationships of the characters, especially closer to the final, also do not always look motivated, but this, again, is noir – the laws of the genre prevail over logic.
Shelley plays Ruth Roman - an actress who never reached star status, although her talent allowed her to storm any peaks. In "Lightning" she is excellent - sober, not very confident woman, which suddenly rolls a deep feeling - and even to the man suspected of murder! The actress perfectly conveys the entire emotional spectrum of her character, her doubts and fears. Richard Todd, around whom the plot is built, slightly pales in the background of the novel. This is due to the fact that the actor is elementary clamped, and with the features of the role itself, which involves, on the one hand, development, and on the other hand, constant walking in a circle. The character of Todd – a universal favorite, who overnight became an outcast – is kept isolated and stubbornly silent about the events of the night when his wife died. All attempts to find out the truth are met with fierce resistance by Richard, returning the characters to their original positions. No wonder until the final, both Shelley and the audience will suspect him of murder. Whether Richard is guilty or not, you can find out by watching this not the most famous, but noteworthy noir.
7 out of 10