Walk Softly; Stranger

Romantic Noir - Cotton & Valli have wonderful chemistry
This oddly cast Noir film of a drifter settling in a small town demonstrates how effective it can be cast people for their inner character. Joseph Cotton has a softness to him, despite his craggy face, that explodes the parameters of "the Stranger" in great ways. Is he really the small town boy who used to live here as a child, or is he just using other people's storys to piece together his own new one? The beautiful and deep Allida Valli has a darkness within her soft features that give her the neccessary depth to play this heiress who was crippled in a skiing accident who has written herself off despite her beauty.

The joy is seeing the kindness within so many of the characters in this dark, brooding script. The marvelous direction and shaping, to see how Cotton befriends the maid, how Valli says thank you to waiters, and of course, Spring Byington's "meddlesom" sweetness that takes on a really disturbed criminal without blinking an eyelash. She is just THAT sure...

The Past Catches Up With Him
Joseph Cotten (CITIZEN KANE, SHADOW OF A DOUBT) stars in this nifty little drama about a small-time gambler/thief who tries to escape his shady past by taking up residence in a nondescript small town. Try as he might to start a new life, the man finds he's gambled at least one time too often.
Along with Cotten, who gives an admirably cool and calm performance, the cast includes Valli as a disillusioned young woman crippled by a skiing accident; the always enjoyable Spring Byington as a kind-hearted widow; and Paul Stewart (another KANE alumnus) as a crook who loses both his money and his nerve.
WALK SOFTLY, STRANGER is an effective mix of romance and suspense. If you're a fan of small-scale 40's/50's B&W dramas, it's definitely worth adding to your collection.

A Second Chance
"Just do one thing for me. Belong to me." -- Joseph Cotten to Alida Valli

Something soft and wistful hangs over this neglected RKO gem starring Joseph Cotten and Alida Valli like a misty sea smoke. A warmth and maturity can be felt as we are slowly drawn in to this story of second chances. Rather than being a crime drama, it is a quiet drama with crime. Rather than the focal point being a crime, with romance as a background, it is a romance intruded upon by a past deed, an intrusion on a life being made, by a life that recently was. A subdued richness and restrained, underplayed performances by both Cotten and Valli add a sense of truth and realism.

Chris Hale (Joeseph Cotten) comes to the town of Ashton and finds a kind soul in Spring Byington, who gives a wonderful performance as a very sweet lady whose son was killed in the war. Despite the fact Cotten's character sort of ingratiates himself into her life and that of the town, we sense an underlying goodness...

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