Indeed it was – it was his first clear success – and critics agreed that it showed that his acting skills had progressed and improved enormously.By the early 1900s, the extraordinary Houdini earned an international reputation for his theatrical tricks and daring feats of extrication from shackles, ropes, handcuffs, and Scotland Yard's jails. They thought it would be a good teaming, and it was. Sig Ruman, Angela Clarke as Harry’s Mother, Ian Wolfe, Connie Gilchrist, Michael Pate, Stefan Schnabel, Malcolm Lee Beggs, Frank Orth, Barry Bernard, Douglas Spencer, Tor Johnson, Frank Jaquet, Grace Hayle, Mike Mahoney, Torben Meyer, Mary Murphy, Ralph Peters, Tudor Owen, Lyle Latell and Mabel Paige also appear.Ĭurtis recalled: ‘Janet and I were just married then. Leigh plays Mrs Bess Houdini and Torin Thatcher is the great mans’s helper, Otto. Philip Yordan’s screenplay is based on a book story by Harold Kellock.
Marshall directs an appealing movie at a fast lick, pausing only for dull romantic interludes, when the film stalls.
There is plenty of energy in the attractive performances and Paramount’s colourful (though heavily studio-bound) production, making this gentle, pleasing escapist entertainment. Paired for the first time in their five films together, Tony Curtis stars with his then wife Janet Leigh in director George Marshall’s largely imaginary 1953 biopic of the great escaper Harry Houdini (aka Erich Weiss, 1874-1926) that takes the story from Houdini being a humble fairground conjurer to becoming a world-famous escape artist and master magician whose passing on 31 October is still celebrated as International Magic Day. Houdini ***½ (1953, Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh, Torin Thatcher, Sig Ruman, Angela Clarke, Ian Wolfe) – Classic Movie Review 4545
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