The Uninvited (1944 film)

rdf:langString The Uninvited (1944 film)

rdf:langString The Uninvited

rdf:langString The Uninvited

rdf:langString An illustrated image featuring a concerned image of a man and woman in the foreground. The background features the same man in front of the woman throwing a candelabra at a foggy apparition. The title of the film appears above with cast and production information below.

rdf:langString Theatrical release poster

rdf:langString United States

rdf:langString Paramount Pictures, Inc.

rdf:langString English

rdf:langString Dodie Smith

rdf:langString

rdf:langString Frank Partos

rdf:langString

rdf:langString Ray Milland

rdf:langString Gail Russell

rdf:langString Ruth Hussey

rdf:langString Cornelia Otis Skinner

rdf:langString Donald Crisp

rdf:langString The Uninvited is a 1944 American horror film that was directed by Lewis Allen and stars Ray Milland, Ruth Hussey, and Donald Crisp. The film is based on Dorothy Macardle's novel Uneasy Freehold (1941), which was published in the United States as The Uninvited (1942) and deals with a brother and sister who purchase a house in Cornwall, England, that is plagued by paranormal events. The film is part of a cycle of supernatural-themed films that began appearing in the mid-1940s. Dodie Smith began writing the film, and Frank Partos was brought in by his friend, associate producer Charles Brackett. Brackett wanted to have the film directed by Alfred Hitchcock but could not organize plans with him, so Allen directed it. Filming began on April 16, 1943; Allen found working with Gail Russell, who was inexperienced and began crying several times, to be the most difficult part of filming. The Uninvited was released in Washington, D.C., on February 10, 1944, and was one of the highest-grossing films of the year. On its release, it received positive reviews from trade papers Variety, Harrison's Reports, and The Monthly Film Bulletin as well as from critics such as Bosley Crowther and James Agee. Critics were surprised the film's supernatural elements were presented as reality and that they found it genuinely frightening. The film was also praised in retrospective reviews from Carlos Clarens and Phil Edwards, while other critics including Pauline Kael and James Marriott gave it more mixed reviews. In the 1940s, director of photography Charles Lang Jr. was nominated for an Academy Award for his work on the film, which was later adapted into two radio plays. The film did not create a wave of supernatural-themed horror films but led to further work by director Allen with Russell and with Milland. The song "Stella by Starlight", which was created for the film, became a popular jazz standard that was performed by Frank Sinatra, Charlie Parker, and Miles Davis.