Noirvember 2019 Double Feature – “The Arnelo Affair” (1947) & “Whispering Footsteps” (1943)

NaNoWriMo has been pretty hard for me these past few days so the next entry in the Noirvember series is going to be a two-in-one.

The first film is the 1947 The Arnelo Affair directed by Arch Oboler and it is the first film of his I’ve seen. 

We begin in a car, where a man and a woman are driving ahead. She seems very sad, startled by something. The man immediately feels shady to the viewers, and their suspicions become confirmed, in a way, when she says: „You killed her…” She says she’s going to go to the police but the man won’t let her go.

The story is told to us through flashbacks. We learn that the lady (played by Frances Gifford) was once a happy wife of a rich gentleman with whom she has a son. Then, things get complicated when she starts feeling neglected and begins seeing a nightclub owner, Tony Arnelo (that’s the name of the movie!).

Sadly, they do not get complicated enough since The Arnelo Affair quickly turns out to be a pretty boring drama about rich people rather than a compelling noir. The worst offense of the film, though, is that it features Eve Arden and underutilizes her (unacceptable).

Whispering Footsteps (1943), the second film, starts in a bank where a quirky lady wants to open an account. She looks like Joan Fontaine or Jodie Whittaker. It all seems very pleasant and relaxing. Too bad soon things turn sinister when the bank clerk becomes a suspect in an investigation of a killer, someone who murdered two girls. And he does not have an alibi…

The film was directed by Howard Bretherton. The only other film of his I have seen is 1933 Ladies They Talk About, an early Barbara Stanwyck vehicle I do not remember at all. And to be honest I can barely remember Whispering Footsteps already. That is a review in itself. 

I guess it’s a good thing I paired those two films together. Sadly, they did not leave an impression on me and I won’t even attempt writing more. Too bad.

On the other hand, and this has nothing to do with Noirvember but since the season of catching up with the year’s releases is upon us: I just watched Dolemite is My Name and it was a delight! Highly recommend for those who want to see some Hollywood history presented in truly the most fun way.