Betrayed

Betrayed (On Loan Out from MGM to a Production Company in Holland 1954)

A dark-haired Lana looking ravishing in 1954's "Betrayed". Lou Valentino Collection.

Lana on Clark Gable and 'Betrayed':

'Betrayed' turned out to be Clark's last picture at MGM. He was in his early fifties and his girth showed his age a bit; the studio decided not to renew his contract. He spent his last days at the studio where he had reigned as King dubbing some scenes of 'Betrayed'. And when he left, I'm told, there was no one to say good-bye except the guard at the gate. Many of us were shocked at that. What a disgraceful lack of appreciation for his years of service! But there would be no ceremonial farewells for any of us, as one by one, we left MGM's famous star stable. The heads of the studio were intent on reducing the overhead their stars' contracts represented . MGM was on the decline and we all knew it.

Production Dates: Late September, 1953-December 1953. Additional Sequences shot in late January of 1954.

Release Date: September 7, 1954.

Credited Cast and Crew:

Lana Turner, Clark Gable, Victor Mature, Louis Calhern.

Directed by: Gottfried Reinhardt

Writing Credits: Ronald Milar and George Froeschel

Original Music by: Walter Goehr, Bronislau Kaper

Cinematography: Freddie Young

Synopsis: Lana and Clark Gable spy and romance their way through World War II ravaged Holland.

My Review: When I first sat down to watch this film, it just didn't sink in with me and I couldn't figure out why. All of the right ingredients were there, Lana looking beautiful as always, beautiful exterior scenes that were shot in the Netherlands, a pretty good story concept and Victor Mature coming on in good support. Why, I asked myself, am I not having any fun here? Then it dawned on me like a light from above: it was the lack of chemistry between Gable and Lana.

Most contemporary film reviewers and Turner fans are going to wholeheartedly disagree with me on this, but the famed sexual chemistry that the duo had had in their previous three films is strained here. Part of the reason being that the twenty year age difference between the two of them has really begun to show itself and while Lana can still pull herself together at aged thirty-three, Gable looks like all of his fifty-three years and then some. In 1941 when Lana kittenishly plopped herself onto Gable's lap it was cute, but in 1954 it looks strained and uncomfortable. After thirteen years and millions of dollars in box office receipts, this was their last pairing together and Gable would leave MGM shortly after production was completed.

I also found myself getting a little frustrated with the complexities of a script that isn't executed well. The audience is asked to figure out a little too much and I spent half of the film trying to play catch up. Who's in love with who? Who's a spy now? Lana is a spy, right or does she have an evil twin? It made my head hurt.

Your Review: What are YOUR thoughts on this film? Contact me at Liza@lanaturneronline.com

Highlights and Trivia

*Production began under the title The True and the Brave.

*Clark Gable's last film for MGM, the studio that had made him a star and that he had been under contract to since 1930 (twenty-four years!). The industry was changing and MGM was not the top player it once was. They were slowly but surely letting go of all of their famed stable of stars. Gable would never return to MGM again, even on a free lance basis. Lana's days at "Metro" were numbered as well, but she may not have known it then.

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