A Stranger in Town

 

(1943)
Directed by Roy Rowland
Written by Isobel Lennart, William Kozienko
Starring Frank Morgan, Richard Carlson, Jean Rogers, Porter Hall, Robert Barrat
IMDB Entry

"Film noir" is an imprecise term, and grows more imprecise as time goes by. It originally designated a dark film, both in lighting and in theme, usually about a man laid low by an evil woman.* Later, it developed films involving crime and private eyes.  Now, all too often, it just means a black-and-white movie. I tend to look to films that are billed as film noir for my posts, and came across A Stranger in Town, which has very little darkness, but is a surprisingly good movie.

John Grant (Frank Morgan) is a U.S. Supreme Court justice. The court term ends and he goes off on a duck hunting expedition, telling his secretary Lucy Gilbert (Jean Rogers) that he will be going incognito to avoid the press. While hunting, the local game warden asks for his license and informs him that, though the state license he shows is legitimate, he needs a special license to hunt in the town. The warden makes a deal: if Grant gives him five dollars, he'll overlook the violation and give him the license. Grant doesn't reveal his identity and refuses to pay the bribe; he's taken to court and fined $100.

While waiting, he sees lawyer Bill Adams (Richard Carlson) try to get justice for a man who is about to lose his farm.  The corrupt Judge Austin Harkley (Porter Hall) will have none of it. Adams is planning to run against the boss of the town, Mayor Connison (Robert Barrat) and Grant decides to help him out. He asks Lucy to come to town and she meets cute with Bill.** Despite harassment and other tricks, Grant reveals his identity and Connison is taken down.

Frank Morgan was, of course, the Wizard of Oz and in the early scenes it's hard not to think he's being a giant humbug again. The part here is similar to the kindly version of  the wizard at the end of that film. Richard Carlson reached fame in science fiction films of the 50s, most notably in It Came from Outer Space and The Creature from the Black Lagoon. Jean Rogers also has a connection with science fiction as Dale Arden in the early Flash Gordon serials with Buster Crabbe.  Porter Hall is also a familiar movie face as the evil Sawyer in Miracle on 34th Street.

The film is far to lighthearted to be considered noir, but it is a charming little movie with a message of the need to fight against corruption.

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*Double Indemnity is the prototype.

**An extended sequence of disasters that should make her stay well away from him. But we know better, don't we?