Parading around, showing herself off in that dress, cut down so low in front you can see her kneecaps. – Niagara (1953)
Niagara (1953) – Marilyn Monroe’s Darkest Role
Before anyone screams, the water does. It thunders without mercy, drowning out reason, drowning out conscience. A honeymoon paradise turns into a trap where desire curdles into hatred, and every whispered word feels like a warning. In the shadow of the falls, passion is not romantic. It is dangerous. And once the plan is set in motion, there is no turning back.
“So, let’s start at the beginning.”
Hello to all of the classic people who are returning. I am glad you are back. I want to welcome any new visitors and let you know that there will be spoilers ahead. Today, on Classic Movie Review, we are taking on Niagara (1953). I have mentioned this film a few times before. It is on my All Film Noirs list, currently ranked at 49. It was also included in the video “My Top 10 Color Film Noirs Ranked,” which ranked it number 1.
IMDb.com rates this movie at 7.0[1], a score I consider low. It is similarly rated on RottenTomatoes.com, with 78 percent on the Tomatometer and 69 percent on the audience score[2]. Did they miss the fact that the film starred Marilyn Monroe?
New York Times film critic A. W. said in a January 22, 1953, review:
…For the producers are making full use of both the grandeur of the Falls and its adjacent areas as well as the grandeur that is Marilyn Monroe. The scenic effects in both cases are superb…
…Perhaps Miss Monroe is not the perfect actress at this point. But neither the director nor the gentlemen who handled the cameras appeared to be concerned with this. They have caught every possible curve both in the intimacy of the boudoir and in equally revealing tight dresses. And they have illustrated pretty concretely that she can be seductive—even when she walks…
…As has been noted, “Niagara” may not be the place to visit under these circumstances but the falls and Miss Monroe are something to see…
Actors – Niagara (1953)
Returning
We have two actresses who are among the top of their generation. First is the lovely and tragic Marilyn Monroe, who was cast as the unfaithful wife, Rose Loomis. Monroe was first covered in one of the great Film Noirs, The Asphalt Jungle (1950).
The other actress is Jean Peters, who played the solid, middle-American Polly Cutler. Peters was first covered in the Film Noir pickpocketing thriller Pickup on South Street (1953).
Max Showalter played dutiful husband Ray Cutler. Showalter was first covered in the decent Film Noir Vicki (1953).
Western actor Harry Carey Jr. popped up as an uncredited taxi driver. This Western actor was first covered in Billy the Kid Versus Dracula (1966).
New
Joseph Cotten was in the role of George Loomis, and let’s just say he wasn’t the good guy. Cotten was born in Virginia in 1905. After becoming interested in acting as a child, Cotten studied acting as an adult at the Hickman School of Expression in Washington, D.C.
He worked various jobs while trying to break into acting. He eventually became the drama critic for the Miami Herald. This led him to work in local theater. He worked as a stage manager in New York and began acting in Boston in 1929. He made his Broadway debut in 1930.
Cotten also worked in radio, which eventually led to him meeting Orson Welles. The two became friends, and Cotten joined The Mercury Theatre Players. Following the infamous “War of the Worlds” radio broadcast, Welles was given a two-picture deal. Welles went on to direct Citizen Kane (1941) in which Cotton had a major part. The next film with the two friends, The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), was almost as well received.
Working with another great director, Alfred Hitchcock, Cotten starred in Shadow of a Doubt (1943), playing a creepy, blue-beard killer opposite Teresa Wright. Cotten has a part in a film that never existed, Gaslight (1944), because there never was a film called Gaslight (1944).
Cotten starred in the very complex The Third Man (1949). During the 1950s, Cotten was an in-demand actor, but not necessarily for A-list roles. He made several good Westerns, which include Two Flags West (1950) and the Western Noir The Halliday Brand (1957). He was in some Film Noirs, such as today’s film Niagara (1953), and an uncredited bit in Touch of Evil (1958), another film directed by Welles. He was in a Jules Verne-written film, From the Earth to the Moon (1958).
During the 1960s, Cotton continued to make films and appeared on television series. The 1970s found him with a part in the great War film Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970), he was in the classic Sci-Fi Soylent Green (1973), a bit in Twilight’s Last Gleaming (1977), a Cold War drama, and Airport ’77 (1977). Cotten retired in the 1980s and died in 1994.
Story – Niagara (1953)
The credits roll. It cuts to Niagara Falls. A lone man is shown walking through the mist and the rainbow it creates. The man is George (Joseph Cotten). He wonders why he is drawn to the falls at 5am? From the angle, it seems like he is on the American side. Later, he is shown on the Canadian side, walking towards the Rainbow Cabins. The cabins were constructed for the movie and were never rented. They have a great view of the falls.
George enters his cabin, and inside is the smoking hot Rose Loomis (Marilyn Monroe), smoking a cigarette and nude under a thin sheet, wearing only red lipstick. When she hears George, she rolls away and pretends to be asleep.
George carefully tries to wake Rose, but she won’t stir. He lies in his bed and falls into a fitful sleep. When Rose is sure George is in bed, she rolls in the other direction.
A view of both falls is shown from the Canadian side. The bells of the Rainbow Carillion ring loudly.
Two more Americans arrive at the border. They are Ray (Max Showalter) and Polly Cutler (Jean Peters). The couple is from Toledo and is coming for a late honeymoon. Ray has a large stack of books he plans to read during the three-day trip. The Canadian customs man is surprised by the books after being told they are on their honeymoon. Polly gives Ray a light chewing.
The books Ray is reading on his honeymoon is “The Second World War,” a six-volume history written between 1948 and 1953
The couple arrives at the Rainbow Cabins and meet with the manager, Mr. Qua (Russell Collins). They have reserved a room with a good view of the falls. Ray is more excited that he can see the shredded wheat plant on the American side of the river. Ray explains that he works for a breakfast cereal company and is visiting the main plant for the first time.
Mr. Qua tells Polly that George and Rose have not moved out of their reserved cabin.
Ray calls the factory and tells them that he won a best slogan contest and has been invited to meet Mr. Kettering (Don Wilson).
Mr. Qua knocks on the cabin door, and Rose insists he be quiet because her husband, George, is sleeping. Rose robes up, comes outside, and begs for an extension. She explains that George has some issues and hasn’t been sleeping well. She says he has been having problems since he got out of “Letterman.” Polly lets Rose keep the cabin. I wouldn’t say no to Marilyn either.
Polly asks Ray about Letterman, and he says it’s an Army psychiatric hospital. The hospital was located at the Presidio of San Francisco and dates to the 19th century. Ray is bummed that Mr. Kettering is out of town and won’t be back until the first of the week. They check into a cabin with a lesser view.
As soon as George is calmed down, Rose heads out.
Ray and Polly rush to the Maid of the Mist boat ride that takes you into the spray below the falls on the American side. It’s a soaking experience. They then head to the scenic tunnel under the Canadian Falls. For the tour, you have to leave your shoes and wear rain boots. A pair of red shoes are shown in one of the storage boxes.
Ray is trying to back Polly over the edge so he can get a great shot. Near the edge, Polly sees Rose swapping spit with an unidentified man. It looks like love, or at least lust. Polly moves back so she is not seen by Rose. Polly can’t wait to spill the beans to Ray.
Later, back at the cabin, George is building a model car while Rose scrubs up in the shower. Looking for cigarettes, George finds Rose’s ticket stub for the scenic tunnel. She is in a good mood after her booty call.
Outside, a group of young people are playing records and dancing. Records are like an MP3s on a petroleum-based platter.
Ray and Polly are outside dancing and enjoying the music.
Rose steps out of her cabin looking amazing in a fuchsia dress. She selects the next record, titled “Kiss,” but declines to dance with a young man. George is watching from the window.
Rose joins Ray and Polly as she is mesmerized by the song, even singing along. George storms out of the cabin and smashes the record before retreating back inside. Polly thinks George may have cut his hand on the record, but Rose doesn’t want to go inside. Polly enters with a bottle of Mercurochrome.
I have to go on a mini detour here. As a kid, this was the go-to slathering agent for any cut, rash, or burn. I remember that it stained your skin an unnatural shade of orange and burned like the fires of hell. At some point, it fell out of common use. A little digging and I found out it contained mercury and could cause poisoning[3]. Its distribution was halted in the USA in 1998. That’s only 40 or so years after its high-water usage mark, so kudos for the fast action.
On October 19, 1998, citing potential for mercury poisoning, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reclassified merbromin from “generally recognized as safe” to “untested,” effectively halting its distribution within the United States.
Rose stays with Ray while Polly goes on her first aid adventure. George is hostile but accepts Polly’s kindness. George tells about how the song “Kiss” marks a bad place in his marriage to Rose because he doesn’t know who it reminds her of.
George then starts digging into Rose’s dress, saying it is cut so low in the front that you can see her kneecaps. Polly takes up for Rose, and George asks her if she would wear a dress like that. George says she would like to wear that dress where everyone could see her, right in the middle of Yankee Stadium. At the time this movie was made, Monroe was in a relationship with retired New York Yankee star and Mr. Coffee hawker Joe DiMaggio. The two would later marry.
In the Neo-Noir Farewell, My Lovely (1975), Robert Mitchum‘s character, Philip Marlowe, is following Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak during the movie.
Polly correctly diagnoses George as being hopelessly in love with Rose. They hear excitement from outside, and they see that the falls are lit with colorful lights. Polly invites George outside, but he wants to talk about the calmness of the river above the falls as a bit of foreshadowing. Ray comes in and meets George.
George is building a model of a 1907 Maxwell car. He says he will probably mess up the model. George is down on himself as he tells about Rose being the most popular waitress in a beer hall in Duluth. The more time he spent with Rose, the more his sheep ranch failed. George failed at a few more jobs before volunteering for the Korean Conflict. He was sent home with battle fatigue, now known as PTSD. George smashes the model car.
Rose calls a boarding house and pretends to be calling the bus terminal when the landlady answers. Patrick (Richard Allan) comes out of his room and calls Rose back at the motel phone. She tells Patrick that it has to be tomorrow. They have a place selected, and Rose says she will get George there. She says that after George’s blowup that night, no one will wonder. She alludes to the fact that no one will be suspicious if it appears he committed suicide. Patrick is wearing the red shoes from the storage box shown earlier.
In the morning, Rose is nude under a thin sheet, and George is in a great mood and making plans for the future. They have had make-up sex. Rose gets dressed and says she is going to the bus station to get the tickets. George is immediately suspicious. She gigs him pretty hard before she leaves.
George goes to the bus station to see if Rose is there. It was a trap to get him to follow. He sees Rose and follows her from a safe distance. Eventually, she arrives at the scenic tunnel on the Canadian side. Patrick is in the gift shop, waiting for her arrival, but they don’t interact.
George arrives and buys a ticket. Patrick takes the same downward elevator as George. Rose finds a note on a postcard from Patrick saying that if everything goes ok, the bell tower will play their song. He also says he will meet her in Chicago. Rose throws the postcard away as she leaves.
Physical evidence. Stop creating physical evidence of your conspiracy.
Ray finds out that Mr. Kettering will not be returning until Tuesday. Ray is trying to take a sexy pic of Polly, but Rose stumbles upon them, pretending in a frantic manner that she can’t find George. Inside the cabin, she closes the blinds to hide herself from the crime.
At the police station, Inspector Starkey (Denis O’Dea) is informed of the discovery of a body. He has the missing person file brought in and soon lands on the name George Loomis, who was reported missing by the Cutlers for Rose.
Inspector Starkey travels to the scenic tunnel, and Rose, Ray, and Polly are waiting in the gift shop. Rose is doing a good job of showing concern. They are taken to the dressing area, where the only non-claimed shoes are George’s brown loafers. Rose demands that the police do something. Ray and Polly agree to take Rose back to the cabins.
Outside, Rose hears the bell tower/Carillon playing “Kiss.” She believes that means Patrick has killed George as they planned. She decides to walk back, creating an amazing shot of Monroe walking in heels along a cobblestone road. The scenic tunnel is on the Canadian side, but the Carillon is shown across the river as seen from the American side.
Teams of police search the area until they find a beaten body. Rose arrives at the station to view the body. The face is uncovered but not shown. Rose shows real shock before collapsing. This scene shows that Monroe was a talented actress. She is hospitalized and sedated. Polly comes to bring Rose’s necessaries.
Back at the cabins, Mr. Kettering and his wife, Mrs. Kettering (Lurene Tuttle), arrive and locate Polly. Ray is not there, and Mr. Kettering insists that she go on a grand tour with them. His wife convinces him otherwise. The manager, Mr. Qua, has moved Ray and Polly’s bags into the cabin previously occupied by George and Rose. Polly is not happy that her clothes have been moved.
Polly lies down for a nap while a man wearing Patrick’s shoes walks to the back door. It is George, who apparently killed Patrick in the attack. Rose fainted when she sees that it was Patrick who was dead and George was still alive somewhere.
George enters the cabin planning to kill Rose. When Polly sees the knife-wielding George, she screams. He flees before help can arrive. Ray returns in the midst of the chaos.
Ray doesn’t believe Polly, and Ray is fed up with the drama. He is ready to leave until he finds that the Kettering’s are waiting to visit with the couple. Polly leaves a message for Inspector Starkey to call her. George overhears that she didn’t immediately report him as being alive.
The Cutter’s and the Kettering’s go to visit the Cave of the Winds. The Cave of the Winds is another slippery adventure located on the American side under the falls. The men go ahead, Mrs. Kettering goes to smoke, and Polly waits midway.
On another aside, growing up, did you have those parents who smoked, while sending you solo on all adventures or attractions, with the phrase, I’ll be right here waiting when you get back. I mean, smoking when you get back.
Polly sees George coming toward her. She runs away but almost falls into the torrent. George grabs her to make sure she is safe. He pushes her into a quiet nook and explains that he needs help because it was self-defense when Patrick attacked him. Polly leaves without replying and returns to the group.
The Carillon plays a tune as George approaches the building to drop off a musical request.
In the hospital, Rose hears the tune “Kiss” and awakens from her sedation.
The Kettering’s drop the Cutter’s off at the cabins. They make plans for a 5am fishing trip the next day.
When Polly enters the cabin, Inspector Starkey is waiting inside. Polly doesn’t tell the cop what she knows, but she becomes very concerned when she learns Rose has left the hospital. Ray comes in and blows up at the inspector. Polly finally says that George is alive. Ray still doesn’t believe Polly.
Rose goes to the bus station and returns one of the two tickets to Chicago she bought earlier. She gets in line for the bus, but Rose soon hears that the police are checking IDs and looking for a woman. She leaves the line and goes to a taxi. The taxi driver is Harry Carey Jr. He explains that the drive across lanes to America are being checked ahead. He gives Rose directions to walk the bridge to the American side.
Rose sees George ahead and quickly heads in another direction. Rose runs to the Carillon and heads upstairs, trying to escape George. He slowly follows, driving her ever upward. George strangles Rose as the bells remain eerily quiet.
George is locked in the Carillon because it is past closing time. He heads back up the stairs, pausing only to examine Rose’s dropped lipstick. Over the dead body, he says, “I loved you, Rose. You know that.”
The next day, George escapes the Carillon before Rose’s body is found.
The Kettering’s and the Cutter’s head out on their fishing trip. I have seen those falls, and no force on the planet could get me in a boat on the river above them. I don’t care if Marlins were jumping in the boat.
They stop the boat at a small dock and go ashore to buy supplies for the trip. Polly is sent for beer. She sees the police visit the boatman (Will Wright). You may not know the name, but you would recognize Wright from shows such as “Leave It to Beaver” and “The Andy Griffith Show.” The boatman tells the cops that a man matching George’s description was in the area earlier.
George is trying to use a boat to get to the American side. George is shown hiding not far from the docked boat. He fixes a car horn as a distraction so he can slip onto the Kettering’s boat. The key is not in the boat, but he breaks the lock.
Lucky Polly is the first one back on the boat, and she fails to see George hiding below deck. He tells her to get off the boat, but she attacks him. George throws Polly to the ground, knocking her out before returning to steal the boat. The boatman sees George speed off in the boat and alerts the police.
Ray and Mr. Kettering hear that the boat has been taken and Polly is on board. Polly wakes up, and George tries to apologize. She tells him to turn himself in to the police. George confesses to her that he killed Rose, and there is no going back.
Inspector Starkey calls the US River Patrol for help. A patrol boat heads after the stolen boat. George turns and heads downstream. The engine stops on the stolen boat because it has run out of gas.
The stolen boat begins to drift towards the falls. Ray and the inspector watch helplessly from the shore. Polly wants to jump in the water, but George rightly stops her. The patrol boat has gone a thousand yards past the safe limit and turns back.
Ray is mouthing to skuttle the boat. George is already opening the valves, hoping to ground the boat. The rapids and water flow intensify as they get closer to the falls.
A US Coast Guard helicopter heads towards the stolen boat.
Just before the falls, the stolen boat hits a rock. George tosses the drenched Polly to the safety of the rock. He goes over the falls in the stolen boat. The helicopter arrives and rescues the drenched Polly, but not without some more drama.
The Inspector gives the Cutter’s a ride. They credit Ray’s skuttling prayer as the reason it all worked out.
Conclusion – Niagara (1953)
If you ever thought Marilyn Monroe was not a good actress, watch this film, especially when she sees the body, and you will realize that she was indeed a great actress.
This was Monroe’s first film, in which she received top billing. However, since she was still under a studio contract, she was paid a rate far below that of other actors and technicians. She had two big hits the year this film was released. These films are Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) and How to Marry a Millionaire (1953).
Marilyn Monroe is sexy as hell in this film. Director Henry Hathaway tried to keep the fully nude Monroe away from the shower curtain scene. She had the same issue when she was nude under a sheet. The scene was darkened in post-production so they could pass the review board.
There is another sexy scene where Monroe walks down a cobblestone street in high heels. The scene, at almost 30 seconds, may be the longest walk in film history.
The only film in which a character played by Marilyn Monroe dies. The Canadians complained that the murder and suicide in the film would put a negative cast on Niagara Falls.
The Carillon or bell tower is located on the Canadian side of the river. It was opened in 1948 and contains 55 bells. The largest bell is named Bourbon and weighs 22,000 lbs. The last live carillonneur or bell player retired in 2002. The songs are now played three times a day by an automated system. Good bell-ringing jobs are hard to come by.
As I mentioned earlier, George (Joseph Cotten) was making a 1907 Maxwell car model. This may be a nod to Don Wilson (Mr. Kettering). Wilson was the announcer for the Jack Benny radio show. Benny’s car on the show was a hooptie 1907 Maxwell. The car sounds were provided by Mel Blanc, the voice of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tweety and Sylvester, Yosemite Sam, Foghorn Leghorn, and others.[4]
World-Famous Short Summary – Keep to yourself. Don’t talk to that other couple on the cruise.
Beware the moors.
