Noir City: The Spiritualist
February 11, 2023
The clever story of a psychic insinuating himself into the mansion of a wealthy widow convincing her he can communicate with the dead.
Individual Tickets: $15 | $10 SIFF members
Passes (valid for all Noir City screenings): $150 | $100 SIFF members
SIFF year-round passes and vouchers are not valid for Noir City screenings.
Hosted by Eddie Muller (Film Noir Foundation founder, Turner Classic Movies' "Noir Alley").
John Alton's stunning cinematography elevates to exhilarating heights this clever story of a psychic (Turhan Bey) insinuating himself into the moody cliffside mansion of a wealthy widow (Lynn Bari) by convincing her, and her less impressionable daughter (Cathy O'Donnell), that he can communicate with the dead. Filled with clever visual gags and tricky sleight of hand, and featuring a smooth-as-silk turn by Bey as the sophisticated charlatan. One of the most satisfying "B" films of the era.
Photo courtesy of The Film Noir Foundation. Note courtesy of Noir City.
- Director: Bernard Vorhaus
- Principal Cast: Turhan Bey, Lynn Bari, Cathy O’Donnell, Riched Carlson, Donald Curtis
- Country: USA
- Year: 1948
- Running Time: 78 min.
- Producer: Ben Stoloff
- Screenplay: Muriel Roy Bolton, Ian McLellan Hunter, Crane Wilbur
- Cinematographers: John Alton
- Editors: Norman Colbert
- Music: Alexander Laszlo
- Filmography: Street Song (1935), On Thin Ice (1933), Money for Speed (1933), Roman Holiday (1953)
- Format: 35mm
- US Distributor: Sony Pictures Repertory