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When it comes to the American film noir tradition, Henry Hathaway’s 1953 film “Niagara” falls into an unusual category. Now streaming on the Criterion Channel, “Niagara” (unlike other noir films) was filmed in Technicolor, which created a different cinematic mood in this tale of deceit, revenge, and murder. It stars Joseph Cotten as George Loomis, a war veteran haunted by his military past, who can’t seem to go beyond his internal suffering.
George’s wife, Rose (Marilyn Monroe) is dissatisfied with him and their marriage. While they’re vacationing in Niagara Falls, she has an affair with another man. George and Rose have been together for a few years, and they’ve both grown tired of each other. She feels that the grass is always greener somewhere else, and George’s anxiety, depression, and anger are in the way of life itself. He knows that Rose has not been faithful, or at the very least, he suspects infidelity, yet he is unable to let her go and move on.
Witnessing their fights and marriage troubles is another couple, Ray and Polly Cutler, played by Max Showalter and Jean Peters, respectively. Ray and Polly are visiting Niagara Falls for their delayed honeymoon because, after all, Niagara Falls is the “Honeymoon Capital of the World!” Ray is a bit of a square but with a thousand-watt smile. He is someone for whom everything is “swell” but he’s not exactly an easygoing guy. In fact, he is a self-centered salesman who is more interested in impressing his boss than tending to his wife, whom he sees as “the little woman.” Yet despite the fact that both get tangled in the tragic web of Rose and George’s marriage, Polly is much smarter than Ray gives her credit for.
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