Tired Old Queen at the Movies: 'The Big Clock' (1948)

This week Steve Hayes reviews "The Big Clock." The film was directed by Mia Farrow's dad, John Farrow, and co-starred her mom, Maureen O'Sullivan, but belonged almost entirely to Charles Laughton and Rita Johnson, who utters the greatest line in movie history, "You'd be pathetic if you weren't so disgusting." (And I thought my mom came up with that one!)

The Tired Old Queen says: Ray Milland, fresh from his Oscar for "The Lost Weekend" (1945), plays the head of a crime magazine, who has to uncover a possible murder witness, only to realize after some investigation, that he's looking for himself. Charles Laughton, in another of his typically brilliant characterizations, plays Milland's employer, the head of a publishing empire, who knows the murderer's true identity and must keep the police off the trail for as long as possible. The lovely and devious Rita Johnson plays Laughton's duplicitous mistress. John Farrow's taut direction, the sophisticated and witty script and the superb acting of all concerned make "The Big Clock" big entertainment that's not to be missed!