In 1958 the censors still had qualms about showing a married man and his paramour lying in bed together. So Stanley Donen used a split screen to divide the lovers in Indiscreet, cleverly arranging their hands to seem almost to touch as they lay on separate beds and spoke on the phone. Such nonsense. Splitting the screen cannot change the fact that the audience knows exactly what’s going on. Everyone knows what’s going on; that’s part of the movie’s undercurrent. That and the fact that nobody thinks it is wrong.
"I always look at the end of a book. I can never wait."
Anna Kalman (Ingrid Bergman) is a famous actress who’s never found Mr. Right. When Anna tells her sister Margaret (Phyllis Calvert) and brother-in-law Alfred (Cecil Parker) about her latest failed romance Margaret chides her for being picky: "I don’t know what you expect from a man. You know there’s a limit to how entertaining they can be. . . . You told me that he was good-looking and that he danced beautifully. That’s all a woman’s entitled to. You can always read a good book."
Just then they’re joined by Philip Adams (Cary Grant), whom Alfred is offering a position with NATO. Covered in cold cream and caught off guard, Anna is smitten by the lanky American. Margaret astutely starts plotting, inquiring after Philip’s wife. "There is no Mrs. Adams," he responds. Rich, handsome, single. Could this be Anna’s Mr. Right?
The four have an excellent evening together, and Anna and Philip end up alone at her apartment. Flirting, she encourages him to take the NATO job in Paris, "you being single you’d be in great demand. There’s quite a shortage." But when she invites him to the ballet he decides things have gone too far. Abruptly: "I’m a married man, Miss Kalman."
It would seem there is a Mrs. Adams after all. She just isn’t in London with her husband. Anna laughs, perhaps embarrassed by the situation, more likely bitter at the irony that is her love-life. She lightly reprimands Philip for passing himself off as a bachelor. But with his characteristically charming audacity he says vanity made him blurt out his confession. Why vanity? "The implication was that you wouldn’t be able to keep your hands off me." His panache only intrigues Anna more and she taunts, "Well you’ll never know now." He says he’s sorely tempted to find out, but apparently cannot overcome his conscience and prepares to leave.
Anna’s parting shot is another taunt, "Evidently your honor is stronger than my beauty." But she’s unable to leave it at that. She stops him before he leaves the building. "Good seats for the ballet are hard to get." Given a second chance Philip agrees.
What follows is a whirlwind romance, but always the fact of Philip’s marriage torments them. "I know why you spend so much money on me. Your conscience." Finally Anna pleads with him to divorce and marry her. He insists his hands are tied. When he is called back to America Anna is crushed. But Margaret and Alfred have two secrets for her. First, Philip plans to surprise Anna with one last liaison, at the stroke of midnight. And second, Philip is not, after all, married, but is indeed a bachelor.
"How dare he make love to me and not be a married man!"
Indiscreet is all about turning the established order upside down. Even Anna’s apartment is topsy-turvy, the elegant light fixtures, elevator, lobby and her dress juxtaposed against the stark modern colors, geometric shapes and low couches. More importantly, Anna and Philip are pushing up against society’s rules, through their affair but also as they use subterfuge to get into the Players’ Club and as they try to sneak away from her chauffeur during an evening stroll. When Anna makes Philip dinner she urges him not to follow the rules of decorum by waiting for her to begin eating. "Good manners spoil good food."
But it proves to all have been a game. Just played by a different set of rules than Anna thought. When she discovers Philip has been pretending to already have a wife just so he wouldn’t have to marry her she is furious. It doesn’t take her long to plot her revenge. Suddenly, the tables are turned and it is Philip who is playing by the wrong rules. He becomes a ridiculous character, making a fool of himself at a dance without realizing it (it’s a wonderful scene). The audience shares in Anna’s chagrin and our perception of Philip is immediately changed. We are now the ones who have been turned upside down. When Philip was committing adultery we were induced to like him. Now that we know he wasn’t committing adultery after all we are made to lose our admiration for him. The manipulation is almost too much and the film is not entirely successful in bringing us full circle in order to like him again at the last. Of course, Anna struggles with the same problem, and the final twist and eucatastrophe are acceptable only because they fulfill generic expectations.
"Mystery is my stock in trade. I am a woman."
Ingrid Bergman’s acting is languid until Anna discovers Philip’s deceit. Then she earns her pay, passionately planning her revenge, delightfully devilish in toying with Philip. Bergman adopts a slight exaggeration in her delivery, perfect for maintaining a credible dialogue with Philip while winking at the audience.
I used to say Cary Grant doesn’t act, he just is Cary Grant. And there was nothing new to him for much of this movie. Suave. Charming. Arrogant. But he then has the opportunity to be silly, and is better off for it. And then Anna’s revenge hits the fan and we get to see Grant discombobulated by rejection. It’s nice to see him in a role where the character actually undergoes change.
Cecil Parker is serviceable, but Phyllis Calvert steals most of their scenes. Early on she also outshines Bergman, with the benefit of having most of the best lines. The only other mentionable is David Kossoff who plays Anna’s butler/chauffeur and fills an amusing role in Anna’s revenge.
"Come on. You’ll feel much better in a girdle."
Donen and screenwriter Norman Krasna do some clever things in Indiscreet. They establish their characters in record time, letting us know all about Anna through Margaret giving her a pep-talk citing her fame, beauty and that everyone envies her. Philip’s background is dissected by Margaret in a couple of minutes as she weighs the possibility he might be Anna’s Mr. Right.
There’s some great dialogue and a few compelling moments, such as Anna’s pensively holding her head in her hands after setting the ballet date with Philip. It’s clear she knows she’s getting involved in a relationship that will only be trouble. The tension in the elevator is prolonged nicely as they maintain appearances in front of the staff—though it’s almost ruined by the obnoxious score.
Krasna has also stuffed the story full of irony. After Philip first tells Anna he’s married she compliments him for being the rare man that tells the truth. And I’m sure the arc of liking Philip as an adulterer but disliking him as a bachelor was conceived of as irony instead of manipulation. But the foundation of the greatest irony is laid when Philip leaves after telling Anna he’s married. She mentions her honor would be compromised if he spent the night, particularly because he is married. We (and she) later learn he’s actually a bachelor and her honor would not have been compromised in that sense. Instead it has been compromised through the deceit by which he has kept their affair illicit.
But the audience has also been compromised. We are led to sympathize with these people who love each other and choose to have an inappropriate relationship despite the heartache it brings them (it’s clear none of the characters think the relationship wrong, just inappropriate). And when it’s revealed that the relationship wasn’t adulterous after all, we’re meant to forget our earlier anxiety. But this cheapens our sympathies. It also cheapens Anna, absolving her of responsibility for her decision to take up with Philip. Finally, we seem to be meant to see Anna’s revenge on Philip as his penance, after which he can be forgiven for the mean use he made of her.
Even if you enjoy such manipulation of sensitivities (all movies are manipulate, the difference between good and bad ones is that you don’t mind, or notice, the good ones’ manipulations) the film is flawed to an extent that cannot be dismissed. Far too much time is spent portraying Anna and Philip’s affair before the truth about him comes out. If the affair were the purpose of the movie this would be appropriate. It would also be a drama. A boring one. But the purpose of the movie is the comedic twisting. As it is, Indiscreet is two movies. The first somewhat tedious, the second very effective. Like the split screen sequence Donen employed to appease the censors, the unification of these two movies is a hollow pretence, their consummation an illusion. But if you can achieve a willing suspension of sincerity you’ll find this movie, at least the second half, highly entertaining.
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