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CrimeMysteryThriller

The 13th Letter

"A Strange Kind of Killer Is Loose in This Town!"

User Score11 votes
55%5.5/10
Release1951
Runtime1H 25M
LanguageEnglish
StatusReleased

Synopsis

A new doctor in a quiet Quebec town sparks rumors and accusations when anonymous letters allege an affair with a married woman.

Principal Cast8

Full Cast & Crew (47)

Media7

Backdrops

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Posters

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Director

Otto Preminger

Otto Preminger

Director →

Box Office

Budget$1M

Certification

NR

Keywords

letterrumors

External Links

Reviews1

CinemaSerf6/10

This film is probably more notable for it's distinctive voices than for it's action or story. You can instantly recognise the dulcet tones of Charles Boyer and Michael Rennie long before we get into the nitty gritty of what is quite a complex plot. Building on the innate nosiness of small town folks, we find ourselves in a small Quebecois town where Rennie ("Dr. Pearson") arrives to set up his practice. Now there is already a doctor here (Boyer) but he is getting on a bit and his wife "Denise" (Linda Darnell) starts to visit the new fella to treat her never ending list of (largely fictitious) ailments. "Pearson" is not remotely interested in any form of assignation with the younger woman - he has demons of his own on that from, but when egregious letters start arriving signed only with the sign of a quill, the tongues start to wag at the new physician's expense. He determines to get to the bottom of this mystery before what's left of his reputation goes the way of the dodo. Otto Preminger could have dug a bit deeper into the mystery and immersed us a bit better in this quite intriguing story, but as it is it is all just a little bit light and actually quite slow at times. A sort of private detective story that moves in fits and starts with a great deal of score. Still, Boyer is on quite good form and even if Rennie is a slightly unlikely romantic hero, this film still holds the attention well enough before an ending that I wasn't quite expecting.

Apr 4, 2022

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Countries:United States of America
Production:20th Century Fox