Vendetta

Some films it seems are doomed from the outset. Designed as a vehicle for Howard Hughes 'discovery' Faith Domergue, this unutterably dreary, lacklustre version of Prosper Merimée's 'Colomba' was finally released four years after its conception and was given an universal thumbs down.

Infinitely more dramatic than the film itself is the troubled production with Max Ophuls given the old heave-ho early on by the meddling Hughes and replaced by Stuart Heisler who is probably responsible for two thirds of it but is, happily for him, uncredited. Last up is Mel Ferrer who has the dubious distinction of sole directorial credit.

Devoid of passion and momentum this damp squib of a movie is a monumental waste of money but certainly not a waste of talent as there is precious little of that on display with only Nigel Bruce and Joseph Calleia providing some substance. The rest of the cast is uniformly mediocre. As for Miss Domergue she was given an expensive build up but Joe Public simply wasn't buying it.

The film's failure must have given the discarded Ophuls great satisfaction and he was of course to get his revenge as Robert Ryan's megalomaniacal Smith Ohlrig in 'Caught' is a thinly veiled portrait of you-know-who.