Wall of Noise *** (1963, Suzanne Pleshette, Ty Hardin, Dorothy Provine, Ralph Meeker, Simon Oakland) – Classic Movie Review 6243

The statuesque Suzanne Pleshette.

Director Richard Wilson’s capable and underrated 1963 drama is a standard marital soap opera with a seemingly arbitrary horse-racing background tacked on just for colour. But that turns out to be a good thing. Colour is definitely needed. Oddly, that said, it is made in black and white.

Warner Bros thought new talent was needed too, and that is also a good thing. New talent is definitely needed. It was the ‘First Winner of Photoplay’s Front-Cover Award for showcasing new talent’.

It is all done pleasingly enough, even if it does not make you really care quite enough about the characters and it tends to drift towards a rather lame and tepid conclusion. None of the acting is very special, though it is good enough, and all the faces are still most welcome, and this is a very watchable early Sixties drama.

The handsome Hardin has been accused of being on the dull side but he shows his dramatic potential as ambitious horse trainer Joel Tarrant, who is hired by wealthy building contractor Matt Rubio (Ralph Meeker) but soon enjoys an extra-marital fling with his boss’s wife Laura (Suzanne Pleshette).

Hardin does do his best to make the most of his good opportunity here. However, it is Dorothy Provine who is the most entertaining as Hardin’s girlfriend and now ex-flame Ann Conroy, who nevertheless goes to great lengths to help him get out of money trouble with Johnny Papadakis (Simon Oakland).

Also in the cast are Jimmy Murphy, Murray Matheson, Robert F Simon, George Petrie, Jean Byron, Fred Carson and Bill Walker.

Joseph Landon’s screenplay is based on a novel by Daniel Michael Stein.

It is shot by Lucien Ballard, produced by Joseph Landon, scored by William Lava and designed by Hilyard Brown.

Ty Hardin, TV’s Bronco, died on 3 August 2017, aged 87.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 6243

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