Claire Cummings, San Francisco society reporter, blonde and gorgeous, is a woman to die for. If you make the mistake of marrying her, you probably will.
Claire (Leslie Brooks) goes through men who want to marry her like a sharp knife through your side. She keeps news columnist Les Burns (Robert Paige) handy even when she marries a very wealthy San Francisco businessman. She makes the mistake of letting a letter to Les fall into her husband's hands on their honeymoon. "My darling Les," she writes, "three more weeks until I can see you again, dearest. Poor stupid Carl tries so hard to be a good husband, but he can't get used to an expensive wife." Carl says it will be a divorce. Twenty-four hours later, Carl isn't going to say anything ever again.
Blonde Ice lets us tag along as Claire not only goes through her new husband, but through a blackmailer and a new, high social fiancée. She manipulates Les, who loves her, until even he has her number. "I once said I couldn't figure you out," he tells her. "I can now. You're not a normal woman. You're not warm. You're cold...like ice. Yeah, like ice...blonde ice." It might not have been wise to be so frank with Claire because now she plans for him to take the fall for one of her murders. Justice finally comes to Claire, as it must to all bad people in Hollywood movies of that time. Even then, it takes a three-way set-up, some psychoanalysis and a bullet to do the job.
The movie is a great example of a low-budget B programmer which just manages to rise a little above the average. The script is okay, the acting is adequate, the story is interesting. What makes it work? Director Jack Bernhard, just as much a journeyman as the actors, keeps the film moving briskly, with little time to let us get bored or impatient. The photography helps quite a bit, with several noirish scenes at night. Also important is Leslie Brooks as Claire. Brooks was an actress that stayed firmly planted as a lead in B movies, with an occasional foray as a second lead in A movies. She's not an actress who would worry the A crowd, but she does a fine job as Claire, the self-centered, manipulative and deadly ice queen. The only really weak part of the movie is the conclusion, when psychiatry is used as an explanation for her behavior. For me, this undercuts her nicely murderous actions; after all, don't we all just want the nice things in life?
There are even tips for fine living. What could be a healthier lunch than "martinis, chicken salad for two and coffee, please." Or "four Manhattans, waiter, with half French, half Italian vermouth." Why, that's a Perfect Manhattan.
Claire (Leslie Brooks) goes through men who want to marry her like a sharp knife through your side. She keeps news columnist Les Burns (Robert Paige) handy even when she marries a very wealthy San Francisco businessman. She makes the mistake of letting a letter to Les fall into her husband's hands on their honeymoon. "My darling Les," she writes, "three more weeks until I can see you again, dearest. Poor stupid Carl tries so hard to be a good husband, but he can't get used to an expensive wife." Carl says it will be a divorce. Twenty-four hours later, Carl isn't going to say anything ever again.
Blonde Ice lets us tag along as Claire not only goes through her new husband, but through a blackmailer and a new, high social fiancée. She manipulates Les, who loves her, until even he has her number. "I once said I couldn't figure you out," he tells her. "I can now. You're not a normal woman. You're not warm. You're cold...like ice. Yeah, like ice...blonde ice." It might not have been wise to be so frank with Claire because now she plans for him to take the fall for one of her murders. Justice finally comes to Claire, as it must to all bad people in Hollywood movies of that time. Even then, it takes a three-way set-up, some psychoanalysis and a bullet to do the job.
The movie is a great example of a low-budget B programmer which just manages to rise a little above the average. The script is okay, the acting is adequate, the story is interesting. What makes it work? Director Jack Bernhard, just as much a journeyman as the actors, keeps the film moving briskly, with little time to let us get bored or impatient. The photography helps quite a bit, with several noirish scenes at night. Also important is Leslie Brooks as Claire. Brooks was an actress that stayed firmly planted as a lead in B movies, with an occasional foray as a second lead in A movies. She's not an actress who would worry the A crowd, but she does a fine job as Claire, the self-centered, manipulative and deadly ice queen. The only really weak part of the movie is the conclusion, when psychiatry is used as an explanation for her behavior. For me, this undercuts her nicely murderous actions; after all, don't we all just want the nice things in life?
There are even tips for fine living. What could be a healthier lunch than "martinis, chicken salad for two and coffee, please." Or "four Manhattans, waiter, with half French, half Italian vermouth." Why, that's a Perfect Manhattan.