My Favorite Gene Tierney Films...or lack thereof

I love making lists of my favorite films of my fave actors/actresses. And usually the only problem I have is deciding which to rank higher or lower because of the quantity I have seen of said person. Well that's not the case when it comes to our star of the month, Gene Tierney. In fact it is the opposite. I haven't really seen enough of her work to make a long enough list. But I have seen four of her films that I think are just awesome. In fact I have only seen 5 of her films total with one being a stinker. To me anyway...The Shanghai Gesture. But let's not dwell on the bad. Let's talk about the good Gene ok?

First we have The Razor's Edge (1946) which I just happenstance to see a few weeks ago. Irene was kind of enough to post about this film and let me know how good it was. I saw it for myself and she was right, it was amazing. Loaded with an all-star cast in Gene, Tyrone Power, Anne Baxter, Clifton Webb, Lucile Watson, Herbert Marshall, Elsa Lanchester and John Payne. Gene's character Isabel is not an easy person to like. She is quite mean and does some questionable things. But Gene delivers a solid performance. I can't wait to see this film again.

Is Gene not drop dead gorgeous?

Also from 1946 is Leave Her To Heaven, which allows Gene to really work her skill as a top actress as Ellen Berent Harland, a socialite who loves her husband..just a tad too much. Bordering on obsessive. A powerhouse performance by Gene for this one and she looks absolutely stunning in glorious color. 

One of my favorite roles Gene did is Lucy Muir

The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947) allowed Gene a much more different character from the previous two films. Her Lucy Muir, a recent widow who moves to a seaside cottage who encounters a ghost (Rex Harrison). Gene has a plum role here as Lucy, as she gets several comedic and dramatic moments in this lovely film.

Sharing the screen with Vincent Price

And finally, one of my absolute favorite films of all time is Laura (1944). Now I don't want to give away any details of this great film noir film because it's better to go in not knowing anything about it. I will say while it is a top notch film, I don't think it is Gene's best film in which she shines. You will understand when you watch it. Don't get me wrong..she is good, but she is much better in the three films I talked about above. But she is backed by one strong cast in Laura. With the likes of Dana Andrews, Vincent Price, Clifton Webb and Judith Anderson.


So there you have it, my little post on the sadly small amount of Gene Tierney films I have seen. Maybe by next year this time, I will come back and will have watched a few more.

Count our lucky stars

Monty