The House on Telegraph Hill

"The trouble with you is you really don't know how to relax."

Victoria Kowalska (Cortese) had a good life in Poland, until WWII.  Her home was destroyed, her husband was killed, and she was sent to a concentration camp.  While at the camp she befriend fellow Pole Karin Dernakova (Natasha Lytess), who had a young son, Christopher, living in America with wealthy relatives.  Karin dies in the camp shortly before they are liberated and Victoria decides to impersonate her friend to get a new life.  As Karin, she contacts the wealthy Aunt Sophia to explain that she is still alive and wants to come to America.  However, she learns that Aunt Sophia died the day before the telegraph arrived.

Four years later, she finally makes it to New York, where she meets Christopher's guardian, Alan Spender (Basehart).  She and Alan get along well and marry a few days later.  Then they travel to the family estate on Telegraph Hill in San Francisco, California.  The house is beautiful, and Christopher (Butterfield) is excited to see his mother.  But she receives a chilly reception from Christopher's doting governess Margaret (Baker).  She also learns that her husband works alongside Major Marc Bennett (Lundigan), who was one of the soldiers that helped her after the concentration camp.  But strange things start happening at the house.  Can Victoria convince anyone that she is in danger?


The story is based on the 1948 novel "The Frightened Child" by Dana Lyon.  The novel is not well-known and the filmmakers only use the basic premise of the novel for the story.  The screenplay was written by Elick Moll and Frank Partos.  It is film noir, with a slow-building suspense.

Director Robert Wise made many successful and iconic films in various genres.  In 1951, when this film was released, most of the films he directed were science fiction or film noir (including The Day the Earth Stood Still, which also premiered in 1951).  The film was nominated for an Oscar for Best Art Direction.

If you stick with it, this is an interesting and suspenseful film.  It starts slow and slowly builds the suspense.  The film is anchored by the solid performances of Richard Basehart and Valentina Cortese and William Lundigan.  Italian actress Cortese is the character the audience spends the most time with and she also narrates the story.  Basehart is captivating as Alan and makes you regularly question what you believe about his character, and the others.  Cortese and Basehart married around the time the film was released, and remained married for 10 years.  Definitely worth checking out.

The House on Telegraph Hill (1951) 93 minutes
Director: Robert Wise
Starring: Richard Basehart as Alan Spender
Valentina Cortese as Victoria Kowalska
William Lundigan as Major Marc Bennett
Fay Baker as Margaret
Gordon Gebert as Christopher
Steven Geray as Dr. Burkhardt
Herbert Butterfield as Joseph C. Callahan