The Seventh Veil

A really enjoyable melodrama that bristles along with some brilliant performances from its two leads, Ann Todd and James Mason. While the pseudo-science treatment used by Herbert Lom's Dr Larsen are questionable when viewed with 21st Century eyes, one has to be forgiving bearing in mind it's a 75 year old film and scientific understanding evolves at a great pace. Alongside the excellent acting, I found the dialogue to be another strong point, with some great back-and-forth between the characters, including some unexpectedly witty moments. While the main construct of the film is the amnesia of Todd's character, Francesca, and the attempt to recover it, I actually think the film could have worked better as a straightforward drama. It is the psychology aspects that have dated the worst and are connected to my biggest criticism of the film: [spoiler]the slightly disappointing final scene, where Francesca chooses Mason's cruel and controlling Nicholas after recovering her memory - this didn't quite ring true for me. Perhaps we're just meant to assume that Nicholas' power is that strong over Francesca[/spoiler]. Nevertheless, _The Seventh Veil_ is a terrific film and holds up well for its age, mainly thanks to a very talented cast.