Cause for Alarm! (1951)
“One letter could cost her everything.”
Streamed free from the Internet Archive · no signup, no cost — this film is in the public domain.
Synopsis
Loretta Young plays Ellen Jones, devoted nurse to her gravely ill, paranoid husband George, who has convinced himself that she and his doctor are scheming to poison him. He writes a letter to the district attorney laying out his "evidence" — then suffers a fatal attack moments after it leaves the house. The rest of the film is a sweat-soaked, near-real-time scramble as Ellen tries to recover the letter before it can damn her for a crime that never happened. It is a compact, tightening exercise in everyday dread.
Cast
About the Director
Tay Garnett — Veteran director Tay Garnett (The Postman Always Rings Twice) wrings suspense from the smallest domestic units — a mailbox, a doorbell, a stalled errand. Produced by Young's then-husband Tom Lewis, the film is a tight star vehicle that keeps its heroine — and the audience — in a vise. Garnett's control of escalating ordinary-life panic is the picture's engine.
Why It’s Free: The Public-Domain Story
An MGM release of 1951, the film entered the public domain when MGM failed to renew its US copyright after the initial 28-year term, in the late 1970s. The lapse is documented on the film's Wikipedia entry; the original elements are held by Turner/Warner, but the film itself is freely usable.
Behind the Scenes
The screenplay by Mel Dinelli and Tom Lewis was based on a story by Larry Marcus. MGM positioned it as a taut B-suspense vehicle for Loretta Young near the end of her film career. The picture is unusual among MGM titles in having slipped into the public domain. It has since become a staple of public-domain noir collections.
Did You Know?
- Producer Tom Lewis was Loretta Young's husband at the time of filming.
- A widely circulated colorized version exists; this listing uses the original black-and-white print.
- Co-screenwriter Mel Dinelli specialized in domestic-menace thrillers, including The Spiral Staircase.
- Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer of Our Gang appears in a small role as a delivery boy.
Reception & Legacy
Critics have long admired the film's economy and Young's controlled, anxious performance, even as some find the resolution abrupt. It is frequently praised as a model of compact suspense. Modern noir surveys treat it as an effective minor entry in the domestic-thriller vein.
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