''Hollow Triumph'' (working title ''The Man Who Murdered Himself'', reissued in the United States as ''The Scar'') is a 1948 American

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

directed by

Steve Sekely Steve Sekely (February 25, 1899– March 9, 1979) was a Hungarian film director. Born István Székely, he was known by several names, based on his changing professional and immigration status, including Stefan Szekely. He directed films in Hun ...

starring

Paul Henreid Paul Henreid (November 10, 1908 – March 29, 1992) was an Austrian-British-American actor, director, producer, and writer. He is best remembered for two film roles; Victor Laszlo in ''Casablanca'' and Jerry Durrance in ''Now, Voyager'', bo ...

Joan Bennett Joan Geraldine Bennett (February 27, 1910 – December 7, 1990) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She came from a show-business family, one of three acting sisters. Beginning her career on the stage, Bennett appeared in more t ...

and

Leslie Brooks Leslie Brooks (born Virginia Leslie Gettman; July 13, 1922 – July 1, 2011) was an American film actress, model and dancer. Early life Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, her parents brought her to Southern California at an early age, where aroun ...

. It was released by

Eagle-Lion Films Eagle-Lion Films was a British-American film production company owned by J. Arthur Rank intended to distribute British productions in the United States. In 1947, it acquired Robert R. Young's PRC Pictures, a small American production company, ...

, based on the 1946 novel of the same title written by Murray Forbes. The film's sets designed by the

art director Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and ...

Edward L. Ilou.

Plot

Just released from prison, John Müller (

) masterminds a holdup at an illegal casino run by Rocky Stansyck (

Thomas Browne Henry Thomas Browne Henry (November 7, 1907 – June 30, 1980) was an American character actor known for many guest appearances on television and in films. He was active with the Pasadena Community Playhouse and was the older brother of actor ...

). The robbery goes bad, and the

mobster A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from ''mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level of organization and ...

s capture some of Müller's men and force them to identify the rest before killing them. Stansyck has a reputation for tracking down and killing his enemies, no matter how long it takes, so Müller decides to leave town and hide. He takes an office job recommended by his law-abiding brother, Frederick (

Eduard Franz Eduard Franz Schmidt (October 31, 1902 – February 10, 1983) was an American actor of theatre, film and television. Franz portrayed King Ahab in the 1953 biblical low-budget film ''Sins of Jezebel'', Jethro in Cecil B. DeMille's ''The Ten C ...

), but quickly decides that working for a living is not for him. A chance encounter with dentist Dr. Swangron (

John Qualen John Qualen (born Johan Mandt Kvalen, December 8, 1899 – September 12, 1987) was an American character actor of Norwegian heritage who specialized in Scandinavian roles. Early years Qualen was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, the son ...

) reveals that Müller looks exactly like a psychoanalyst who works in the same building, Dr. Bartok, the only difference being a large scar on the left side of the doctor's face. Seizing the opportunity, he begins researching Bartok, even slipping into his office to examine his records. He is discovered by the doctor's secretary, Evelyn Hahn (

). She mistakes him for her employer and kisses him, but quickly realizes he is someone else. He persuades her to go out with him, though she has become embittered and claims to have given up any dreams of finding love. Müller sets out to impersonate Bartok, aided by the fact he studied psychoanalysis in medical school before dropping out. He takes a photograph of the doctor and uses it as a guide to cut an identical scar on his own face. Unfortunately, the developers of the photograph reversed the negative, so now Muller has the scar on the wrong side. He discovers the mistake only after he has already murdered Bartok and is preparing to dump the body in the river. He has no choice but to go through with the plan anyway. Luckily, no one (except the office cleaning lady, whose suspicions he manages to lull) notices the difference, not even Evelyn or Bartok's patients. Müller discovers "he" has a girlfriend, Virginia Taylor (

), and that they frequent Maxwell's, a high class casino. It also turns out Bartok has been losing heavily. When a worried Frederick Müller tries to contact his brother, the trail leads to Bartok. The scar convinces Frederick that the man he sees is merely a lookalike. Evelyn, previously unaware of the switch (but now very suspicious), reveals that John Müller said he was going to Paris. Frederick Müller tells "Bartok" that his brother no longer has to hide; Stansyck was convicted for "income tax problems" and is scheduled to be deported. Afterwards, Evelyn realizes that Müller is an imposter and that he must have killed the psychoanalyst. Though he admits to her he did, she does not turn him in to the police; instead she purchases a ticket to sail to Honolulu. Müller finds out and promises he will go with her, but she does not believe he would leave such an opportunity to enrich himself. Müller arranges for other doctors to take care of his patients and heads to the dock. There, however, he is intercepted by two men who want to discuss Bartok's $90,000 gambling debt. When Müller tries to break away, they fatally shoot him. Evelyn sails away, unaware that Müller lies dying on the dock.

Cast

as John Müller / Dr. Victor Emil Bartok *

as Evelyn Hahn *

as Frederick Müller *

as Virginia Taylor *

as Swangron *

Mabel Paige Mabel Paige (December 19, 1880 – February 9, 1954) was an American stage and film actress. Early years Paige began acting at age four, when she appeared in ''Van, the Virginian''. Career When she was 11 years old, Paige began acting ...

as Charwoman *

Herbert Rudley Herbert Rudley (March 22, 1910 – September 9, 2006) was an American character actor who appeared on stage, films and on television. Early life Rudley was born in 1910 in Philadelphia and attended Temple University. He left Temple after winnin ...

as Marcy *

Charles Arnt Charles E. Arnt (August 20, 1906 – August 6, 1990) was an American film actor from 1933 to 1962. Arnt appeared as a character actor in more than 200 films. Arnt was born in Michigan City, Indiana, the son of a banker. He graduated fr ...

as Coblenz *

George Chandler George Chandler (June 30, 1898 – June 10, 1985) was an American actor who starred in over 140 feature films, usually in smaller supporting roles, and he is perhaps best known for playing the character of Uncle Petrie Martin on the televi ...

as Artell, Assistant * Sid Tomack as Aubrey, Manager * Alvin Hammer as Jerry * Ann Staunton as Blonde * Paul E. Burns as Harold (as Paul Bruns) *

Charles Trowbridge Charles Silas Richard Trowbridge (January 10, 1882 – October 30, 1967) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 230 films between 1915 and 1958. Biography Trowbridge was born in Veracruz, Mexico, where his father served in the ...

as Deputy * Morgan Farley as Howard Anderson *

as Rocky Stansyck *

Jack Webb John Randolph Webb (April 2, 1920 – December 23, 1982) was an American actor, television producer, Television director, director, and screenwriter, who is most famous for his role as Joe Friday, Sgt. Joe Friday in the Dragnet (franchise) ...

as Bullseye (uncredited) * Henry Brandon as Big Boy (uncredited)

Production

Henreid wanted to move into production after being under contract with Warner Bros. He optioned a novel which had been suggested to him by director Steve Sekely and set up the project at the newly formed Eagle Lion. Henreid was keen to play the lead role, a gangster, as it was a different sort of part for him. He hired Daniel Fuch to write the script having admired the latter's work on ''Between Two Worlds''. He wanted

Evelyn Keyes Evelyn Louise Keyes (November 20, 1916 – July 4, 2008) was an American film actress. She is best known for her role as Suellen O'Hara in the 1939 film ''Gone with the Wind''. Early life Evelyn Keyes was born in Port Arthur, Texas, to Omar D ...

for the lead but she was under contract to Columbia and Harry Cohn refused to loan her out, so Joan Bennett was cast instead. Henreid says Eagle Lion were unhappy with Sekely's direction, so they replaced him with Henreid.

Reception

Henreid says the film did well at the box office but the film was linked financially with three other movies from star producers. None of these did well so Henreid saw no profits.

Critical response

''The New York Times'' critic Thomas M. Pryor called it "an adequate examination of an intelligent criminal type. There is not quite enough logic in the plot to enable it to stand up under scrutiny, but the story moves along briskly, the performances are sound and there is always the promise of more violence just around the corner." Alain Silver in ''Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style'' notes "As in many of these B thrillers, the plot is contrived although the film's conclusion is as downbeat as any noir film since ''

Scarlet Street ''Scarlet Street'' is a 1945 American film noir directed by Fritz Lang. The screenplay concerns two criminals who take advantage of a middle-aged painter in order to steal his artwork. The film is based on the French novel ''La Chienne'' (literal ...

''."*

References

External links

* * * * * {{Paul Henreid 1948 films 1948 crime drama films American crime drama films American black-and-white films Film noir Films based on American novels Films about gambling Films directed by Steve Sekely Eagle-Lion Films films Films scored by Sol Kaplan 1940s English-language films 1940s American films