My 6th Noir in a self-managed study of Noir.

The web of deceit weaved by this crazy blond is a marvel to behold. Her brazen disregard for common sense, and the way she controls people around her, make her quite hate-worthy, which would make the actress Lizabeth Scott pleased to know.

Kristine Miller stole my heart with her grace and femininity as the innocent in-law, trying to make sense of the mad house of characters dropping in and out of her brother's apartment.

The toxic, manipulative love/hate relationship portrayed by Dan Duryea and Lizabeth Scott radiated sparks of electricity. See if *you* can figure out where that thing is headed. Only one of them can get the upper hand in this caper.

As I watched the version on Archive.org, I found myself wondering, "How are they going to wrap this up with only a few minutes to go?" knowing the clock is running out only heightens the tension of this nifty Noir.

Why aren't more people suspicious around such toxic characters? Maybe we all dread looking behind that curtain. Classic tragedy speaks to this.

This is some excellent story-telling, and is highly recommended.

It's not unusual for a story to begin with a situation in which a character suddenly finds themselves in possession of a sum of money that isn't theirs but what makes this movie so enthralling is the nature of the character in question. As a child, this woman's experience of being brought up in a middle class family that couldn't "keep up with the Joneses" scarred her mentally and emotionally with the result that when her opportunity to become wealthy came along, she wasn't going to stop at anything to achieve her most cherished ambition. Murder, manipulation and deception are just part of her stock-in-trade as she wilfully damages and destroys the lives of the people around her in a way that's incredibly ruthless, cold-hearted and self-serving.

One dark evening, Alan Palmer (Arthur Kennedy) and his wife Jane (Lizabeth Scott) are driving along a quiet mountain road outside Los Angeles when a bag full of cash is suddenly thrown into the back seat of their car from a vehicle that's travelling in the opposite direction. After being chased by another car for a little while, they successfully escape and head home where they discover that the bag contains $60,000. Alan is nervous about having the cash in his possession and wants to hand it in to the police as soon as possible but Jane is determined to keep the money and so persuades her husband to take a little time before making a final decision on what to do with their windfall. A little later, Alan leaves the bag in a locker at Union Station and puts the ticket in his jacket pocket.

Next morning, Danny Fuller (Dan Duryea) who says he's a private detective, calls at the Palmers' apartment and tells Jane that he's come to collect the cash. She tells him that the money's already been handed in to the police and so he leaves but promises to return if her story doesn't check out. When he inevitably returns, they initially argue but then come to an agreement to share the cash. As Jane knows that Alan would never go along with this arrangement, she kills her husband at a nearby boating lake and persuades Danny to help her dispose of the body. Jane reports Alan's disappearance to the police and tells her sister-in-law Kathy (Kristine Miller) that she thinks he's taken off to Mexico with a girlfriend. Kathy, who lives in the same apartment building, doesn't believe this story and becomes very suspicious of Jane.

A man called Don Blake (Don DeFore) who introduces himself as an old wartime buddy of Alan's, soon becomes friendly with Kathy who now has Alan's locker ticket in her possession and together they attempt to find out what's really happened to her brother.

The plot of "Too Late For Tears" (aka "Killer Bait") is complicated by a succession of identity issues which begin with the way in which the money comes into the possession of the Palmers and then becomes even more involved as neither Danny Fuller nor Don Blake are who they originally claim to be (with Danny also posing as Alan at one stage). The main focus of the movie, however, is on its extraordinary femme fatale whose greed for wealth knows no limits. Her ability to manipulate men by either acting seductively or threatening them in some way is remarkably successful with one notable exception and the way in which she overwhelms Danny, sees him transform from being a menacing character to one who becomes fearful and very malleable.

Lizabeth Scott takes full advantage of the opportunities that her role offers as she skilfully switches her behaviours and expressions whenever the need arises and in the process, makes Jane's wickedness and motivations absolutely clear. Good performances from the rest of the cast (especially Dan Duryea) add greatly to the enjoyment but ultimately, this is Lizabeth Scott's movie all the way.