Paramount, at the height of its sophistication in the early 30's, could recycle its sets from MOROCCO and fashion a stylish production out of a passable triangle melodrama. Unfulfilled wife Tallulah Bankhead --frustrated at home, humiliated in front of her social set by her pathologically jealous husband -- stumbles into an Arab marketplace crowded with whirling dervishes, and into the arms of Gary Cooper for a romantic liaison under the desert stars. Conflicts ensue, of course, and then all three find themselves on a crippled submarine.

Viewers who know Tallulah Bankhead only from her caricatured role in LIFEBOAT will be startled by her intensity and bruised glamour: slouching in Travis Banton gowns, she looks sometimes like Garbo, sometimes like "Margo Channing". Meanwhile, she gives a crash course in how to hold a melodrama together, commanding every scene, inflecting every line with subtle nuances. When she must deal with menacing Charles Laughton, the air between them vibrates with tension. Laughton [billed as "the eminent English character actor"] does his share as well, but he seems mannered in a familiar way, a dry run for his Captain Bligh.

Only the radiant young Cary Grant in a dazzling naval uniform steals attention from the leading lady in a brief appearance. Gary Cooper, though persuasive as the romantic hero, soon gets submerged in a disappointingly shallow character.

The eye is seduced by cameraman Charles Lang's repertoire of shadows, the heart is stirred by a star performance, but in the end the head may resist: the terse dialogue tries for Hemingway but remains stubbornly pedestrian and remarkably humorless: the script owes its sole laugh to Bankhead's line reading while buying a billiard cue. The devil is in the dialogue!

'Devil and the Deep's' biggest draw was the cast. The most interesting being Charles Laughton in his first American film. Have also liked Tallulah Bankhead in other films, one of her best being 'Lifeboat', and Gary Cooper gave a lot of great performances later on when his acting style had fully developed ('High Noon', 'The Westerner' etc). So did Cary Grant. Did like the premise, which did have potential to be quite tense and intriguing and also the creepy-sounding title.

It is a shame that 'Devil and the Deep' isn't better known. For all its faults, and it has them, it is a nice, interesting film that sees most of the cast on great form (the cast are not just the main interest point of 'Devil and the Deep' but also the primary reason as to why the film just about works) and does a lot right. Not everything works and the film could have done more with its subject, though it doesn't waste it, but the flaws are outweighed by the good things.

A lot works. The best asset is the cast. Bankhead is intensely riveting in her role without going too over the top. Laughton is genuinely menacing and looked as though he was enjoying himself, the chemistry between him and Bankhead has the right amount of intensity needed. Grant is in a very early role and acquits himself very well and is charming and suave, something that he specialised in throughout his career and refined not long after this. It is nicely directed by Marion Gering (an unfamiliar director to me),especially towards the end and in the interactions between Bankhead and Laughton.

Production values are generally not too elaborate while never looking cheap, the atmospheric and suitably claustrophobic photography and eerie lighting coming off best. The music is suitably haunting without being intrusive while not having much that is distinguished. The script is patchy and undernourished at times but generally is intriguing and to me it didn't get too over-heated. The story is tautly paced relatively and carried by its atmosphere, the tense climax stands out.

Sadly, Cooper really isn't at his best. Actually thought that he was very weak and wooden and he certainly went on to much better things. To be fair though, he had a very shallow and dull character and awfully clunky dialogue (this was where the script was patchy) to work with.

It was a little bland at the start and the film changes gear very abruptly and the second half generally felt incomplete, hence some choppiness.

Bottom line, pretty good and deserving to be better known. 7/10

Devil And The Deep finds Tallulah Bankhead cast with two Hollywood icons, Gary Cooper and the up and coming Cary Grant as the wife of a submarine commander who has a fling with both guys. But the one who really steals the film in what was his American film debut with Paramount is Charles Laughton.

Although The Old Dark House was made first, Paramount held up its release for Devil And The Deep, the better to give Laughton exposure with a proved box office champion in Gary Cooper. Laughton is stunning as an insanely jealous husband.

I think a lot of Devil And The Deep may have been left on the cutting room floor. In the beginning it's made quite clear that Tallulah is a woman of easy virtue. But later on the tone of the film abruptly shifts so that your sympathies shift from Laughton to her. The story loses a lot of coherency with that.

Still the performances are great and the climax on board the submarine is very well staged. Definitely a must for a fan of any of the stars in the quartet.