- Skillfully directed by Max Ophüls, Caught relates the tale of Leonora Eames (Barbara Bel Geddes), who finds herself trapped in an absolutely lousy marriage to a wealthy business tycoon (and Howard Hughes stand-in) named Smith Ohlrig (Robert Ryan). Leonora had long fancied the notion of meeting and marrying a millionaire, but the charm school she attended never prepared her for a Prince Charming as domineering and cruel as Ohlrig. In one particularly painful scene, Ohrig berates Leonora for laughing during a film screening and then kicks out the man she was laughing with. He was bad enough as a bachelor, but as a husband he's downright awful.
- In an attempt to distance herself from Ohlrig's influence, Leonora flees his palatial mansion in Long Island to go to work as a medical secretary for Drs. Quinada (James Mason) and Hoffmann (Frank Ferguson). Amusingly, Dr. Quinada starts off their relationship by criticizing Leonora, too, although one quickly gathers that his comments stem from concern for both his patients and Leonora herself. Gradually, their relationship progresses into one in which their exceedingly long workdays are followed by a night on the town. In the film's best scene, they shuffle their way across the dance floor as Quinada awkwardly proposes to Leonora, who may have neglected to mention the existence of her husband, not to mention her pregnancy.
- Aside from the aforementioned dancing scene and a few memorable shots of Robert Ryan bowling billiard balls toward the camera, Barbara Bel Geddes marching toward a confrontation with her ailing husband, and Ohlrig's assistant (Curt Bois) torturing Leonora with his piano playing, Caught is probably most notable for its immensely talented cast. I always thought that Bel Geddes should have had a stronger film career, but in this case a more prominent actress might have had trouble conveying the innocence and discomfort needed for Leonora. As always, Ryan and Mason are both excellent, with Mason presumably reveling in the fact that he was not cast as the villain of the piece for once. The film's tone near its conclusion is a bit discordant -- never before has the line "The baby died" been delivered with such enthusiasm -- but this slight stumble isn't enough to change my impression of Caught as an unjustly overloooked noir.
