| The 13th Letter | |
| Director: | Otto Preminger |
| Producer: | Otto Preminger |
| Screenplay: | Howard Koch |
| Based On: | Le Corbeau by Louis Chavance |
| Starring: | Linda Darnell Charles Boyer Michael Rennie Constance Smith |
| Music: | Alex North |
| Cinematography: | Joseph LaShelle |
| Editing: | Louis R. Loeffler |
| Studio: | 20th Century Fox |
| Distributor: | 20th Century Fox |
| Runtime: | 85 minutes |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Budget: | $1,075,000 |
The 13th Letter is a 1951 American film noir mystery film directed by Otto Preminger and starring Linda Darnell, Charles Boyer, Michael Rennie, and Constance Smith.[1] [2] The film is a remake of the French film Le Corbeau (The Raven, 1943) directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot.
Doctor Pearson (Michael Rennie), who works at a hospital in Quebec, Canada, receives a series of poison pen letters. More letters, all signed with the mysterious picture of a feather, are delivered to others in the small Canadian town. Cora Laurent (Constance Smith), the wife of the main doctor - Dr. Laurent (Charles Boyer) - at the hospital, receives a letter accusing her of having an affair with Pearson. Another letter informs a shell-shocked veteran Mr. Gauthier that he is dying of cancer, causing the distraught man to commit suicide. Quickly, the townsfolk begin pointing fingers at all possible suspects.
Channel 4's review of the film praised the cinematography and music score: "The movie is redolent with atmosphere: Joseph LaShelle's photography accentuates the black and shadows, and there's dark shading too in Alex North's music. The film is dominated by death and melancholy, and by Françoise Rosay as the matriarch responsible for the trouble."[3]