Newlyweds John and Ruth Bowman (Carl Betz/Jeanne Crain) have booked a cruise for their honeymoon; shortly after entering their cabin and depositing their luggage, John realizes he has some cash he wants to leave with the purser. After instructing Ruth to meet him in the main deck bar in fifteen minutes, John heads to the purser's office, while Ruth goes topside to watch the ship disembark.
At the appointed time, however, John fails to arrive at the bar, and when Ruth makes a visit to the purser's office to see what is detaining him, she discovers that her husband was never there. Thinking that there was a mix-up of some kind and that John has returned to their cabin, Ruth finds her way back to #B16, but to her utter shock, she is told that no one is occupying that room. Upon Ruth's insistence, the steward unlocks the door to that cabin, and, sure enough, it is completely bare. There is no sign of the Bowmans' luggage nor of the flowers which a maid had been arranging upon their entrance only a short time earlier.
A quick look at the passenger list reveals that the Bowmans' names aren't there; however, Ruth Stanton (which is Ruth's maiden name) is on the list, cabin #B18. A check of that room reveals Ruth's luggage...but no sign of John's. Of course, Ruth grows hysterical, especially when she realizes she doesn't have a passport, nor does she even know the name of the town in which she was married.
To placate Ruth, a search of the ship is made, but nothing is revealed, and when the stewardess Ruth claims she saw arranging flowers in #B16 denies having been in that cabin or seeing the Bowmans, it is assumed that Ruth's story is not true. After the captain discovers that Ruth has previously had a mental breakdown, he assumes she is having another one and puts her into the care of the ship's doctor, Paul Manning (Michael Rennie).
Although the kindly doctor doesn't think Ruth is purposely lying, he does think she is hallucinating and/or imagining things, so he prescribes medication and suggests she go to bed.
Later that evening, Ruth receives a phone call from John, a call which indicates that he has gone into hiding because they are in danger. After warning Ruth not to trust anyone, he hangs up.
When Ruth reports the phone call to Dr. Manning, he suggests that the call was nothing more than a dream. Was the call a dream? Was the whole marriage a figment of Ruth's overwrought imagination? Is the beautiful, emotionally-frazzled woman having another breakdown? Or does she really have a husband? And if so, where is he? And why is he hiding? These are the questions which will play out in the balance of the film.
Suspenseful without being scary, Dangerous Crossing is an interesting, exciting film. No, there are no beautiful sun-drenched beach scenes on this cruise; in fact, many of the scenes take place on a chilly, mist-shrouded deck. Even so, the film is loads of fun. Jeanne Crain puts in a fine performance---she is quite credible as a hysterical, possibly-losing-her-mind woman. Plus, she's incredibly lovely here...beautiful really. I was completely in love with her hair in this film, and I love her gowns and her fur coat.
Michael Rennie, as always, is solid in his role, but the film is essentially Jeanne's.
While I want a slightly less suspenseful cruise for myself, I enjoyed every minute of this Dangerous Crossing. If you are a Jeanne Crain fan, you ought to enjoy it as well. The film is out on DVD and is available on YouTube, so it should be fairly easy to track down.
Happy viewing!!
