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In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

Robert Taylor began his career at MGM in the 1930s and soldiered on for the next twenty years, never doing much but never getting in the way of the scenery. His default expression was a grim frown, sometimes inching its way towards bemusement. As he aged and his features coarsened, as they did after this movie, the studio simply gave up and cloaked him in armor or made him an outright sadist.Here, however, he rings the changes on his usual screen persona. He even grins. (Twice.) It may be one of his most nuanced performances. When he's introduced at the opening, driving the body of his strangled wife at a mad pace down the highway and then off into a ditch, he's shabby and his hair is all messed up. Thrice he's referred to as "a homicidal maniac." The film has him as a brain-injured amnesiac just returned from a long spell as a pilot in Burma. He finds his wife in a compromising position and just as he begins to strangle her, he passes out. Naturally, when the police find him and his wife's strangled body in a car, they arrest him but are forced to send him to a psychiatric hospital for tests -- under the tender ministrations of psychiatrist Audrey Totter.Surprise! He didn't do it. The murderer is the suave lawyer Herbert Marshall, with whom the wife was dawdling. It's complicated but it all works out at the end.It's been described as "noir" but it's unclear to me why. It's an ordinary B murder story that could have been sitting in a producer's drawer since 1935. The photography, though, by Paul Vogel, is dramatic, sometimes to the point of artsy, full of murky shadows, baby spots, and venetian blinds. For the most part, it's set bound. There are a few scenes of "dark sedans" racing through the rain but I can't recall a single scene that was shot on location in this unidentified city. It's all sets and back lots, and fortunately MGM had them all.The plot, alas, resembles a spaghetti colander, recently emptied but festooned with several pale strands, clinging relentlessly to the stainless steel. We know that poor Taylor was a bomber pilot in Europe and suffered a head wound, treated by surgery. That would account for his puzzling behavior and his spotty memory. But then he became a commercial pilot in Burma, cracked up, and suffered still ANOTHER brain injury which he has since refused treatment for. Well, one stove-in skull is enough for any man.Then, too, we know fairly soon that the debonair Herbert Marshall murdered the wife and framed Taylor. Okay. But WHY did he murder the wife. Absolutely no one asks -- not Taylor, not nobody. It isn't until the last few minutes that we discover Marshall's motive. Taylor's wife threatened to splash his name all over the media and ruin his promotion to partner at his law firm. We see it in a brief flashback. She suddenly begins to shriek and backs him up against the wall, practically begging to be murdered. The writers seem to have made up the motive at the last moment, knowing they must provide SOME springboard for the entire plot.It's not a terrible film. Taylor is better than usual and there is a fine supporting cast and some startling photography. But is suffers death by plot.

After a lonely drink (in a beautiful black-and-white barroom), religious book publisher Herbert Marshall (as Willard Whitcombe) goes to his office and inquires about pretty secretary Dorothy Patrick (as Helen). He is told her husband, World War II bomber pilot Robert Taylor (as Steven Kenet), has returned to the USA from Burma. Next, we see Mr. Taylor driving his apparently dead wife off the road, toppling their car. It turns out the beautiful blonde was strangled and Taylor is suffering from post-War stress and a brain injury. Taylor has a blood clot on the brain, causing some theatrical hands-on-his-headaches. Although he doesn't recall killing his wife, Taylor confesses and is committed to a psychiatric hospital. Attractive (and single) psychiatrist Audrey Totter (as Ann Lorrison) is assigned Taylor's case. She wonders if he's aiming to get off on "temporary insanity" – or, perhaps the (handsome) widower is innocent...As of this writing, we are in an era where many filmmakers consider the "shaky camera" technique (called "hand held camera" by insiders) a high form of cinematic art. If you're dizzy after watching one of these wobbly movies, "High Wall" is a perfect antidote...Cinematographer Paul Vogel's eloquence camera movements begin swirling through the opening bar scene, and are marvelous throughout. Guided skillfully by director Curtis Bernhardt, the camera helps tell us about the characters, and moves the story. Producer Robert Lord's team also know when to stop, as in the extra second we are given to read the words on the door of Mr. Marshall's office. Marshall gets one of the film's highlights – watch how he handles handyman Vince Barnett (Henry Cronner) with the hook of an umbrella. Marshall is worthy of a "Best Supporting Actor" award. It's also nice to see veteran H.B. Warner as a loony mental patient. The romance is routine and ending questionable, but "High Wall" is well worth scaling.******* High Wall (12/17/47) Curtis Bernhardt ~ Robert Taylor, Audrey Totter, Herbert Marshall, Vince Barnett

Robert Taylor is Steven Kenet, accused of killing his unfaithful wife in "High Wall," a 1947 film noir also starring Audrey Totter and Herbert Marshall. In our first glimpse of Steve, he's in a car with a dead woman careening down the road to get rid of her. The problem is, due to a brain injury suffered during the war, he can't remember what happened. He is institutionalized for psychiatric evaluation to see if he can stand trial as a sane person. Audrey Totter is Ann, the psychiatrist who takes in Steve's small son as well as works with her patient to try and uncover the truth. Herbert Marshall plays his dead wife's boss.After World War II, Hollywood began to explore mental and emotional disorders and the use of psychiatry to unlock the traumas of the mind. "Possessed," "Spellbound," and "The Snake Pit" are just a few of the dozens of films employing the use of psychiatry, mental hospitals, and/or psychotropic drugs. In "High Wall," the psychiatry seems to be more of a plot device than something that is actually used to help the patient. It's there to provide flashbacks. Meanwhile, the Taylor character, once he has surgery, has a mind of his own and is constantly slipping out or in the psychiatrist's office window, hiding in her car, and visiting the scene of the crime. The biggest problem is that the character of the murder victim is never developed, and the reasons for her behavior are never made clear. Nevertheless, the film manages to hold one's interest, has a great atmosphere and a couple of really shocking moments. There are also some very funny bits throughout, including a scene where Steve meets the public defender.This is one of Robert Taylor's best performances. After "Johnny Eager," one of Hollywood's biggest heartthrobs began to play more complex roles and more bad guys. It was a good move; he played them very well. He doesn't get much support from Audrey Totter, who turns in a dull, somewhat cold performance in an attempt to be a professional woman. She doesn't give the role a lot of shading. Herbert Marshall seems somewhat miscast and is too lethargic for a role that requires some emotional range.Very watchable for handsome Taylor's excellent performance.

I'm only commenting on this movie because of it's high ratings(7.6). The whole psychiatric story is unbelievable. Brain surgery does not have a certain outcome and in this case certainly wasn't indicated. Truth serum did not exist in 1947 and isn't invented yet. And if it existed why would really anyone bother to do serious investigations. Just let us make an appointment with all suspects and apply the serum. The motivations of the real murder don't seem sufficient. The plot often jumps from one scene to the next without the expected connection. After the janitor blackmails the murder we know it's over with him. I haven't seen any other movie with Robert Taylor so it may be that this is his best performance. By today's standards this is not more than4 / 10.