Review of Night Into Morning

I watched this because I like Ray Milland's work and I was intrigued by the story line. Having read most of the praiseworthy reviews here I must say that for me the film didn't attain the heights it seems to aspire to. I confess that I watched to the end, just to see how things turned out. But somehow the movie never seems to come to life, despite the meaty issues of loss and grief it deals with. Milland gave more of himself in a similar role in "Lost Weekend." Here he just seems to stay buttoned up for the duration of the proceedings, and the movie churns along without any emotional highs or lows.. The final breakdown is simply not a convincing catharsis. Whether these failings are due to the writing, the direction or the acting I'm not sure, but the movie just never takes off. The conclusion is typical Hollywood happy-endingism. The best thing about it for me was Nancy Davis' fine performance.