This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.

Let's be realistic.

Brilliant and touching

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

I also thought that Cregar's performance was literally ahead of his time, very naturalistic. But I see a few reviewers are unaware that "Hangover Square" is a play on words, referring to the real landmark in London, Hanover Square.

Laird Cregar (George) suffers blackouts whenever he hears discordant sounds. His brain is taken over by impulses that lead to actions for which he has no recollection. And they're not good actions! Basically, don't annoy him as he seems to dish out revenge in these moments. Outside of these episodes, he's a composer who has a champion in noted conductor Alan Napier (Sir Henry) and pupil Faye Marlowe (Barbara). But, enter floozy Linda Darnell (Netta) and her ruthless streak for fame and fortune and Cregar is in trouble. She lures him into her trap with false promises of love in return for his services in composing songs for her to perform and promote her own career. She can then drop him once she hits the big time. Wow, did she ever pick the wrong guy to wind up! Musicians are sometimes a funny breed – wrapped up in a self-obsessed world of creativity. It's an admirable path. Sometimes the music doesn't work – as with Elton John, and sometimes it does as with Cregar in this film. The music is so powerful that it deserves a credit as one of the major cast. Other cast members are all excellent with special mention to Darnell as a total bitch. She will have you rooting for Cregar to have an episode with her and the film doesn't disappoint. However, it is Cregar who drives the film and does an excellent job eluding sympathy despite the horrors that lurk within him.Two scenes that stand out are the Guy Fawkes bonfire sequence where Cregar places his dummy at the top of the bonfire and the end sequence as he is driven to perform his concerto to the end. Literally. We have the added curiosity of the terrible fate that fell upon all 3 of the leads in this film. Sanders committed suicide, and while many people give the nod to Cregar in his last performance before his death, surely the most eerie aspect of the film is what happens to Darnell.

In old London town an upcoming composer struggles to reconcile his place in polite society with his suspicions over his behaviour during stress induced blackouts. Then two beautiful women get involved.Enjoyable melodrama loosely based on DJ&MH. The three lead actors are all memorable: the composer with his hyperactive eyes, the smile of his female friend, and the sex-bomb that takes advantage. The pace is good and the music does its job well, with a very convincing turn at the keyboard which fooled me into thinking the actor was playing brilliantly.Only real weakness - the good romance remained superficial. Best thing is the crowd scenes - all done on set, but full of life and rhythm, with great extras and lovely details, creating a rich atmosphere.Overall, good entertainment.ps. The composer and sex-bomb suffered untimely deaths in the real world.

In this variation on the Jekyll and Hyde story, a composer has sporadic episodes where his subconscious takes over and he has no recollections of his actions during these lapses when he comes to. This film reunites Cregar and Sanders with director Brahm from "The Lodger" the previous year, and, like the earlier film, it is visually opulent but the story is less than compelling. Cregar gives perhaps his best performance in this, his final film before his untimely death at age 31 just as he was coming into his own. Darnell, who would also die young, is a sensuous presence as the object of his obsession. Herrmann provides an impressive score, including a piano concerto used in the finale.