Come Back, Little Sheba (1953)

I'd never heard of this film until I stumbled upon it today, and boy - what a stumble. Shirley Booth turns in one of the most intense performances I have ever seen. "Lola" is married to recovering alcoholic "Doc" (Burt Lancaster) and they live a meticulously ordered life with her the housewife and he at the hospital. As the story transpires, we learn a little more of what has driven them to their current scenario whilst she yearns for companionship. To that end she rents out their spare room to student "Marie" (Terry Moore). Initially, "Doc" isn't sure, but he takes a shine to the girl - if not to her all-American boyfriend "Turk" (Richard Jaeckel). She seems set on him, though, and as his paternal concern for her choices starts to mount his need for that lone bottle sitting in the cupboard starts to mount too! It's only really in the last fifteen minutes that the story all falls into place and we realise just why both of these characters are as they are. Lancaster plays his role in a measured and entirely convincing fashion as he foils the almost perfect effort from an entirely convincing Booth who elicits sympathy and exasperation in almost equal measure. What's also quite effective here is that the story isn't full of contrived pitfalls and disasters. It's a story of humanity with it's roots in a plausible scenario (of the time, anyway) that has provided these two, perhaps despite themselves, with a true and lasting affection. It's much more of a drama than a romance, and really is worth an hour and half of your time.