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| Hugo Haas and Cleo Moore in Strange Fascination |
Tired and hungry after a concert, touring classical pianist Paul Marvan (Hugo Haas) goes to a night club in his hotel where he's told he can get something to eat. He arrives in the middle of a dance number performed by Margo (Cleo Moore) and her partner Carlo (Rick Vallin), but his clumsy entrance annoys Margo so much that when she learns that Marvan is giving another concert the following night she decides to repay his rudeness. She arrives late, while he's performing, and intentionally makes a small disturbance while getting to her seat. To her surprise, she is captivated by Marvan's performance and goes to ask for his autograph after the concert. He's unaware that he had disturbed her performance but apologizes, and they agree to meet again when both return to New York. You guessed it: They see one another again and fall in love. But can this misalliance of a sophisticated middle-aged European and a bottle blonde showgirl thrive? Especially when Marvan has a wealthy patroness (Mona Barrie) of his own age and class? This familiar setup takes its familiar course, but Strange Fascination almost transcends its low budget and third-string cast by embracing its B-movie status and not camping it up too much. Haas made seven movies with Moore, and they're all watchable in their low-key way.
