Sep
0

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (1956)

Movie: Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (1956)

1253812883 2088 Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (1956)“Writer sets himself up to take murder rap to show the errors of circumstantial evidence. With a friend holding back evidence so he can prove his innocence at the last minute, he goes to trial. But during the trial, his friend is killed in a car accident. Written by Humberto Amador”

  • Director: Fritz Lang
  • Release Date: 5 September 1956 (USA)
  • Run Time: 80 min
  • Country: USA
  • Genre: Crime , Film-Noir , Drama

Tagline: Put them all together they spell M-U-R-D-E-R !

Trivia: The last film that ‘Fritz Lang’ made in the USA before returning to Germany.

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Sep
0

While the City Sleeps (1956)

Movie: While the City Sleeps (1956)

1253726483 7431 While the City Sleeps (1956)“Death of media magnat Amos Kyne is causing power struggle between his executives. In the meantime New York women become prey of a serial killer. Reporter Edward Mobley is in that circumstances faced with almost impossible missions: to catch the killer, to prevent the media empire from falling into the wrong hands and to save his romantic relationship from break-up. Written by Dragan Antulov {dragan.antulov@altbbs.fido.hr}”

  • Director: Fritz Lang
  • Release Date: 30 May 1956 (USA)
  • Run Time: 100 min
  • Country: USA
  • Genre: Drama , Film-Noir

Tagline: Suspense as startling as a strangled scream !

Trivia: Although Howard Duff and Ida Lupino were married in real life, they have no scenes together.

Goofs: Continuity: When Barry Jr. is watching Andrews on TV, he is clutching a copy of “Tales From The Crypt”. When he drops it to the floor, a close-up of the comic book now shows it to be titled “The Strangler”.

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Sep
0

They Drive by Night (1940)

Movie: They Drive by Night (1940)

1253640083 2260 They Drive by Night (1940)“Brothers Paul and Joe Fabrini run a trucking business in California mainly shipping fruit from farms to the markets in Los Angeles. They struggle to make ends meet in the face of corrupt businessmen and intense competition. They are forced into driving long hours and one night pick-up waitress Cassie Hartley who’s just quit her job at a truck stop. The three of them witness the death of a mutual acquaintance when he falls asleep at the wheel. This has a profound effect on Paul and Joe and they become determined to find a way to make the business pay so they can quit. Written by Col Needham {col@imdb.com}”

  • Director: Raoul Walsh
  • Release Date: 3 August 1940 (USA)
  • Run Time: 95 min
  • Country: USA
  • Genre: Crime , Drama , Film-Noir , Thriller

Tagline: Thrills . . . from coast to coast . . . !

Trivia: The wife of producer Mark Hellinger, Gladys Glad, a former showgirl for Broadway producer Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., was responsible for getting this film made. Hellinger had brought home a large stack of scripts that he was to read for filming consideration. Hellinger had leafed through the script and read the summary, but felt that “nobody would pay money to see a bunch of truck drivers”. His wife read this script, liked it, and pressured Hellinger to read it. Reluctantly, he did, the film eventually got made and became the sleeper hit of the year for Warners. It was made for an estimated $400,000 and grossed than $4,000,000. (Source: Book “The Mark Hellinger Story” by Jim Bishop, New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1952)

Goofs: Continuity: In one of the final scenes, Irish’s work hat clearly bears the company name “Carlson”. The company name is spelled “Carlsen” on the sides of the trucks.

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Sep
0

Tension (1949)

Movie: Tension (1949)

1253553683 3315 Tension (1949)“A mousy drugstore manager turns killer after his conniving wife leaves him for another man. He devises a complex plan, which involves assuming a new identity, to make it look like someone else murdered her new boyfriend. Things take an unexpected turn when someone else commits the murder first and he becomes the prime suspect. Written by Daniel Bubbeo {dbubbeo@cmp.com}”

  • Director: John Berry
  • Release Date: 11 January 1950 (USA)
  • Run Time: 95 min
  • Country: USA
  • Genre: Crime , Drama , Film-Noir , Romance

Tagline: The hard-hitting story of a man with a plan…REVENGE!

Trivia: “Tension” was shooting at about the same time in 1949 as Side Street (1950), and the latter film utilizes the pharmacy set and its phone booth to allow Farley Granger to make a phone call.

Goofs: Continuity: In the first scene with Claire Quimby (Audrey Totter) we can see a “Dad’s Root Beer” sign on the wall next to her. In the beginning of the scene the word “Beer” is blacked out, but half way through the scene it miraculously reappears.

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Sep
0

They Made Me a Fugitive (1947)

Movie: They Made Me a Fugitive (1947)

1253467283 9649 They Made Me a Fugitive (1947)“In this gritty film noir, cynical ex-RAF flyer Morgan, bored with civilian life, joins a break-in gang led by Narcy. On his first job, the getaway car crashes after killing a policeman. Morgan is framed as the driver and sent to jail. Seeking revenge, he escapes and heads for London. Along the way he’s helped by a woman (Mrs. Fenshaw), who wants him to murder her husband. In London, Morgan is sheltered by Sally, who falls in love with him. He confronts Narcy and the gang in an abandoned warehouse. Brazilian Director Cavalcanti’s crime drama should not be confused with the totally unrelated “They Made Me a Criminal” (1939). Written by Mike Rogers {MICHAELPEM@aol.com}”

  • Director: Alberto Cavalcanti
  • Release Date: 6 March 1948 (USA)
  • Run Time: 99 min | USA:78 min
  • Country: UK
  • Genre: Crime , Drama , Film-Noir

Trivia: Trevor Howard was cast at very short notice after the actor first cast dropped out.

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Jun
0

Boomerang! (1947)

Movie: Boomerang! (1947)

1246093155 2005 Boomerang! (1947)“This dramatization of a factual incident opens in a quiet Connecticut town where a kindly priest is murdered while waiting at a street corner. The citizens are horrified and demand action from the police. All of the witnesses identify John Waldron, a nervous out-of-towner, as the killer. Although Waldron vehemently denies the crime, no one will believe him. District Attorney Henry Harvey is then put on the case and faces political opposition in his attempt to prove Waldron’s innocence. Written by Daniel Bubbeo {dbubbeo@cmp.com}”

  • Director: Elia Kazan
  • Release Date: 28 April 1947 (Sweden)
  • Run Time: 88 min
  • Country: USA
  • Genre: Crime , Film-Noir , Drama

Tagline: It comes back at you again and again!

Trivia: First film of Barry Kelley

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Jun
0

The Strange Woman (1946)

Movie: The Strange Woman (1946)

1246093155 6706 The Strange Woman (1946)“Beautiful Jenny Hager finds she can always get what she wants from the men in the 1820’s port of Bangor, Maine. Freed by his death from her drunkard father she soon manoeuvres herself into a position to marry a middle-aged monied local businessman. Though she often uses his money to do good, she continues to consider all other men fair game. Written by Jeremy Perkins {jwp@aber.ac.uk}”

  • Director: Edgar G. Ulmer
  • Release Date: 25 October 1946 (USA)
  • Run Time: 100 min
  • Country: USA
  • Genre: Drama , Film-Noir , Thriller

Tagline: So shocking she could only be spoken about in whispers!

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May
0

Murder, My Sweet (1944)

Movie: Murder, My Sweet (1944)

1241757295 1957 Murder, My Sweet (1944)“This adaptation of the Raymond Chandler novel ‘Farewell, My Lovely’, renamed for the American market to prevent filmgoers mistaking it for a musical (for which Powell was already famous) has private eye Philip Marlowe hired by Moose Malloy, a petty crook just out of prison after a seven year stretch, to look for his former girlfriend, Velma, who has not been seen for the last six years. The case is tougher than Marlowe expected as his initially promising enquiries lead to a complex web of deceit involving bribery, perjury and theft, and where no one’s motivation is obvious, least of all Marlowe’s. Written by Mark Thompson {mrt@oasis.icl.co.uk}”

  • Director: Edward Dmytryk
  • Release Date: 9 December 1944 (USA)
  • Run Time: 95 min | Germany:90 min
  • Country: USA
  • Genre: Crime , Drama , Film-Noir , Romance , Thriller

Tagline: An Original Philip Marlowe Mystery

Trivia: Audiences initially stayed away, thinking that “Farewell My Lovely”, its original title, was yet another Dick Powell musical. When the studio changed the title to “Murder My Sweet”, box office receipts picked up considerably.

Goofs: Continuity: When Powell leaves the car to look for the person for the payoff, he draws his gun from his left pocket, then replaces it in his left pocket. After he is sapped and woken up, he draws it from his right pocket.

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May
0

Nightmare Alley (1947)

Movie: Nightmare Alley (1947)

1241757295 5946 Nightmare Alley (1947)“Stanton Carlisle is an ambitious carnie who plays scams alongside phony mentalist Zeena and her alcoholic husband Pete, working the crowd as Zeena pretends to read their minds. But Stan has no intention of staying with the carnival; he has his heart set on an upscale night club act. Written by ASCPL”

  • Director: Edmund Goulding
  • Release Date: 28 October 1947 (USA)
  • Run Time: 110 min
  • Country: USA
  • Genre: Drama , Film-Noir

Tagline: He was all things to all men … but only one thing to all women!

Trivia: The telephone numbers of the Helen Walker character, Consulting Psychologist Lilith Ritter, are STAte 9862 (for her Office in the Lakeshore Building) and ROGrs Pk 8685 (for her Residence in the Belmont Apartments), both adjacent to the Lake Michigan waterfront on the near north side of Chicago.

Goofs: Continuity: During Powers’s cab ride away from Walker’s apartment, the Chicago Theater is visible in the rear-projection behind the car. After several minutes of driving, the cab turns around in front of the same theater.

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May
0

This Gun for Hire (1942)

Movie: This Gun for Hire (1942)

1241757295 7997 This Gun for Hire (1942)“Hit man Philip Raven, who’s kind to children and cats, kills a blackmailer and is paid off by traitor Willard Gates in “hot” money. Meanwhile, pert entertainer Ellen Graham, girlfriend of police Lieut. Crane (who’s after Raven) is enlisted by a Senate committee to help investigate Gates. Raven, seeking Gates for revenge, meets Ellen on the train; their relationship gradually evolves from that of killer and potential victim to an uneasy alliance against a common enemy. Written by Rod Crawford {puffinus@u.washington.edu}”

  • Director: Frank Tuttle
  • Release Date: 13 May 1942 (USA)
  • Run Time: 80 min
  • Country: USA
  • Genre: Film-Noir , Crime , Thriller

Tagline: Lover without a heart…killer without a conscience!

Trivia: One of over 700 Paramount Productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by Universal ever since.

Goofs: Revealing mistakes: In the scene early in the movie where Raven shoots through the door to kill the female witness, the slide on his 1903 model Colt pocket automatic doesn’t cycle and no empty cartridge is ejected, indicating that the pistol was loaded with a low-powered blank.

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