Directed by:
Norman FosterCinematography:
Russell MettyComposer:
Miklós RózsaCast:
Joan Fontaine, Burt Lancaster, Robert Newton, Ben Wright, Kenner G. Kemp, Colin Kenny, Harry Tenbrook, David McMahon, Brick Sullivan, Frank Hagney (more)Plots(1)
In this film noir drama, Bill Saunders (Burt Lancaster) is a former Prisoner of War living in England whose experiences have left him emotionally unstable and prone to violence. One night, while drinking in a pub, he gets into an argument with the owner which quickly escalates into a brutal fist fight; Bill kills the publican and flees with the police giving chase. Bill is given shelter by Jane Wharton (Joan Fontaine), a kind-hearted nurse who believes Bill when he tells her that the killing was an accident and that he's innocent of any wrongdoing. Bill soon gets in a fight with a policeman and ends up in jail, but Jane, who has fallen in love with Bill, still has faith in him, and upon his release she finds him a job driving a truck delivering drugs for the clinic where she works. Career criminal Harry Carter (Robert Newton), who witnessed Bill's murder of the pub owner, now sees a perfect opportunity for blackmail, and he forces Bill to tip him off for his next major drug shipment, which can then be routed to the black market at a high profit. Bill has little choice but to agree, but when Jane ends up tagging along when Bill is to make the delivery in question, he refuses to jeopardize her and makes the delivery to the clinic without incident. This quickly earns Harry's wrath, and they soon find themselves at the mercy of a very dangerous man. Miklos Rozsa composed the film's highly effective score. (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Cast
Leyland Hodgson
UK
Best movies:
The Great Dictator (1940)
The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle (1939)
Rebecca (1940)
Charles McNaughton
UK
Best movies:
Gaslight (1944)
Waterloo Bridge (1940)
To Each His Own (1946)
Bobbie Hale
UK
Best movies:
Fury (1936)
Gaslight (1944)
Waterloo Bridge (1940)
Harry Allen
Australia
Best movies:
Waterloo Bridge (1940)
Holiday (1938)
A Night at the Opera (1935)
Keith Hitchcock
UK
Best movies:
The White Cliffs of Dover (1944)
Random Harvest (1942)
Anna Karenina (1935)
Reginald Sheffield (a.f.)
UK
Best movies:
To Each His Own (1946)
Random Harvest (1942)
My Name Is Julia Ross (1945)
Arthur Gould-Porter
UK
Best movies:
Scarlet Street (1945)
The White Cliffs of Dover (1944)
Random Harvest (1942)
Melinda Byron
Best movies:
Ten North Frederick (1958)
Loving You (1957)
The Long Night (1947)
David Dunbar
Australia
Best movies:
Les Misérables (1934) (series)
Mrs. Miniver (1942)
North West Mounted Police (1940)
Tom Dillon
Ireland
Best movies:
The Thin Man Goes Home (1945)
Scarlet Street (1945)
Mildred Pierce (1945)
Colin Keith-Johnston
UK
Best movies:
The Paradine Case (1947)
Love Happy (1949)
The Left Handed Gun (1958)