Cry Danger

Last updated
Cry Danger
Cry Danger 1951.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Robert Parrish
Screenplay byWilliam Bowers
Story byJerome Cady
Produced byW.R. Frank
Sam Wiesenthal
Starring Dick Powell
Rhonda Fleming
Cinematography Joseph F. Biroc
Edited by Bernard W. Burton
Music by Paul Dunlap
Emil Newman
Production
company
Release date
  • February 3, 1951 (1951-02-03)(US) [1]
Running time
79 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Cry Danger is a 1951 film noir thriller film, starring Dick Powell and Rhonda Fleming. The film was directed by Robert Parrish, a former child star and later editor in his debut as a director. [2]

Contents

Plot

Rocky Mulloy was sentenced to life in prison for a robbery and murder that he did not commit. He is released five years later when an "eyewitness", a one-legged ex-Marine named Delong, suddenly appears and provides a fake alibi. Delong is an opportunist who figures out that by freeing Rocky he can get a share of the missing $100,000 from the robbery. Rocky insists he was not involved and sets out to find out who framed him, hoping to free his friend Danny Morgan, still in prison for the same crime. Police Lieutenant Gus Cobb meets Rocky when he arrives in Los Angeles and tells him that he will be under 24-hour surveillance.

Rocky and Delong rent a place in a trailer park. Morgan's wife Nancy, a former girlfriend of Rocky's, lives there. Delong meets Darlene, a pretty resident.

Rocky knows that bookie Louis Castro is the mastermind behind the robbery and believes that he also the person who framed him and sent him to prison. He demands $50,000 at gunpoint; he was earning $20,000 a year when he was imprisoned, and figures Castro owes him half that for each year he spent in prison. Castro instead gives him $500 to bet on a longshot on a fixed horse race. The next day Rocky tries to find a witness who testified against him at his trial. He finds Mrs. Fletcher who tells him her husband has died two years earlier. She also tells him that after testifying at the trial her husband "inherited" $5,000.

Rocky then goes to collect his winnings from the horse race. But after he spends some of the money, Cobb informs him that the money is from the payroll robbery and takes it back. Rocky realizes that Castro has framed him again, but when Cobb calls Castro to check his story, Castro blunders. He claims he did not even know Rocky was free again, which Cobb knows is a lie, because he tailed Rocky to Castro's office the night before.

Later, two men mistake Delong and his girlfriend Darlene for Rocky and Nancy. Delong is injured and Darlene is killed. Rocky then forces Castro to play Russian roulette, with the gun pointed at the bookie's head, until Castro breaks down and reveals half the robbery money is hidden in a safe under his desk. He also claims that Rocky's friend Morgan participated in the robbery and committed the murder and that Nancy knows the truth and has her husband's share. Rocky orders Castro to telephone Cobb and tell him he will make a full confession. Castro instead calls his henchmen, the ones who killed Darlene. However, Rocky is not fooled. He calls Cobb himself, and the two killers walk into a police trap.

Then Rocky goes to see Nancy and tells her he could not find Castro. Nancy confesses she has the money. She says she loves him and begs him to run away with her and the loot. Rocky pretends to agree, but when he finds Cobb waiting outside Nancy's trailer, Rocky tells him where she has hidden the money and walks away.

Cast

Production

The film was shot in the Bunker Hill section of Los Angeles. The "Crosley" Hotel, built as the Nugent, stood at 3rd and Grand. The Los Amigos bar was at 3rd and Olive. Clover Trailer Park was not in Bunker Hill, but was at 650-700 N. Hill Place in Chinatown. Also seen is "China City", a Chinese-themed spinoff of LA's Olvera Street, no longer extant, 500 feet north of Olvera Strest at Alameda Street.

Reception

When the film was first released, the staff at Variety magazine liked the film and said, "All the ingredients for a suspenseful melodrama are contained in Cry Danger...Robert Parrish, erstwhile film editor, makes a strong directorial bow. [3]

Time Out 's modern on-line magazine review says: "it's the kind of movie in which, told to expect someone extra for dinner, delicious Fleming smiles 'OK, I'll put more water in the soup'. With excellent support players like a young, thin (for him) William Conrad and Jay Adler, this is a fast, crisp and laconic delight." [4]

Restoration and 2011 re-release

A restored version of the film was released in 2011. The film was restored by the UCLA Film & Television Archive, in cooperation with Paramount Pictures (keeper of the Republic Pictures/Melange Pictures backlog, which this film is a part of), and Warner Bros. (rightsholder via Turner Entertainment of the library of original distributor RKO), funded by the Film Noir Foundation. [5] The new print was made "from two 35mm acetate composite master positives." [5]

The restoration premiered at the UCLA Festival of Preservation on March 14, 2011 [5] and was screened at other North American cities in 2011 including Vancouver. [6]

Related Research Articles

<i>Tennessees Partner</i> 1955 film by Allan Dwan

Tennessee's Partner is a 1955 American Western film, directed by Allan Dwan, written by: Graham Baker, D.D. Beauchamp, Milton Krims and Teddi Sherman, with uncredited rewrites by Dwan, and starring: John Payne, Ronald Reagan, Rhonda Fleming and Coleen Gray.

<i>Mean Creek</i> 2004 film by Jacob Aaron Estes

Mean Creek is a 2004 American independent coming-of-age psychological drama film written and directed by Jacob Aaron Estes and starring Rory Culkin, Ryan Kelley, Scott Mechlowicz, Trevor Morgan, Josh Peck, and Carly Schroeder. It was produced by Susan Johnson, Rick Rosenthal, and Hagai Shaham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhonda Fleming</span> American actress and singer (1923–2020)

Rhonda Fleming was an American film and television actress and singer. She acted in more than 40 films, mostly in the 1940s and 1950s, and became renowned as one of the most glamorous actresses of her day, nicknamed the "Queen of Technicolor" because she photographed so well in that medium.

<i>Inferno</i> (1953 film) 1953 American drama/thriller by Roy Ward Baker

Inferno is a 1953 American thriller drama starring Robert Ryan, William Lundigan and Rhonda Fleming, directed by Roy Ward Baker. It was shot in Technicolor and shown in 3-D, with stereophonic sound.

<i>Slightly Scarlet</i> (1956 film) 1956 film by Allan Dwan

Slightly Scarlet is a 1956 American crime film starring John Payne, Rhonda Fleming and Arlene Dahl. The film was directed by Allan Dwan, and its cinematographer was John Alton. The script was based on James M. Cain's novel Love's Lovely Counterfeit.

<i>The Killing of a Chinese Bookie</i> 1976 film by John Cassavetes

The Killing of a Chinese Bookie is a 1976 American neo-noir crime film written and directed by John Cassavetes and starring Ben Gazzara. A rough and gritty film, this is the second of their three collaborations, following Husbands and preceding Opening Night. Timothy Carey, Seymour Cassel, Morgan Woodward, Meade Roberts, and Azizi Johari appear in supporting roles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Justin Burton</span> UK soap opera character (created 2003)

Justin Burton is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Chris Fountain. Justin arrived in 2003 and departed on 3 June 2009. Justin arrived in a family of six, however by September 2006, the Burton family had left the show. It was announced in March 2009 that Fountain had decided to leave the show and would depart in a 'major storyline which echoes the fire which killed his sisters'. Fountain was credited in a flashback episode broadcast on 1 December 2010. On 12 April 2023, it was revealed that Justin had been killed off-screen on 5 October 2022, nearly 14 years after his last appearance on screen.

<i>While the City Sleeps</i> (1956 film) 1956 film by Fritz Lang

While the City Sleeps is a 1956 American film noir directed by Fritz Lang and starring Dana Andrews, Rhonda Fleming, George Sanders, Howard Duff, Thomas Mitchell, Vincent Price, John Drew Barrymore and Ida Lupino. Written by Casey Robinson, the newspaper drama was based on The Bloody Spur by Charles Einstein, which was inspired by the case of Chicago serial killer William Heirens. Five decades after the film's release, critic Dennis Schwartz wrote, "Fritz Lang ('M') directs his most under-appreciated great film, more a social commentary than a straight crime drama."

<i>Le Doulos</i> 1962 French film

Le Doulos is a 1962 French crime film written and directed by Jean-Pierre Melville, adapted from the novel of the same name by Pierre Lesou. It was released theatrically as The Finger Man in the English-speaking world, but all video and DVD releases have used the French title. Intertitles at the beginning of the film explain that the French title refers both to a kind of hat and to the slang term for a police informant.

<i>Hurricane Streets</i> 1997 film directed by Morgan J. Freeman

Hurricane Streets is a 1997 American coming-of-age drama film directed and written by Morgan J. Freeman in his feature directorial debut. It stars Brendan Sexton III, Shawn Elliot, L. M. Kit Carson, and Edie Falco. The film tells the story of Marcus, a New York City street teenager who is conflicted between running with a gang who want to move up in more serious crimes and a girl he meets who tries to steer him clear from a potential life in prison.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oliver Twist (character)</span> Title character of the Charles Dickens novel

Oliver Twist is the title character and protagonist of the 1838 novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens. He was the first child protagonist in a British novel.

<i>The Bat Whispers</i> 1930 film

The Bat Whispers is a 1930 American pre-Code mystery film directed by Roland West, produced by Joseph M. Schenck, and released by United Artists. The film is based on the 1920 mystery play The Bat, written by Mary Roberts Rinehart and Avery Hopwood, and is the second film version by the same director, previously adapted in 1926. An early talkie and one of the first widescreen films, West financed the cinematography, which required two cameramen and several techniques. It was considered a lost film for many years, but was restored from duplicate filmstock in 1988.

<i>Caught Up</i> (film) 1998 American crime-drama film directed by Darin Scott

Caught Up is a 1998 American crime-drama film written and directed by Darin Scott. It Was filmed in 1997. The film stars Bokeem Woodbine and Cynda Williams.

<i>Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman</i> (1993 film) Television film by Christopher Guest

Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman is a 1993 American science fiction comedy television film and is a remake of the 1958 film Attack of the 50 Foot Woman. Directed by Christopher Guest and starring Daryl Hannah and Daniel Baldwin, the film premiered on HBO on December 11, 1993, and was later released theatrically in the United Kingdom, France and Germany.

<i>Tonight We Raid Calais</i> 1943 film by John Brahm

Tonight We Raid Calais is a 1943 American film directed by John Brahm and starring John Sutton, Lee J. Cobb, and Annabella.

<i>Hit and Run</i> (2012 film) 2012 American film

Hit and Run is a 2012 American action comedy film written by Dax Shepard, with David Palmer and Shepard co-directing. The film stars Shepard and Kristen Bell, with Kristin Chenoweth, Tom Arnold, and Bradley Cooper, and follows a man who has been placed in Federal Witness Protection going on the run with his girlfriend to escape a mobster. It was released on August 22, 2012, received mixed reviews from critics, and grossed $16 million.

<i>Gunsight Ridge</i> 1957 film by Francis D. Lyon

Gunsight Ridge is a 1957 American Western film directed by Francis D. Lyon and written by Talbot Jennings and Elisabeth Jennings. The film stars Joel McCrea, Mark Stevens, Joan Weldon, Addison Richards, Darlene Fields and Carolyn Craig. The film was released in September 1957, by United Artists.

<i>Marshal of Cedar Rock</i> 1953 film

Marshal of Cedar Rock is a 1953 American Western film directed by Harry Keller and starring Allan Lane, Phyllis Coates and Eddy Waller.

<i>Empty Holsters</i> 1937 film by B. Reeves Eason

Empty Holsters is a 1937 American Western film directed by B. Reeves Eason and written by John T. Neville. The film stars Dick Foran, Patricia Walthall, Emmett Vogan, Glenn Strange, Anderson Lawler and Wilfred Lucas. The film was released by Warner Bros. on July 10, 1937.

<i>White Fang</i> (2018 film) 2018 French film

White Fang is a 2018 animated film directed by Alexandre Espigares. Based on the 1906 book White Fang by Jack London, the film features the voices of Nick Offerman, Rashida Jones, Paul Giamatti, and Eddie Spears as natives of Alaska who, at different times, come to know White Fang, a free spirited and at times violent wolfdog who eventually bonds with Offerman's character, a gentle master named Weedon Scott. The film also features Dave Boat, Daniel Hagen, and Stephen Kramer Glickman in the original English version, and Virginie Efira, Raphaël Personnaz, and Dominique Pinon in the French dub.

References

  1. ↑ "Cry Danger: Detail View". American Film Institute. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  2. ↑ Cry Danger at IMDb.
  3. ↑ Variety. [ permanent dead link ] Film review, February 21, 1991, excerpted from original 1951 review. Last accessed: June 21, 2012.
  4. ↑ Time Out film review. Last accessed: November 27, 2009.
  5. 1 2 3 Todd Wiener. "UCLA Film & Television Archive: Cry Danger (1951) Kiss tomorrow Goodbye (1950)" . Retrieved 2011-11-07.
  6. ↑ "Recent Restorations: Treasures From The UCLA Festival Of Preservation » Cry Danger". Archived from the original on 2012-03-31. Retrieved 2011-11-07.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.