Guilty Bystander

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Guilty Bystander
Guilty Bystander 1950 movie poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJoseph Lerner
Screenplay byDon Ettlinger
Based onGuilty Bystander
1947 novel
by Wade Miller
Produced byRex Carlton
Joseph Lerner
Starring Zachary Scott
Faye Emerson
CinematographyGerald Hirschfeld
Russell Harlan (uncredited)
Edited byGeraldine Lerner
Music by Dimitri Tiomkin
Production
companies
Edmund L. Dorfmann Productions
Laurel Films
New York Film Associates
Distributed by Film Classics
Release dates
  • March 22, 1950 (1950-03-22)(Los Angeles) [1]
  • April 20, 1950 (1950-04-20)(New York) [2]
Running time
91 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Guilty Bystander is a 1950 American crime drama film noir directed by Joseph Lerner and starring Zachary Scott and Faye Emerson. It marked the last screen appearances for character actors Mary Boland and J. Edward Bromberg. The film was shot entirely on location in New York City. [3] [4] [5]

Contents

Plot

Max Thursday is an alcoholic former cop working as a house detective at his pal Smitty's rundown hotel. Max's ex-wife Georgia visits him in a panic because their young son Jeff and her brother Fred Mace are both missing. She was warned to not inform the police by Dr. Elder, Fred's business acquaintance.

While drunk, Max confronts Dr. Elder about his missing son, but the doctor knocks him unconscious from behind. Max awakens and is taken to police headquarters for questioning. Max soon learns that Dr. Elder has been killed and that he has become the prime suspect. Georgia gives the cops a false alibi for Max, and the police release him.

Now sober, Max learns that the doctor was involved in a diamond-smuggling operation with Varkas, a known criminal. He learns from Varkas' moll Angel that the gangster's men are holding Fred hostage. Max is shot in the arm by thugs working for Varkas, and Georgia stitches his wounds. When he recovers, Max goes to Varkas' warehouse to look for Mace, where he discovers that Varkas and his bodyguards are all dead.

Max finally realizes that his old friend Smitty is behind the entire scheme. Fred and little Jeff are rescued, and Max and Georgia reunite to welcome their son home.

Cast

Reception

In a contemporary review for The New York Times , critic Bosley Crowther wrote: "[T]he slow, sultry, steaming sadism that is usually standard in this type of film is rather effectively accomplished. The photography is full of heavy moods. And some of the melodramatic action, such as a chase in the subway, is good. ... Mind you, we aren't proclaiming 'Guilty Bystander' much of a film. But for those who want cheap melodrama, it has its considerable points." [2]

Critic Philip K. Scheuer of the Los Angeles Times wrote: "[T]he going is sometimes turgid and draggy when it should be actionful. However, the picture has its moments, especially a between-stations chase in the New York subway." [1]

References

  1. 1 2 Scheuer, Philip K. (1950-03-23). "Films Take Roving Stars to Swiss Alps, Gotham". Los Angeles Times . p. 11, Part II.
  2. 1 2 Crowther, Bosley (1950-04-21). "The Screen in Review". The New York Times . p. 18.
  3. ↑ Guilty Bystander at the TCM Movie Database.
  4. ↑ Mary Boland at IMDb.
  5. ↑ J. Edward Bromberg at IMDb.
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