Key Witness | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | D. Ross Lederman |
Screenplay by | Edward Bock |
Story by | J. Donald Wilson |
Produced by | Rudolph C. Flothow |
Starring | John Beal Trudy Marshall Jimmy Lloyd |
Cinematography | Philip Tannura |
Edited by | Dwight Caldwell |
Production company | Columbia Pictures |
Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 67 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Key Witness is a 1947 American film noir crime film directed by D. Ross Lederman and starring John Beal, Trudy Marshall and Jimmy Lloyd. [1]
A man runs away to avoid suspicion of murder and ends up in more trouble.
When the film was released in 1947, critic Bosley Crowther, was sly in his negative review, "The moral of Key Witness, which came to the Rialto yesterday, it says, is that 'no man can escape trouble by trying to run away from it.' This wisdom is demonstrated in the adventures of a desperate young man who attempts to get out of one involvement by changing his identity—and runs into others thereby ... There might also be drawn this moral from the evidence presented here: you can't often be sure of entertainment from that which is claimed to be." [2]
Crossfire is a 1947 American film noir drama film starring Robert Young, Robert Mitchum and Robert Ryan which deals with the theme of anti-Semitism, as did that year's Academy Award for Best Picture winner, Gentleman's Agreement. The film was directed by Edward Dmytryk and the screenplay was written by John Paxton, based on the 1945 novel The Brick Foxhole by screenwriter and director Richard Brooks. The film's supporting cast features Gloria Grahame and Sam Levene. The picture received five Oscar nominations, including Ryan for Best Supporting Actor and Gloria Grahame for Best Supporting Actress. It was the first B movie to receive a best picture nomination.
The Miracle of Morgan's Creek is a 1944 American screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, starring Eddie Bracken and Betty Hutton, and featuring Diana Lynn, William Demarest and Porter Hall. Brian Donlevy and Akim Tamiroff reprise their roles from Sturges' 1940 film The Great McGinty.
Body and Soul is a 1947 American film noir sports drama directed by Robert Rossen and starring John Garfield, Lilli Palmer, Hazel Brooks, Anne Revere, and William Conrad. The screenplay by Abraham Polonsky is partly based on the 1939 film Golden Boy. With cinematography by James Wong Howe, the film is considered by some to be one of the best films about boxing. It is also a cautionary tale about the lure of money—and how it can derail even a strong common man in his pursuit of success. The film uses the song Body and Soul for the main musical theme and underscoring throughout.
The Big Clock is a 1948 American film noir directed by John Farrow and adapted by novelist-screenwriter Jonathan Latimer from the 1946 novel of the same name by Kenneth Fearing.
Somewhere in the Night is a 1946 American film noir psychological thriller film directed and co-written by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and starring John Hodiak and Nancy Guild.
The Underworld Story is a 1950 American film noir crime film directed by Cy Endfield and starring Dan Duryea, Herbert Marshall, Gale Storm, Howard Da Silva and Michael O'Shea. Da Silva plays the loud-mouthed gangster Carl Durham, one of his last roles before becoming blacklisted.
Till The Clouds Roll By is a 1946 American Technicolor musical film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It is a fictionalized biopic of composer Jerome Kern, portrayed by Robert Walker. Kern was originally involved with the production, but died before it was completed. It has a large cast of well-known musical stars of the day who appear performing Kern's songs. It was the first in a series of MGM biopics about Broadway's composers; it was followed by Words and Music, Three Little Words, and Deep in My Heart.
Vicki is a 1953 American film noir directed by Harry Horner and starring Jeanne Crain and Jean Peters. It was based on the novel I Wake Up Screaming, written by Steve Fisher.
He Ran All the Way is a 1951 American film noir crime drama directed by John Berry, starring John Garfield and Shelley Winters.
It Happened on 5th Avenue is a 1947 American comedy film directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring Victor Moore, Ann Harding, Don DeFore, Charles Ruggles and Gale Storm. Herbert Clyde Lewis and Frederick Stephani were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Story, losing to Valentine Davies for another Christmas-themed story, Miracle on 34th Street.
The Man I Love is a 1947 American film noir melodrama directed by Raoul Walsh, based on the novel Night Shift by Maritta M. Wolff, and starring Ida Lupino, Robert Alda and Bruce Bennett. The title is taken from the George and Ira Gershwin song "The Man I Love", which is prominently featured.
Dangerous to Know is a 1938 crime film starring Anna May Wong, Akim Tamiroff, Gail Patrick, Lloyd Nolan, and Anthony Quinn. The movie was directed by Robert Florey. Bosley Crowther of The New York Times called the film a "second-rate melodrama, hardly worthy of the talents of its generally capable cast."
Storm Warning is a 1951 American film noir thriller directed by Stuart Heisler and starring Ginger Rogers, Ronald Reagan, Doris Day and Steve Cochran. Lauren Bacall was originally cast in the part eventually played by Rogers. Bacall turned it down and was put on suspension by Warner Bros. for her defiance.
Out of the Fog is a 1941 American film noir crime drama directed by Anatole Litvak, starring John Garfield, Ida Lupino and Thomas Mitchell. The film was based on the play Gentle People by Irwin Shaw.
The Macomber Affair is a 1947 film directed by Zoltan Korda and distributed by United Artists. Set in British East Africa, its plot concerns a fatal love triangle involving a frustrated wife, a weak husband, and the professional hunter who comes between them. It stars Gregory Peck, Joan Bennett, and Robert Preston.
Three Steps North is a 1951 Italian–American film noir crime film directed by W. Lee Wilder and starring Lloyd Bridges, Lea Padovani and Aldo Fabrizi. The film is also known as Tre passi a nord in Italy.
Circumstantial Evidence is a 1945 American film noir directed by John Larkin and starring Michael O'Shea, Lloyd Nolan, and Trudy Marshall.
Sentimental Journey is a 1946 American drama film directed by Walter Lang and starring John Payne and Maureen O'Hara.
Singapore is a 1947 American film noir crime romance film directed by John Brahm and starring Fred MacMurray and Ava Gardner. The film was remade as Istanbul (1957) with the location moved to Turkey, and Errol Flynn and Cornell Borchers in the starring roles.
So Evil My Love is a 1948 British and American Gothic psychological thriller film directed by Lewis Allen and starring Ray Milland, Ann Todd and Geraldine Fitzgerald.