Man on Fire (1957 film)

Last updated
Man on Fire
Man on Fire (1957 film) sheet.jpg
Directed by Ranald MacDougall
Screenplay byRanald MacDougall
Story by Malvin Wald
Jack Jacobs
Produced by Sol C. Siegel
Starring Bing Crosby
Inger Stevens
Cinematography Joseph Ruttenberg
Edited by Ralph E. Winters
Music by David Raksin
Distributed by MGM
Release date
July 5, 1957
Running time
95 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1,180,000 [1]
Box office$1,415,000 [1]

Man on Fire is a 1957 American drama film directed by Ranald MacDougall and starring Bing Crosby in a rare non-singing, unsympathetic role. [2]

Contents

Plot

Two years after her divorce from wealthy industrialist Earl Carleton, ex-wife Gwen wants to regain partial custody of their son, Ted, who is devoted to his father. Earl has never gotten over losing her after introducing her to the man she left him for.

Gwen's new husband Bryan Seward is a sharp attorney who works for the State Department. Using his skill and pull, he gets the custody hearing from the divorce re-opened, stating she signed the custody agreement under emotional duress.

Meeting with them before the hearing, Earl intimates that he will do all he can to harm Seward's career if they try to get the child back. As Earl's personal and business lawyer Sam Dunstock prepares to handle the hearing, Earl seems unaware of the personal interest in him from Sam's new assistant, Nina Wylie.

The boy tells Judge Rudolph in private that he prefers living with his dad and is suspicious of his mother's motives. Disturbed that he has not developed an appreciation for or ties with his mother, the judge awards Gwen full rather than partial custody. An alcoholic binge follows for Earl, who is shattered.

Nina comes to inform him that business matters are suffering from his neglect. She takes care of Earl when he drunkenly passes out, after he claimed that he never loved Gwen and only married her so a son could take over his business someday.

Ted comes over to Earl's to express his unhappiness with the situation. Earl, his business shut down, impulsively gives Sam power of attorney and decides to go to Europe "for some peace of mind." Nina realizes that Earl is planning to take Ted with him, where they will be out of the reach of the court, and warns Sam to call Seward.

Seward arrives in time to take the child off the plane, resulting in a fight between the men. Sam is disgusted with Earl's self-pitying and selfish behavior, and when Nina confesses to being in love with him, Earl cruelly says girls like her are "a dime a dozen". She hands him a dime.

Gwen reveals to Nina that she wanted Ted back because she and Seward are unable to have a child of their own. Her guilt grows at discovering how unhappy she has made her son and tries to return him to Earl. Earl is forced to realize how much she loves Ted and convinces Ted that the change of custody is best for all of them. Earl starts anew with Nina, handing her back the dime.

Cast

Reception

Bosley Crowther of The New York Times said, inter alia; "Bing Crosby has bravely undertaken a difficult and unattractive role in “Man on Fire,” a non-musical drama, which came to Loew’s State yesterday. It is that of a stubborn, self-pitying father who tries to monopolize his young son and prevent him from spending time with his mother, from whom the father is divorced...this is an honest, sensitive effort to show the grief that may come from a broken home and from the obstinacy of a divorced parent who doesn’t want to share the love of a severed child. It is a worthwhile and often sad exposure of what may happen to the emotions of parents and child when one parent acts immaturely. It hits a problem that can profitably be shown." [3]

Variety commented: "Bing Crosby, who made an impact as the alcoholic actor in The Country Girl, again demonstrates his ability as a straight dramatic performer. As a doting father embroiled in a harsh custody battle with his ex-wife, he gives an appealing and sensitive performance. . . Since this type of fiction has a ready-made distaff audience, indications are that Man on Fire should be particularly appealing to women." [4]

According to MGM records, the film earned $1.1 million in the US and Canada and $315,000 elsewhere, resulting in a loss of $542,000. [1]

Novelization

In anticipation of the film's release, Avon Books published a paperback novelization of the screenplay. The byline "Owen Aherne" was a pseudonym for renowned American novelist R.V. Cassill.

Soundtrack

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Going My Way</i> 1944 film by Leo McCarey

Going My Way is a 1944 American musical comedy drama film directed by Leo McCarey and starring Bing Crosby and Barry Fitzgerald. Written by Frank Butler and Frank Cavett based on a story by McCarey, the film is about a new young priest taking over a parish from an established old veteran. Crosby sings five songs with other songs performed onscreen by Metropolitan Opera's star mezzo-soprano Risë Stevens and the Robert Mitchell Boys Choir. Going My Way was followed the next year by a sequel, The Bells of St. Mary's.

<i>Road to Morocco</i> 1942 film by David Butler

Road to Morocco is a 1942 American comedy film starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour, and featuring Anthony Quinn and Dona Drake. The film, which was written by Frank Butler and Don Hartman and directed by David Butler for Paramount Pictures, is the third of the "Road to …" films. It was preceded by Road to Zanzibar (1941) and followed by Road to Utopia (1946). The story is about two fast-talking guys castaway on a desert shore and sold into slavery to a beautiful princess. The setting is in Morocco.

<i>Smash-Up, the Story of a Woman</i> 1947 film by Stuart Heisler

Smash-Up, the Story of a Woman, also called A Woman Destroyed, is a 1947 American drama film with elements of film noir that tells the story of a rising nightclub singer who marries another singer and becomes an alcoholic after sacrificing her career for him.

<i>Little Boy Lost</i> (1953 film) 1953 American drama film

Little Boy Lost is a 1953 American drama film directed by George Seaton and starring Bing Crosby, Claude Dauphin, and Christian Fourcade. Based on the novel Little Boy Lost by Marghanita Laski, the film is about a war correspondent stationed in Paris during World War II and once married to a young Frenchwoman who was murdered by the Nazis. Following the war, he returns to France trying to find his son, whom he lost during a bombing raid but has been told is living in an orphanage in Paris.

<i>Here Comes the Groom</i> 1951 film by Frank Capra

Here Comes the Groom is a 1951 American musical romantic comedy film produced and directed by Frank Capra and starring Bing Crosby and Jane Wyman. Based on a story by Robert Riskin and Liam O'Brien, the film is about a foreign correspondent who has five days to win back his former fiancée, or he'll lose the orphans he adopted. Filmed from late November 1950 to January 29, 1951, the film was released in the United States by Paramount Pictures on September 20, 1951.

<i>Road to Zanzibar</i> 1941 film by Victor Schertzinger

Road to Zanzibar is a 1941 Paramount Pictures semi-musical comedy film starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, and Dorothy Lamour, and marked the second of seven pictures in the popular "Road to …" series made by the trio. It takes place in the Sultanate of Zanzibar.

<i>Days of Glory</i> (1944 film) 1944 American film directed by Jacques Tourneur

Days of Glory is a 1944 American film, directed by Jacques Tourneur, which tells the story of a group of Soviet guerrillas fighting back during the 1941 Nazi invasion of Russia. It marked the film debut of Tamara Toumanova and Gregory Peck, as well as most of the other principal actors. It was also the first film produced by screen writer Casey Robinson, who in early January 1943 had been contracted by RKO Radio Pictures to write and produce the film under the working title This Is Russia. Robinson and Toumanova married in 1944 and divorced in 1955. The film included the last screen appearance of actor Erford Gage, who subsequently entered the U.S. Army and was killed in action in 1945.

<i>The Country Girl</i> (1954 film) 1954 film by George Seaton

The Country Girl is a 1954 American drama film written and directed by George Seaton and starring Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, and William Holden. Adapted by Seaton from Clifford Odets' 1950 play of the same name, the film is about an alcoholic has-been actor/singer struggling with the one last chance he has been given to resurrect his career. Seaton won the Academy Award for Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay. It was entered in the 1955 Cannes Film Festival.

<i>Dixie</i> (film) 1943 film by A. Edward Sutherland

Dixie is a 1943 American biographical film of songwriter Daniel Decatur Emmett directed by A. Edward Sutherland and starring Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour. Filming in Technicolor, Dixie was only a moderate success and received mixed reviews. Contrary to rumor, it has not been withdrawn from circulation due to racial issues but is simply one of hundreds of vintage Paramount Pictures from the 1930s and 1940s now owned by Universal and not actively marketed; it was broadcast several times in the late 1980s on the American Movie Classics channel. The film produced one of Crosby's most popular songs, "Sunday, Monday, or Always".

Riding High is a 1950 black-and-white musical racetrack film featuring Bing Crosby and directed by Frank Capra. The songs were performed live during filming instead of the customary lip-synching to studio recordings. The film is a remake of an earlier Capra film with screenwriter Robert Riskin titled Broadway Bill (1934). While the film is generally a light musical comedy, its plot contains an unexpected tragic turn.

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is a 1949 American comedy musical film directed by Tay Garnett and starring Bing Crosby, Rhonda Fleming, Sir Cedric Hardwicke and William Bendix.

<i>Rhythm on the River</i> 1940 film by Victor Schertzinger

Rhythm on the River is a 1940 musical comedy film directed by Victor Schertzinger and starring Bing Crosby and Mary Martin as ghostwriters whose songs are credited to a composer played by Basil Rathbone. Crosby and Martin sang "Only Forever", for which James V. Monaco (music) and Johnny Burke (lyrics) were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

<i>Say One for Me</i> 1959 film by Frank Tashlin

Say One For Me is a 1959 American comedy musical film directed by Frank Tashlin and starring Bing Crosby, Debbie Reynolds and Robert Wagner. Say One for Me was listed in the 1978 book The Fifty Worst Films of All Time. Stella Stevens made her film debut in Say One for Me and received the Golden Globe Award in 1960 for New Star of the Year-Actress for this film.

<i>Here Come the Waves</i> 1944 film by Mark Sandrich

Here Come the Waves is a 1944 American romantic comedy musical film directed by Mark Sandrich. It stars Bing Crosby and Betty Hutton.

<i>Just for You</i> (1952 film) 1952 film by Elliott Nugent

Just for You is a 1952 American musical film starring Bing Crosby and Jane Wyman and the final motion picture to be directed by Elliott Nugent. It was nominated for Best Song at the 1953 Academy Awards. The film was based on the book Famous by Stephen Vincent Benét. Filming took place between October 22 and December 20, 1951. It is said that Judy Garland had originally been sent a script as she was being considered for the female lead, but she apparently decided not to proceed with the project. Location scenes were filmed at Lake Arrowhead, near San Bernardino, California and at Big Bear Lake in the San Bernardino National Forest.

<i>Mr. Music</i> 1950 film by Richard Haydn

Mr. Music is a 1950 film starring Bing Crosby and Nancy Olson, directed by Richard Haydn, and released by Paramount Pictures. It is based on the play Accent on Youth written by Samson Raphaelson. Filming took place from October to December 1949 in Hollywood.

<i>Birth of the Blues</i> 1941 film by Victor Schertzinger

Birth of the Blues is a 1941 American musical film directed by Victor Schertzinger and starring Bing Crosby, Mary Martin and Brian Donlevy.

<i>Paris Honeymoon</i> 1939 film by Frank Tuttle

Paris Honeymoon is a 1939 American musical film directed by Frank Tuttle and written by Frank Butler and Don Hartman. The film stars Bing Crosby, Franciska Gaal, Akim Tamiroff, Shirley Ross, Edward Everett Horton and Ben Blue. Filming took place in Hollywood from May 23 to July 1938 and the film was released on January 27, 1939, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>Out of This World</i> (1945 film) 1945 film directed by Hal Walker

Out of This World is a 1945 American romantic comedy film directed by Hal Walker and starring Eddie Bracken, Veronica Lake and Diana Lynn. The picture was a satire on the Frank Sinatra "bobby soxer" cult.

<i>Bring on the Girls</i> (film) 1945 film by Sidney Lanfield

Bring on the Girls is a 1945 American musical comedy film starring Eddie Bracken, Sonny Tufts and Veronica Lake. It is loosely based on the 1940 French comedy The Man Who Seeks the Truth.

References

  1. 1 2 3 The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.
  2. ↑ Frank Miller, 'Man on Fire', Turner Classic Movies accessed 5 May 2012
  3. ↑ Crowther, Bosley. "The New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Variety". June 5, 1957.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
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.