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20th Century Fox
Not part of a collection.
The tender love story of Johnny Pope, husband, brother, father-to-be!
A Korean War veteran's morphine addiction wreaks havoc upon his family.
CinemaSerf
Jul 26, 2024 · via TMDB
"Johnny" (Don Murray) has returned from the Korean war to pregnant wide "Celia" (Eva Marie Saint) and together with his sometimes quite wayward brother "Polo" (Anthony Franciosa) tries to make a go of things in New York. It's the arrival of the boy's father (Lloyd Nolan) that seems to set the cat amongst the pigeons as he is looking for some money he lent one of them so he can complete a property deal in Florida. Well, there's not a penny in the pot and he demands to know why. Initially you might think it's "Polo" who is the root of the problem, but quickly we are introduced to "Mother" (Henry Silva) and his drug peddling goons and discover that it's "Johnny" who has a problem that is spiralling menacingly out of control. It's a secret the brothers share, but not the only secret in the story and as we progress the intensity of conflict and old grudges only increases amongst this family grappling with the effects of despair and fear. Murray and an admittedly emotive effort from Marie Saint my claim top billing, but it was actually Nolan who played the pivotal role here. Not without demons of his own, his portrayal of this confused and betrayed paternal character adds quite a bit to the sense of embarrassment and shame felt by just about everyone. Bernard Herrmann's instantly recognisable score is over-used, I thought - all too often used to augment a tension that could maybe have been done better by a stronger Murray and a more penetrative script. That said, though, this is a grittily well delivered illustration of a man abandoned by the state after his military usefulness was over and picked up by mercenary addict-fuelling hoodlums with little human decency.
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
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Apple TV Store
Google Play Movies
YouTube
Fandango At Home
Eva Marie Saint
Celia Pope
Don Murray
Johnny Pope
Anthony Franciosa
Polo Pope
Lloyd Nolan
John Pope, Sr
Henry Silva
Mother
Gerald S. O'Loughlin
Chuch
William Hickey
Apples
Paul Kruger
Bartender
William Bailey
Man in Elevator (uncredited)
Herb Vigran
Man in Elevator (uncredited)
Heinie Conklin
Barfly (uncredited)
Sayre Dearing
Barfly (uncredited)
Kit Guard
Barfly (uncredited)
Jane Hoffman
Lone Woman (uncredited)
Jay Jostyn
Doctor (uncredited)
Rex Lease
Man at Mailbox (uncredited)
Jimmy Rogers
Child (uncredited)
William Tannen
Celia's Supervisor (uncredited)
Emerson Treacy
Mr. Wagner - Celia's Office Manager (uncredited)
Norman Willis
Ed (uncredited)
Fred Zinnemann
Director
Dorothy Spencer
Editor
Buddy Adler
Producer
Bernard Herrmann
Original Music Composer
Carl Foreman
Screenplay
Michael V. Gazzo
Screenplay
Michael V. Gazzo
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