Get the MovieNight app
Add it to your home screen — faster & full screen
Get the MovieNight app
Add it to your home screen — faster & full screen
Columbia Pictures
Not part of a collection.
He Doesn't Trust Anyone... Especially Women!
War heroes Rip Murdock and Johnny Drake are sent to Washington, D.C, to receive top honors for their service. Johnny, seemingly terrified by the publicity that awaits him, jumps off the train and later turns up dead. Suspecting foul play, Rip begins digging into his pal's past. He encounters cover-ups, threats to his own life and deadly femme fatale Coral Chandler.
CinemaSerf
Nov 16, 2024 · via TMDB
When his best pal absconds on his way to pick up a Medal of Honour, "Rip" (Humphrey Bogart) determines to get to the bottom of things. They'd been flown home from Germany and given some fairly VIP treatment, so there must have been a good reason for "Johnny" (William Prince) to do a bunk - but he did leave some clues, and as "Rip" attempts to piece things together he encounters his pal's love interest "Dusty" (Lizabeth Scott). After scrutinising the local newspaper archives, he realises that his erstwhile colleague and this woman have a bit of history, and that takes them both to the casino of the distinctly dodgy "Martinelli" (Morris Carnovsky) where her behaviour becomes even more enigmatic. When he wakes up in an drug-induced haze next morning, he isn't sure who he can trust or just what is going on - but he is convinced that she and her jasmine are part of the mystery and it's solution. It's told by way of a narration to a priest in a church which doesn't do too much for the jeopardy of the thing, and I am afraid that Scott really did come across as Lauren Bacall-light the whole time. The plot twists and turns engagingly enough, but despite a grumpily charismatic effort from the star, the story is a bit thin and there is just too much dialogue and not enough action until a denouement that I found quite conveniently disappointing. Standard fayre that passes the time but this isn't really very memorable.
John Chard
Jan 22, 2020 · via TMDB
Middle rank film, top Bogart. When Rip's (Humphrey Bogart) army pal Johnny does a runner from the train taking them to Washington, it's the start of a shadowy street search that Rip undertakes to find out why his friend would do that. It soon becomes evident that Johnny was not who he said was, something that makes Rip's journey one that will involve murder, deception and one hell of a dame. Dead Reckoning has a mixed relationship with critics and Bogart/noir fans alike. Some are harsh on Lizabeth Scott who plays femme fatale Coral Chandler, while others have issues with the plot, calling it rambling and incoherent to the dialogue on offer. I disagree with both those things. Scott is just fine for what is a wonderfully well written character, her facial characteristics are indeed expressionless at times, but this to my mind adds an icy veneer to her character arc. She also has a knack of looking vulnerable, something that is very crucial to the film and her character in particular. The plot doesn't ramble to me, it's bonkers, yes it is, but that adds to the mystery of it all. Told in flashback as Rip confesses to a priest, all threads are however neatly pulled together to finally reveal a delightfully complete, yet surprising noirish whole. Yeah it's a jumble of conundrums, and twists and turns come and go, that's kind of the selling point really. To me at least anyway. Whilst some of the dialogue on show is as cheeky as Bogie got to deliver in the 40s. I was laughing whilst duly expecting something bad to be at the end of it. There's an air of genre familiarity with the piece, no question about that. And if implausibility factors are an issue, you best stay away. But it has a nice line in atmosphere, brutality is never far away one feels, and it's a nice shoot with Leo Tover's cinematography understated and at ease with the tone of the film. Bogart is just great, this is what we want from the great man, spouting put downs and pearls of wisdom in a grim crime movie. However bonkers it may be. 8/10
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
Amazon Video
Apple TV Store
Google Play Movies
YouTube
Fandango At Home
fuboTV
YouTube TV
Amazon Video
Apple TV Store
Google Play Movies
YouTube
Fandango At Home
Humphrey Bogart
Capt. 'Rip' Murdock
Lizabeth Scott
Coral Chandler
Morris Carnovsky
Martinelli
Charles Cane
Lt. Kincaid
William Prince
Sgt. Johnny Drake
Marvin Miller
Krause
Wallace Ford
McGee
James Bell
Father Logan
George Chandler
Louis Ord
Matthew Beard
Bellboy (uncredited)
Ruby Dandridge
Mabel (uncredited)
George Eldredge
Police Officer Casey (uncredited)
Bess Flowers
Nightclub Guest (uncredited)
William Forrest
Lt. Col. Simpson (uncredited)
Ray Teal
Motorcycle Cop (uncredited)
Lillian Wells
Pretty Girl (uncredited)
Frank Wilcox
Hotel Desk Clerk (uncredited)
Jean Louis
Costume Design
John Cromwell
Director
Morris Stoloff
Music Director
Allan Roberts
Songs
Oliver H.P. Garrett
Screenplay
Gerald Drayson Adams
Story
Monos con navaja
Plötzlich und unerwartet
El sabor de Natasha
Telebear
Scenes from a film noir
Fate-ale: The Job That Went Wrong
Where's The Colonel
Frank
The Silence of the Lambs
Double Indemnity
M
Citizen Kane
Rope
Chinatown
Rebecca
Diabolique
The Night of the Hunter
On the Waterfront
L.A. Confidential
Mulholland Drive
I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang
Notorious
Out of the Past
The Killing
Blue Velvet
Elevator to the Gallows
Laura
Purple Noon
Key Largo
Cape Fear
Jenny Lamour
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me
The Long Goodbye
A Time to Kill
Killers of the Flower Moon
The 39 Steps
This Man Must Die
Pierrot le Fou
The Murderer Lives at Number 21
The Letter
To Catch a Thief
Dolores Claiborne
Assault on Precinct 13
Bound
Batman
Murder, My Sweet
The Talented Mr. Ripley
In the Mouth of Madness
A Simple Plan
Picnic at Hanging Rock
The Unknown Woman
A History of Violence
Alexandria, Private
Suspicion
The Lineup
Angel Face
One Shoe Makes it Murder
Brother
Witness
Arlington Road
The Mask
The Trouble with Harry
Shallow Grave
Breakdown
Border Incident
The Entity
The Man with a Cloak
Brighton Rock
His Kind of Woman
Evil Words
Coma
The Last Seduction
Across 110th Street
Green for Danger
Born to Kill
Chicago Deadline
The Long Memory
Stir of Echoes
Deathtrap
Dead Presidents
El cerco
Absolute Power
The Devil Thumbs a Ride
Mississippi Mermaid
The Salton Sea
Sea of Love
They Made Me a Fugitive
Nowhere to Go
Tomorrow Is Another Day
Psycho II
Swimming Pool
Courage Under Fire
The Postman Always Rings Twice
The Garment Jungle
Stranger on the Third Floor
Back to the Wall
Sin City: A Dame to Kill For
Dead Again
Highway 301
The Element of Crime
The Car
Sommersby
Hide and Seek
Pacific Heights
Killer's Kiss
Nightcap
Messiah of Evil
The Big Caper
Philo Vance's Gamble
Turks & Caicos
Don't Say a Word
Just Cause
San Quentin
Suspense
Romeo Is Bleeding
Trapped
The Deep End
The Mark of the Whistler
The Laughing Policeman
Femme Fatale
The Hard Way
Shattered
Under Suspicion
Lady in the Lake
Crime of Passion
Secret Agent
Budapest Noir
Nightwatch
Jennifer Eight
Lonely Hearts
The Life Before Her Eyes
Antitrust
House of Wax
Daybreak
The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Brasher Doubloon
The Crooked Web
Race Street
The Blue Room
Serenade to Miette
Shoot faster, baby!
Death in a French Garden
Mysterious Intruder
Young Adam
The I Inside
Cause for Alarm!
Curdled
B. Monkey
Demonlover
Murder Without Tears
The Monster and the Girl
The Killers
A Dangerous Profession
The 4th Floor
Beyond the Black Rainbow
Unforgettable
My Gun Is Quick
The Champagne Murders
Snakes on a Plane
The Secret Fury
Killing Emmett Young
Demon Squad: Tooth and Claw
Parole, Inc.
The Scarlet Hour
Double Jeopardy
Gone
The Watcher
In the Cut
The Truth About Charlie
Moon of the Wolf
No Escape
White Settlers
Over the Edge
The Crimson Key
Michael Angel
Princesses
Incognito
Young Fugitives
iMurders
Side Roads
Auxiliary Man
The Cobblestone Corridor
73'
Alice Rose
The Bracelet
Kleingeistganoven
Both Eyes Closed
My Dear Detective
Crime Without Witness
S.O.S
Joker's Wild
Crooked Shadows
The Punisher: One Last Kill
Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair
John Wick: Chapter 4
John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum
Extraction 2
Watchmen
The Equalizer
Mr. Brooks
Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)
Accident Man: Hitman's Holiday
Harry Brown
Too Late
The Outfit
The Black Book
The Enforcer
No Retreat, No Surrender 3: Blood Brothers
A Working Man
Al Capone
The Long Kiss Goodnight
Wanted
Reminiscence
The Mechanic
Smokin' Aces
War
Polar
Sin City: A Dame to Kill For
John Doe: Vigilante
Nighthawks
The Drowning Pool
The Dead Pool
The Infernal Machine
The Losers
Death Wish 3
Death Wish II
Trigger Point
Death Wish
God Is a Bullet
Eraser
Wire Room
Rampage: Capital Punishment
Transfusion
Hard to Kill
Brick Mansions
Who Is Cletis Tout?
Oldboy
Punisher: War Zone
No Mercy
Dec 31, 1946
San Francisco
Jan 16, 1947
© 2025-2026 MovieNight. All rights reserved.
Versus
Sign in to play →
Stripper Wives
1999
Sally's Beauty Spot
1990
Sign in to vote
Battle your watched movies head-to-head
Community Top Movies
Evil Dead II
1987 · 14 wins
The Dark Knight
2008 · 14 wins
Halloween
1978 · 13 wins
Final Destination
2000 · 12 wins
Halloween II
1981 · 11 wins
Trivia
Leaderboard →Playing as a guest — sign in to save your score and rank on the leaderboard.
Movie Trivia
Guess the movie from a clue — tagline, plot, cast and more. Pick from four posters.
What movie experience do you prefer?
What is your favorite movie genre?
Versus
Sign in to play →
Stripper Wives
1999
Sally's Beauty Spot
1990
Sign in to vote
Battle your watched movies head-to-head
Community Top Movies
Evil Dead II
1987 · 14 wins
The Dark Knight
2008 · 14 wins
Halloween
1978 · 13 wins
Final Destination
2000 · 12 wins
Halloween II
1981 · 11 wins
Trivia
Leaderboard →Playing as a guest — sign in to save your score and rank on the leaderboard.
Movie Trivia
Guess the movie from a clue — tagline, plot, cast and more. Pick from four posters.
What movie experience do you prefer?
What is your favorite movie genre?
We use essential cookies to run MovieNight, plus analytics (Google Analytics) and advertising (Google AdSense) cookies. By continuing to browse, you agree to this — or click No and we won't. See our Terms & Privacy Policy to learn more.