IMDb RATING
7.5/10
9.5K
YOUR RATING
On one day in the 21st Precinct squad room, assorted characters form a backdrop for the troubles of hard-nosed Detective Jim McLeod.On one day in the 21st Precinct squad room, assorted characters form a backdrop for the troubles of hard-nosed Detective Jim McLeod.On one day in the 21st Precinct squad room, assorted characters form a backdrop for the troubles of hard-nosed Detective Jim McLeod.
- Nominated for 4 Oscars
- 5 wins & 11 nominations total
William 'Bill' Phillips
- Det. Pat Callahan
- (as William 'Bill' Phillips)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- GoofsIn some of the close-up shots of McLeod and Schneider in the back of the paddy wagon, McLeod's shadow can be faintly seen on the rear-projection screen showing the street behind them. (Other shadows can also be seen.)
- Quotes
Detective James McLeod: I built my whole life on hating my father. All the time he was inside me, laughing.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Paramount Presents (1974)
Featured review
William Wyler Keeps Things Jumping
Director William Wyler keeps things jumping in this essentially two-or-three-set adaptation of a hit Broadway play set in a police office. He's always got something going on in the frame aside from what's transpiring between the main characters. People walk back and forth, get coffee, grab a file, escort a prisoner from point A to point B. At times the movement around the set almost takes on the grace of a choreographed dance. You see a movie like this and you realize how much it could be different -- in this case flatter, duller, much less visually dynamic -- in the hands of a less skilled director.
The story is a melodramatic bag of histrionics, but Kirk Douglas and Eleanor Parker mostly sell it. The film really is pretty shocking for how bluntly it deals with the subject of abortion -- and let's face it, that's what we're talking about here even though the word is never mentioned. Douglas, an actor I don't always like that much, is well suited to his role and he's really good here. The film is all kinds of relevant to the world of today, with men claiming hypocritical authority over women's bodies and what they can do with them. I appreciated the film's refusal to give us a happy ending at a time when more films than not were coerced to.
Wyler was nominated for Best Director, Parker for Best Actress (in a year that saw her go up against Vivien Leigh in "A Streetcar Named Desire" -- sorry Eleanor, but fat chance), and Philip Yordan and Robert Wyler for Best Screenplay. The film's fourth nomination, for Best Supporting Actress, went to a very young Lee Grant in her first film role, who nearly steals the movie out from everyone else for her daffy performance as a novice shoplifter. It's a hoot watching this crime-hardened milieu through the eyes of her character. As she exits the film, she wishes all the other characters good luck and thanks them for coming.
Saw this at the Music Box Theater in Chicago and there is nothing like watching movies like this with a live audience. People gasped and booed at Douglas, and then applauded Parker when she gave him the heave ho. Gotta love fellow movie lovers.
Grade: A.
The story is a melodramatic bag of histrionics, but Kirk Douglas and Eleanor Parker mostly sell it. The film really is pretty shocking for how bluntly it deals with the subject of abortion -- and let's face it, that's what we're talking about here even though the word is never mentioned. Douglas, an actor I don't always like that much, is well suited to his role and he's really good here. The film is all kinds of relevant to the world of today, with men claiming hypocritical authority over women's bodies and what they can do with them. I appreciated the film's refusal to give us a happy ending at a time when more films than not were coerced to.
Wyler was nominated for Best Director, Parker for Best Actress (in a year that saw her go up against Vivien Leigh in "A Streetcar Named Desire" -- sorry Eleanor, but fat chance), and Philip Yordan and Robert Wyler for Best Screenplay. The film's fourth nomination, for Best Supporting Actress, went to a very young Lee Grant in her first film role, who nearly steals the movie out from everyone else for her daffy performance as a novice shoplifter. It's a hoot watching this crime-hardened milieu through the eyes of her character. As she exits the film, she wishes all the other characters good luck and thanks them for coming.
Saw this at the Music Box Theater in Chicago and there is nothing like watching movies like this with a live audience. People gasped and booed at Douglas, and then applauded Parker when she gave him the heave ho. Gotta love fellow movie lovers.
Grade: A.
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- evanston_dad
- Sep 5, 2022
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- William Wyler's Production of Sidney Kingsley's Detective Story
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 43 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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