A Bullet for Joey
| A Bullet for Joey | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical Poster | |
| Directed by | Lewis Allen |
| Produced by |
Samuel Bischoff David Diamond |
| Written by |
James Benson Nablo Geoffry Homes A.I. Bezzerides |
| Starring |
Edward G. Robinson George Raft Audrey Totter |
| Music by | Harry Sukman |
| Cinematography | Harry Neumann |
| Edited by | Leon Barsha |
Production company |
Bischoff-Diamond Corporation |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 87 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
A Bullet for Joey is a 1955 film noir directed by Lewis Allen and starring Edward G. Robinson and George Raft. The picture involves a gangster who sneaks into Canada to kidnap a scientist for the communists. The supporting cast features Audrey Totter and Peter Van Eyck.
Plot
Communist agents in Canada are spying on Dr. Carl Macklin, an atomic physicist whose knowledge they want. To kidnap him, Eric Hartman, the party's top man in Montreal, offers $100,000 to a deported American criminal, Joe Victor.
Joe's former flame, Joyce Geary, is blackmailed into helping with the plan. Police Inspector Leduc of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police investigates and ends up caring for Joyce, as she does for him.
A thug working for Victor kills the scientist's secretary after using her to gain information. Leduc is taken prisoner aboard a ship as Hartman and Victor attempt to take Dr. Macklin with them to Europe.
A plea is made by Leduc to the gangster Victor, who misses his native America, to do the right thing for a change and help stop the Communists. A shootout ensues between Victor and Hartman, who end up killing one another, but Joyce's innocence is proven to the satisfaction of Leduc and the law.
Cast
- Edward G. Robinson as Inspector Leduc
- George Raft as Joe Victor
- Audrey Totter as Joyce
- Peter Van Eyck as Hartman
- George Dolenz as Macklin
Box Office
The film was a box office flop.[1]
Context
Robinson and Raft had starred in a previous film together 14 years earlier, Raoul Walsh's Manpower with Marlene Dietrich.
Critical Response
In his book, Film Noir, Detective and Mystery Movies on DVD, John Howard Reid considered the movie dull. Slow pace, one-dimensional characters, and an unconvincing climax plague the film.[2]
DVD
A Bullet for Joey was released on Blu-ray and DVD by Kino Lorber Studio Classics in November 2015.[3] [4]
See also
References
- ↑ Everett Aaker, The Films of George Raft, McFarland & Company, 2013 p 164
- ↑ Reid, John (2009). Film Noir, Detective and Mystery Movies on DVD: A Guide to the Best in Suspense. Lulu Books. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-4357-3010-6. Retrieved 2010-01-06.
- ↑ "Kino Lorber Studio Classics". Classic Images. January 2016. p. 36.
- ↑ "A Bullet for Joey [Blu-ray]". Amazon.com. Retrieved September 8, 2016.