This Gun for Hire (1942)

Director:

Frank Tuttle

Writers:

Graham Greene (novel)
Albert Maltz (writer) ...

Release Date:

13 May 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Film-Noir | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

He's dynamite with a gun or a girl.

Plot:

Hit man Philip Raven, who's kind to children and cats, kills a blackmailer and is paid off by traitor Willard Gates in "hot" money...

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman | Paranoia | Conspiracy | Audition | Blackmail

Cast

Veronica Lake	...	Ellen Graham
Robert Preston	...	Det. Michael Crane
Laird Cregar	...	Willard Gates
Alan Ladd	...	Philip Raven
Tully Marshall	...	Alvin Brewster
Marc Lawrence	...	Tommy
Olin Howland	...	Blair Fletcher (as Olin Howlin)
Roger Imhof	...	Senator Burnett
Pamela Blake	...	Annie
Frank Ferguson	...	Albert Baker
Victor Kilian	...	Drew
Patricia Farr	...	Ruby
Harry Shannon	...	Steve Finnerty
Charles C. Wilson	...	Police Captain
Mikhail Rasumny	...	Slukey

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

UK:PG (re-rating) (2006) | UK:A (original rating) | Finland:S | Norway:16 (1942)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

The movie's poster was as #17 of "The 25 Best Movie Posters Ever" by Premiere.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: As Ellen and Michael leave the arcade, the shadow of a boom mike is visible on a wall behind them.

Quotes:

Willard Gates: Don't you trust me?
Philip Raven: Who trusts anybody?

Movie Connections:

Featured in Alan Ladd: The True Quiet Man (1999) (TV)

Soundtrack:

I've Got You

I like Cats !, so says the icy cold broken wrist killer !

Phillip Raven is a hit man of no obvious moral fibre, he literally will kill anyone for the right price. After fulfilling a contract for the chocolate munching Willard Gates, he finds himself pursued by the law on account that he was paid by Gates with stolen money. Raven sets out for the ultimate revenge and dovetailing towards the explosive finale with him is sultry conjurer Ellen Graham and honest cop Michael Crane.

Based on the Graham Greene novel A Gun For Sale, this is not a straight out adaptation, the plot has been re jigged with very impressive results. The most enlightening thing I found when reading up on the film was that the studio were so blown away by the efforts of Alan Ladd as Raven, they turned the script around to make him the films chief axis, and boy what a smart move that was for this is Alan Ladd'd show all the way.Ladd plays Raven with brilliant icy veneer, he's cold and devoid of emotion, his only trip to anything resembling caring is an affinity to cats because in his own words, "cats don't need anyone, they are on their own, just like me", the result is one of the most unnerving killers put on to the 40s cinema screens. Veronica Lake is the stunning female of the piece, she glides thru the picture with ease as Ellen, a character with her own issues, but thankfully she's integral outside of any sort of romantic plot, even tho she is the only one who gets close enough to Raven to learn anything about what makes him tick. Robert Preston as Michael Crane was to be the films focus but he becomes a mere side part thanks to Ladd's barnstorming show, and Laird Cregar is suitably shifty as Gates. It's a fine film in its own right, it's tightly filmed, wonderfully scripted and contains a great noir ending, but ultimately it's all about the cold as death hit-man Raven, and the great performance by the man who played him, 8.5/10.