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Ruthless (1948)

 -  Film-Noir | Drama  -  6 May 1949 (Finland)
6.8
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Ratings: 6.8/10 from 451 users  
Reviews: 19 user | 14 critic

Horace Vendig shows himself to the world as a rich philanthropist. In fact, the history of his rise from his unhappy broken home shows this to be far from the case. After being taken in by ... See full summary »

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(novel), (screenplay), 2 more credits »
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Title: Ruthless (1948)

Ruthless (1948) on IMDb 6.8/10

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Zachary Scott ...
Horace Woodruff Vendig
...
Vic Lambdin
...
Martha Burnside / Mallory Flagg
...
Buck Mansfield
Lucille Bremer ...
Christa Mansfield
...
Susan Duane
Edith Barrett ...
Mrs. Burnside
Dennis Hoey ...
Mr. Burnside
...
Pete Vendig
Joyce Arling ...
Kate Vendig
Charles Evans ...
Bruce McDonald
Robert J. Anderson ...
Horace Vendig as Child (as Bob Anderson)
Arthur Stone ...
Vic Lambdin as Child
Ann Carter ...
Martha Burnside as Child
Edna Holland ...
Libby Sims
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Storyline

Horace Vendig shows himself to the world as a rich philanthropist. In fact, the history of his rise from his unhappy broken home shows this to be far from the case. After being taken in by richer neighbours he started to exhibit an obsessive and selfish urge to make more and more money, loving and leaving women at will to further this end. Written by Jeremy Perkins <jwp@aber.ac.uk>

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Taglines:

Lovely! (Diana Lynn) Reckless! (Lucille Bremer) Loyal! (Louis Hayward) Power-Mad! (Zachary Scott) Vicious! (Sydney Greenstreet) Innocent! (Martha Vickers) See more »

Genres:

Film-Noir | Drama

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Details

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

6 May 1949 (Finland)  »

Also Known As:

Prelude to Night  »

Company Credits

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Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

(Western Electric Recording)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1
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Did You Know?

Trivia

Buck Mansfield quotes twice from the Bible. The first occasion is when he is being 'pursued by his creditors' and he reads from Proverbs 31:10 -12 and 21 (...Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies....). The second instance is when he speaks to the bartender at Vendig's function and the quote is from Obadiah 1: 2-4 (...Though you set your nest among the stars, From there I will bring you down ...). See more »

Quotes

Mrs. Burnside: [to unhappy young Horace] Be brave. Be a man.
Horace Vendig as Child: I don't want to be a man. Never! I wish there weren't any men in the whole world.
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Connections

Referenced in Let's Go to the Movies (1949) See more »

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User Reviews

 
from Bobby Anderson to Zachary Scott
17 May 2007 | by (Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico) – See all my reviews

Apparently a brief exchange between the adolescent boy (Bobby Anderson) and his father (Raymond Burr) in which the father tells him that opportunity only comes around once, is the reason why Anderson morphs into the social climbing and ruthless business tycoon played by Zachary Scott. It hardly seems like enough of an influence to change a nice kid into a prototypical (and stereotypical) greedy capitalist millionaire. Though it's difficult to establish a connection between the two, Scott makes a believable social climber, and the story has a pretty good trajectory from his adolescence through dark mansions and well furnished offices with New York skyline views, to a finale gala event where Scott is organizing a philanthropy to unload some of his millions and ease his conscience. Ulmer doles out the action in bits and pieces, but delivers a pretty memorable ending.


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