Impact (1949)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Arthur Lubin

Writers:

Jay Dratler (story)
Dorothy Davenport (writer) ...

Release Date:

26 September 1949 (Sweden)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Mystery

Tagline:

Wanted by two women! One for Love! One for Murder!

Plot:

In San Francisco, the successful self-made businessman Walter Williams has just bought three factories...

Plot Keywords:

Mechanic | Small Town | Maid | Falling In Love | Murder Plot

Cast

Brian Donlevy	...	Walter Williams
Ella Raines	...	Marsha Peters
Charles Coburn	...	Lt. Tom Quincy
Helen Walker	...	Irene Williams
Anna May Wong	...	Su Lin
Robert Warwick	...	Capt. Callahan
Clarence Kolb	...	Darcy
Art Baker	...	Eldridge (defense attorney)
William Wright	...	District Attorney
Mae Marsh	...	Mrs. King
Sheilah Graham	...	Herself
Tony Barrett	...	Jim Torrance
Philip Ahn	...	Ah Sing
Glen Vernon	...	Ed (as Glenn Vernon)
Linda Leighton	...	Telephone operator

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Unrated | USA:Approved

Filming Locations:

Corriganville, Ray Corrigan Ranch, Simi Valley, California, USA

Company:

Cardinal Pictures (II)

Trivia:

The failure of the original copyright holder to renew the film's copyright resulted in it falling into public domain, meaning that virtually anyone could duplicate and sell a VHS/DVD copy of the film. Therefore, many of the versions of this film available on the market are either severely (and usually badly) edited and/or of extremely poor quality, having been duped from second- or third-generation (or more) copies of the film.

Goofs:

Continuity: Marsha's mother, is identified in dialogue by the name Mrs. King. Yet in the closing credits, she is identified as Mrs. Peters.

Quotes:

Jim Torrance: I grabbed a hamburger while I was waiting for you; I can still taste the harness.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Avain (2006)

Soundtrack:

It' Can't Be

My Personal Choice as Best Film Noir Ever.

Although there are some flaws in this film, I rate it a 10 for the best ever Film Noir if for no other reason than I've watched it over and over for 55 years. The 2005 smash hit TV show LOST is themed in the concept of renewal, as is "IMPACT." Thinking he has a perfect life, Brian Donlevy will soon find out he's standing on a mountain of betrayal. He'll go from being a top level businessman (with an apartment on Nob Hill, at the building across from the Fairmont Hotel, the one with the walled in parking lot out front, where everybody in San Francisco film noirs lived in the 1950's... Never mind!) Anyway, as he recovers from the daze of attempted murder he'll accidentally stumble upon a new and quite different life, one that most any of us could enjoy. Then come the hard choices..... I first saw this movie on a single day booking at the Silver Theatre at age 11. What stuck in my mind after seeing it is that if life ever went sour to the point of contemplating suicide, a wise alternative might be a fake suicide --- followed by a renewed and drastically different second life, as in this movie. There was no suicide, fake or otherwise, in this picture; but I thought that was a healthy idea to place into a young viewer's mind; whether intended or not. Then there's Ella Raines. Hmm! Friends, forget Marilyn Monroe or any of the other 1950's sexpots. Keep Marilyn, do what you like, I don't care. Just introduce me to Ella Raines. Pretty, thin, lithe, smart. Yum!