D.O.A. (1950)

Frank Bigelow, told he's been poisoned and has only a few days to live, tries to find out who killed him and why.

Director:

Rudolph Maté

Writers:

Russell Rouse (story), Clarence Greene (story),

Stars:

Edmond O'Brien, Pamela Britton, Luther Adler

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Edmond O'Brien	...	Frank Bigelow
Pamela Britton	...	Paula Gibson
Luther Adler	...	Majak
Beverly Garland	...	Miss Foster (as Beverly Campbell)
Lynn Baggett	...	Mrs. Philips
William Ching	...	Halliday
Henry Hart	...	Stanley Philips
Neville Brand	...	Chester
Laurette Luez	...	Marla Rakubian
Jess Kirkpatrick	...	Sam
Cay Forester	...	Sue (as Cay Forrester)
Frank Jaquet	...	Dr. Matson (as Fred Jaquet)
Lawrence Dobkin	...	Dr. Schaefer (as Larry Dobkin)
Frank Gerstle	...	Dr. MacDonald
Carol Hughes	...	Kitty

Storyline

Small-town accountant Frank Bigelow goes to San Francisco for a week's fun prior to settling down with fiancée Paula. After a night on the town, he wakes up with more than just a hangover; doctors tell him he's been given a "luminous toxin" with no antidote and has, at most, a week to live! Not knowing who did it or why, Bigelow embarks on a frantic odyssey to find his own murderer.

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Plot Keywords:

doctor | accountant | hotel | police | murder | 

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Taglines:

A picture as excitingly different as its title!

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Genres:

Film-Noir | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 April 1950 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dead on arrival

Filming Locations:

Bradbury Building - 304 S. Broadway, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cardinal Pictures (II)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Film debut of Beverly Garland (billed as "Beverly Campbell").

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Goofs

At 49:20, camera shadow on Frank.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Homicide Detective: Can I help you?
Frank Bigelow: I'd like to see the man in charge.
Homicide Detective: In here...
Frank Bigelow: I want to report a murder.
Homicide Captain: Sit down. Where was this murder committed?
Frank Bigelow: San Francisco, last night.
Homicide Captain: Who was murdered?
Frank Bigelow: I was.

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Crazy Credits

The end credits read "The medical facts in this motion picture are authentic. Luminous toxin is a descriptive term for an actual poison. Technical Adviser, Edward F. Dunne. M.D."

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Connections

References Fast and Loose (1939)

User Reviews

Great film in classic noir style

An exceptionally well thought-out and executed film noir. A man who is fatally poisoned with a slow-acting substance wants to discover who killed him -- and why. The answers seem pathetically insignificant compared to their repurcussions. O'Brien provides a solid "everyman" type leading performance that puts Gary Cooper and Glenn Ford's best attempts at the same to utter shame. Bev Garland puts in a good show too as a sort of misunderstood femme fatale in a minor key. Credit should go to director Mate and photographer Laszlo, who match the words and feelings of the story perfectly, neither showing us too much or too little at any time. The narrative force of this story is strong because it is focused on one man, with whom we can identify, who has been placed in an exciting, intriguing, and terrifying situation by events out of his control.