Gun Crazy (1950) Deadly Is the Female (original title)

Director:

Joseph H. Lewis

Writers (WGA):

MacKinlay Kantor (screenplay) and
Dalton Trumbo (screenplay) (front Millard Kaufman) ...
(more)

Release Date:

20 January 1950 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

SHE BELIEVES IN TWO THINGS...-love and violence! (original poster)

Plot:

A well meaning crack shot husband is pressured by his beautiful marksman wife to go on an interstate robbery spree, where he finds out just how depraved and deadly she really is.

Plot Keywords:

Gun | Robbery | Shooting | Carnival | Friend

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Peggy Cummins	...	Annie Laurie Starr
John Dall	...	Barton Tare
Berry Kroeger	...	Packett
Morris Carnovsky	...	Judge Willoughby
Anabel Shaw	...	Ruby Tare Flagler
Harry Lewis	...	Deputy Clyde Boston
Nedrick Young	...	Dave Allister
Trevor Bardette	...	Sheriff Boston
Mickey Little	...	Bart Tare (age 7)
Russ Tamblyn	...	Bart Tare (age 14) (as Rusty Tamblyn)
Paul Frison	...	Clyde Boston (age 14)
David Bair	...	Dave Allister (age 7) (as Dave Bair)
Stanley Prager	...	Bluey-Bluey
Virginia Farmer	...	Miss Wynn
Anne O'Neal	...	Miss Augustine Sifert
Frances Irvin	...	Danceland Singer (as Frances Irwin)
Robert Osterloh	...	Hampton Policeman
Shimen Ruskin	...	Cab Driver
Harry Hayden	...	Mr. Mallenberg
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tony Barr	...	Proprietor / Diner Cook (uncredited)
Don Beddoe	...	Man from Chicago (uncredited)
Joseph Crehan	...	Plant Foreman (uncredited)
Eddie Dunn	...	State Policeman on Phone (uncredited)
Dick Elliott	...	Man Running Out of Robbed Market (uncredited)
Ross Elliott	...	Detective (uncredited)
Franklyn Farnum	...	Cashier (uncredited)
Pat Gleason	...	Carnival Barker (uncredited)
Arthur Hecht	...	Ira Flagler (uncredited)
George Lynn	...	Holdup Victim (uncredited)
William J. O'Brien	...	Customer at Sharpshooting Act (uncredited)
Jeffrey Sayre	...	Court Clerk (uncredited)
Ray Teal	...	California Border Inspector (uncredited)
Dale Van Sickel	...	Meat Plant Guard (uncredited)

Directed by
Joseph H. Lewis

Writing credits (WGA)
MacKinlay Kantor		(screenplay) and
Dalton Trumbo		(screenplay) front Millard Kaufman
MacKinlay Kantor		(story "Gun Crazy")
Millard Kaufman		(front for Dalton Trumbo)

Produced by
Frank King	....	producer
Maurice King	....	producer

Original Music by
Victor Young

Cinematography by
Russell Harlan		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Harry W. Gerstad		(as Harry Gerstad)

Production Design by
Gordon Wiles

Set Decoration by
Raymond Boltz Jr.

Makeup Department
Carla Hadley	....	hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management
Allen K. Wood	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Frank Heath	....	assistant director (as Frank S. Heath)

Sound Department
Tom Lambert	....	sound engineer

Stunts
Dale Van Sickel	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Lloyd Garnell	....	gaffer (uncredited)
Eddie Jones	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Harry Lewis	....	grip (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Norma Koch	....	wardrobe: Miss Cummins (as Norma)

Music Department
Sidney Cutner	....	orchestrator
Stuart Frye	....	music editor
Leo Shuken	....	orchestrator

Other crew
Arthur Gardner	....	assistant to producers
Jack Herzberg	....	continuity
Herman King	....	technical advisor
Madeleine Robinson	....	dialogue coach
Al J. Jennings	....	technical consultant (uncredited)

Production Companies

• King Brothers Productions

Distributors

• United Artists (1950) (USA) (theatrical)
• Stern-Film Verleih (1951) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• CBS/Fox (1996) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

"Deadly Is the Female" - USA (original title)

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:(Banned) | Iceland:L | Canada:14A (Ontario) | USA:Approved (certificate #14023) | West Germany:16 (nf) | UK:PG (2008) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:TV-PG (TV rating)

Filming Locations:

2300 E Olympic Blvd, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

King Brothers Productions

Trivia:

Bart Tare and Laurie Starr are modeled on the infamous Depression-era bandits Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker, who are also the subjects of Bonnie and Clyde (1967), You Only Live Once (1937) and The Bonnie Parker Story (1958).

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Bart grabs Annie arm to prevent her from shooting an employee of the bank as the alarm sounds, they run to their getaway car and you can see the camera-man's reflection for a moment as he rides past the window on a dolly.

Quotes:

Annie Laurie Starr:Let's go for a walk on the beach.
Bart:I just read an article about funerals.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Rules of Film Noir (2009) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Laughing on the Outside (Crying on the Inside)

The original title was "Gun Crazy" and it was released in 1949

I have long been a fan of Film Noir. I consider this film to be unique and one of the best. The first and only time I saw it in a theater was in 1949 when I was 14. It was titled "Gun Crazy". I thought it was great but it didn't receive rave reviews or last long in hometown theaters. I understand they renamed it "Deadly Is The Female" in 1950 for its release in England, reason being that co-star Peggy Cummins was British and emphasizing the female star would be better box-office.

In the years that passed I wanted to see it again but it didn't appear on TV or later on any videotape that I knew of. In the 1983 Richard Geer film "Breathless" there is a chase scene where he is trying to escape by way of the stage behind a movie screen. On that screen was playing what I immediately recognized as "Gun Crazy". Over the years since then I have continued to look for the movie but was unable to find it. Less than a month ago I found it on DVD and purchased an excellent copy. I found that the movie is just as good as I remember it.

The film is essentially a story of a boy named Bart Tare (Russ Tamblyn) who loves guns for sport but refuses to harm any living being with them. After stealing one from a local store, he is caught and sent to a reformatory. The story continues four reformatory years plus one army hitch later when an adult Bart (John Dall) is discharged. He and some friends go to a cheap carnival where he sees and immediately falls for a trick shot artist, Annie Laurie Starr (Peggy Cummins). He beats her in a shooting contest but is offered a job in the act rather than the prize he was supposed to win.

Bart is unaware of her dark past, which includes hints of prostitution and the murder of a man in St. Louis. After a showdown with the jealous carnival owner they run off together and get married. When their money runs out, Bart wants to get a job but Annie Laurie's mind runs in a different direction, armed robbery. Reluctantly, Bart gives in and they set off on a spree of low paying stickups. By this time, Bart is increasingly aware that Annie Laurie has homicidal tendencies that he is barely able to keep under control. They plan a big-time robbery during which she kills two people without his knowledge. The rest of the movie deals with their flight from justice and ultimate payment for their crimes. In all, it is a classic scenario of "Bad Girl" leads a "Good Boy" into evil.

Personal opinion is that John Dall did a better acting job in this movie than he did in "Rope". In a bit of self-analysis I must admit that I have long been fascinated by "Wicked Women". This movie alone placed Peggy Cummins among my favorite "femme fatales", which included the queen of mean, Barbara Stanwyck, Marlene Dietrich, Beverly Michaels and other notables.

If you like classic film noir, it is a good movie to remember and see again.