The Enforcer (1951) 7.3
A crusading district attorney finally gets a chance to prosecute the organizer and boss of Murder Inc. Director:Bretaigne WindustWriter:Martin Rackin |
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The Enforcer (1951) 7.3
A crusading district attorney finally gets a chance to prosecute the organizer and boss of Murder Inc. Director:Bretaigne WindustWriter:Martin Rackin |
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| 0Share... |
| Complete credited cast: | |||
| Humphrey Bogart | ... |
Dist. Atty. Martin Ferguson
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| Zero Mostel | ... |
Big Babe Lazick
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| Ted de Corsia | ... |
Joseph Rico
(as Ted De Corsia)
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| Everett Sloane | ... |
Albert Mendoza
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| Roy Roberts | ... |
Capt. Frank Nelson
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| Michael Tolan | ... |
James (Duke) Malloy
(as Lawrence Tolan)
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King Donovan | ... |
Sgt. Whitlow
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| Bob Steele | ... |
Herman
(as Robert Steele)
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Adelaide Klein | ... |
Olga Kirshen
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| Don Beddoe | ... |
Thomas O'Hara
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Tito Vuolo | ... |
Tony Vetto
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John Kellogg | ... |
Vince
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Jack Lambert | ... |
Philadelphia Tom Zaca
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After years of pursuit, Assistant D.A. Martin Ferguson has a good case against Murder, Inc. boss Albert Mendoza. Mendoza is in jail and his lieutenant Joseph Rico is going to testify. But Rico falls to his death and Ferguson must work through the night going over everything to build the case anew. Written by Ed Stephan <stephan@cc.wwu.edu>
The Enforcer, whose French title is La femme à abattre, plays often to packed houses in Paris. More than one French critic has called the film a gem (un joyau) among film noir classics. Indeed, its popularity in France says lots about pure plot lines and straightforward characterizations which make the film accessible to non-English-speaking audiences. As many readers know, the French are crazy about American film noir, and it's common to see parents bring their children to see movies like The Enforcer. I recently sat next to such a family when the film played in March 2003 at the Grand Action cinéma in Paris. It was almost moving to hear the father explain to his son that they would be seeing a film which, in his words, is a classic with great insights in the American psyche. Hearing them speak made me wonder how many American families use films of decades past to teach their children about the world in which we live.
By the way, the three cinémas in the Action chain in Paris regularly play American films noirs and other classic American movies, many of them in newly restored versions.
Don Ediger