Storm Warning (1951)

Director:

Stuart Heisler

Writers:

Daniel Fuchs (written by) and
Richard Brooks (written by)

Release Date:

10 February 1951 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Film-Noir

Tagline:

Unmasked by Warner Brothers!

Plot:

Marsha Mitchell, a traveling dress model, stops in a southern town to see her sister who has married a Ku Klux Klansman...

Plot Keywords:

Murder | District Attorney | Beautiful Woman | Christmas | Sexual Assault

Cast

Ginger Rogers	...	Marsha Mitchell
Ronald Reagan	...	Burt Rainey
Doris Day	...	Lucy Rice
Steve Cochran	...	Hank Rice
Hugh Sanders	...	Charlie Barr
Lloyd Gough	...	Cliff Rummel
Raymond Greenleaf	...	Faulkner
Ned Glass	...	George Athens
Paul E. Burns	...	Frank Hauser, Baggage Man
Walter Baldwin	...	Coroner Bledsoe
Lynn Whitney	...	Cora Athens
Stuart Randall	...	Walt Walters
Sean McClory	...	Shore

Also Known As:

Storm Center (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #14344) | Finland:S | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Corona, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Joan Crawford was asked by studio boss Jack L. Warner to play Doris Day's sister in the film, Joan declined saying "Come on, Jack. No one would ever believe that I would have Doris Day for a sister!"

Goofs:

Plot holes: A character is murdered by the KKK after 10pm one evening. An autopsy is performed, witnesses interviewed and a coroner's inquest is held - all by the following afternoon, hardly twelve hours after crime was committed.

Quotes:

Charlie Barr: I'll give you a tip, young fellow. Never go off half-cocked. Who's to say the Klan's involved? You got a witness? Don't drag people into anything unless you got solid legal evidence. Everything that happens in these small towns right away they blame it on the Klan.

An Overlooked Film Noir

This film holds up so very well even after fifty years. The searing indictment of smalltown xenophobia and the struggle for truth is the hallmark here. Reagan does well in the role, but Steve Cochran and especially Ginger Rogers really shine here. The closing seconds with the fleeing Klansmen and the crumbling fiery cross coupled with strong orchestral strings leaves a hard hitting message that resonates. This film belongs on DVD as a testament to the ongoing struggle against intolerance, ignorance, and the fear of those things that are different. 1951 - 2001, sadly the need for that continues.