IMDb > Park Row (1952)

Overview

User Rating:
7.4/10   364 votes
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Down 19% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Samuel Fuller
Writer:
Samuel Fuller (writer)
Contact:
View company contact information for Park Row on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
12 August 1952 (USA) more
Genre:
Drama
Tagline:
Street of rogues... reporters... and romance!
Plot:
In New York's 1880's newspaper district a dedicated journalist manages to set up his own paper. It is... more | add synopsis
NewsDesk:
(3 articles)
Schizo Miracles
 (From IFC. 3 November 2009, 5:59 AM, PST)
Turner Classic Movies To Salute 36th Annual Telluride Film Festival With Labor Day Celebration
 (From iCelebz. 28 July 2009, 9:30 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
An excellent film about rival New York City newspapers in the 1880s more (14 total)

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)
Gene Evans ... Phineas Mitchell
Mary Welch ... Charity Hackett
Bela Kovacs ... Ottmar Mergenthaler
Herbert Heyes ... Josiah Davenport
Tina Pine ... Jenny O'Rourke
George O'Hanlon ... Steve Brodie
J.M. Kerrigan ... Dan O'Rourke
Forrest Taylor ... Charles A. Leach
Don Orlando ... Mr. Angelo
Neyle Morrow ... Thomas Guest
Dick Elliott ... Jeff Hudson
Stuart Randall ... Mr. Spiro
Dee Pollock ... Rusty
Hal K. Dawson ... Mr. Wiley
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Additional Details

Parents Guide:
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Runtime:
83 min
Country:
USA
Language:
German | English
Color:
Black and White
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono
Company:
Samuel Fuller Productions more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Self-financed by its maverick director. At the time, Samuel Fuller had only $201,000 in his bank account. He kept $1,000 for his own personal use, which he spent on cigars and vodka. The rest went on the movie. more
Quotes:
Phineas Mitchell: The press is good or evil according to the character of those who direct it. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004) (TV) more

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User Comments

   (Comment on this title)
6 out of 8 people found the following comment useful.
An excellent film about rival New York City newspapers in the 1880s, 9 July 2002
9/10
Author: zetes from Saint Paul, MN

Its main draw is Sam Fuller's direction – he is, without a doubt, one of the most skillful American directors to have ever lived. You have to see some of the brilliant long takes in Park Row to believe them. The flowing shots make the rather brilliant moves in Alfred Hitchcock's Rope look trite (which is no dump on Hitch, mind you; Park Row is just that impressive). Unfortunately, Fuller's screenwriting ability is quite a bit below his directorial prowess. You've got to admire any director who was working in Hollywood at the time and was also able to write his own scripts. There is only the smallest handful of writer/directors at the time. But, man, can Sam Fuller be overbearing at times. Fortunately, the sillier pieces of the script, as well as bad bits of dialogue, fuel the madness of it all in Park Row. I found myself utterly entertained by the larger than life situations and the hamfisted attempts at symbolism. I laughed quite hard at a scene where Phineas Mitchell, the film's protagonist, attacks a hired thug from the rival newspaper and pounds him repeatedly against the statue of Ben Franklin. I also loved the overwrought symbolism of the scene where Phineas hangs the final issue of his paper on a hook labeled `Deaths.' Or how about the ridiculously over-the-top editorial that Davenport writes near the end? And you've just got to love the final scene, with the word `THIRTY' boldly replacing `THE END'. You'll understand what that means if you see the picture. The only piece of the film that should really have been subtracted is the horribly clunky romance; it seems like an afterthought developed to capture a greater number of female moviegoers and it doesn't work a lick. 9/10.

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anyone see this film on turner classic movies recently? teejay6682
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