Without Warning! (1952)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Arnold Laven

Writers:

William Raynor (story)
William Raynor (screenplay)

Release Date:

8 May 1952 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Film-Noir | Thriller

Tagline:

All Blonde... All Beautiful... All Bait!

Plot:

Quiet, unobtrusive LA citizen Carl Martin picks up look-alikes for his estranged blonde wife and murders them with garden shears.

Plot Keywords:

Blonde | Garden Shears | Clue | Murder | Killer

Cast

Adam Williams	...	Carl Martin
Meg Randall	...	Jane Saunders
Ed Binns	...	Lt. Pete Hamilton (as Edward Binns)
Harlan Warde	...	Police Detective Sgt. Don Warde
John Maxwell	...	Fred Saunders
Angela Stevens	...	Blonde
Byron Kane	...	Police Chemist Charlie Wilkins
Charles Tannen	...	Wolf
Marilee Phelps	...	Virginia
Robert Foulk	...	Wilson, Motel Manager
Connie Vera	...	Carmelita
Robert Shayne	...	Dr. Werner, Police Psychiatrist

Also Known As:

The Story Without a Name (USA) (original script title)
Without Warning (USA) (poster title)

Runtime:

75 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Norway:16 | Finland:(Banned) (1952) | USA:Approved (PCA #15666) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Chavez Ravine, Elysian Park, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Allart Productions

Trivia:

Michael Fox's first film.

"Without Warning" Well Worth the Wait

WITHOUT WARNING turns out to be well worth the wait for those Noir fans who have long wished they could see this legendary movie. The direction is tight, the acting mostly very good, and the look of the film is priceless because it captures so many LA locations that are no longer in existence, or that have been drastically altered over 50-plus years. On the visual level alone, WITHOUT WARNING is a must-see. For a movie of this length (77 min) and low budget, we get several nicely executed edge-of-your-seat thrills. However, the intelligent screenplay provides plenty of dramatic interest as well. This is one of many 'police procedural' Noirs, but it's several cuts above most others: the narration is concise and mostly unobtrusive, and the scenes of 1950s-style police forensics are all interesting and even feature a degree of humor from a witty lab technician. Best of all is the intrigue. An early example of a serial killer Noir, WITHOUT WARNING compares favorably with THE SNIPER (from the same period)--in its close observation of a killer at work, interspersed with police attempts to track him down--but it's much less sympathetic to the perpetrator in this case. A movie of this type needs a lead actor who can gain audience interest and hold it. This is the case with THE SNIPER, and it's also true in WITHOUT WARNING. Let's hope Adam Williams is around to see the beautiful DVD issue of his great lead performance as Carl Martin. This is a fully realized characterization: tormented, enraged, clever, and pathetic. Williams makes it all believable, and he is ultimately responsible for making the film work so well.