Shield for Murder (1954)

When a brutal police detective Lt. murders a bookmaker's runner for $25,000 in cash, a deaf mute sees him do it, and now he finds he must kill again to try and cover his tracks.

Directors:

Howard W. Koch, Edmond O'Brien

Writers:

Richard Alan Simmons (screenplay), John C. Higgins (screenplay),

Stars:

Edmond O'Brien, Marla English, John Agar

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Edmond O'Brien	...	Detective Lt. Barney Nolan
Marla English	...	Patty Winters
John Agar	...	Detective. Sgt. Mark Brewster
Emile Meyer	...	Capt. Gunnarson
Carolyn Jones	...	Beth--Girl at Bar
Claude Akins	...	Fat Michaels
Lawrence Ryle	...	Laddie O'Neil (as Larry Ryle)
Herbert Butterfield	...	Cabot--Police Reporter
Hugh Sanders	...	Packy Reed
William Schallert	...	Assistant D.A.

Storyline

A vicious cop kills a bookie's runner and steals $25,000 from the corpse. He then frames everyone in sight in order to keep to the money to buy a model home for his would-be lounge singer girlfriend.

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Plot Keywords:

murder | police | detective | gangster | jealousy | 

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Taglines:

If ever a picture was crammed with guts, this is it.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 August 1954 (USA)

Also Known As:

Freibrief für Mord

Filming Locations:

American National Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Aubrey Schenck Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Stafford Repp's first film.

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Goofs

No such thing as a silenced revolver: At the very beginning of the movie, the bookie is shot with a snub nose revolver having a silencer attached to the barrel. Because combustion gases leak through the gap between the cylinder and the barrel (allowing a loud noise to escape), a revolver cannot be effectively silenced. Only guns with a continuous firing chamber and barrel, such as an automatic or a single shot, can be silenced.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Detective Capt. Gunnarson: [to police reporter] Write his story good.

User Reviews

solid b film of not so solid cop

One of those B movies of the fifties, while not great, that is always enjoyable. O'Brien plays detective who is sick of struggling and wants some big dough quick and easy. He murders a stoolie who has $25,000 on him. His longtime partner and friend, Agar, doesn't want to believe his friend could commit such a heinous crime, but all evidence points in that direction. Agar is good as frustrated detective. The funniest scene in the film is Akins pursuing O'Brien through school corridors with his head all bandaged up from blows O'Brien inflicted earlier. Marla English is almost Elizabeth Taylorian in her looks as girlfriend of O'Brien, although I'm not sure what his appeal is.