I Died a Thousand Times (1955)

Director:

Stuart Heisler

Writer:

W.R. Burnett

Stars:

Jack Palance, Shelley Winters, Lori Nelson

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Jack Palance	...	Roy Earle / Roy Collins
Shelley Winters	...	Marie Garson
Lori Nelson	...	Velma
Lee Marvin	...	Babe Kossuck
Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez	...	Chico (as Gonzalez Gonzalez)
Lon Chaney Jr.	...	Big Mac (as Lon Chaney)
Earl Holliman	...	Red
Perry Lopez	...	Louis Mendoza
Richard Davalos	...	Lon Preisser
Howard St. John	...	Doc Banton
Olive Carey	...	Ma Goodhue
Ralph Moody	...	Pa Goodhue
James Millican	...	Jack Kranmer
Bill Kennedy	...	Sheriff

Storyline

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Plot Keywords:

shootout | gunfight | unrequited love | partner | main character shot | 

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Taglines:

The Million-Dollar Killer And The Dime-A-Dance Doll...

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Genres:

Crime | Film-Noir

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 November 1955 (USA)

Also Known As:

Gegen alle Gewalten

Filming Locations:

Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Warnercolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Dennis Hopper makes an early acting appearance as the boy that Shelley Winters dances with at the house party in L.A.

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Goofs

Near the end of the picture when the cops are chasing Jack Palance in their cars and motorcycles to the mountains the following mistakes can easily be seen. Watch the two motorbikes cops as they approach a bridge, before crossing the bridge one of the cops comes off is bike, parts of the bike can be seen flying as indeed so does the cop. The next shot thay are all chasing Jacks car as if nothing happened. Later as they approach a slippery bend a cop again comes off his motorcycle blocking the chase. Seconds later they are all seen still chasing the villain.

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Quotes

Big Mac: [Pouring a drink] It's like the doc says... if i don't lay off this stuff, it's gonna knock ME off, but I'm gonna die anyway.
[laughs]
Big Mac: So are you.
[Distainfully]
Big Mac: So what? Nobody ever left this world alive.
[Holding up his glass]
Big Mac: To you, Roy!

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Connections

Version of Colorado Territory (1949)

User Reviews

See the original....

Roy Earle is a professional criminal--one of the toughest and best at his job. When he is unexpectedly released from prison, it is because someone big wanted a big heist and they pulled strings to get him. On his way to the location of his new partners up in the Sierras, he meets a very poor family and befriends them. He also later befriends a cute little dog. Both these acts of kindness are very atypical for such a hardened man and, sadly, BOTH end up causing him nothing but grief in the end.

I am a film purist when it comes to remakes. My opinion has always been that if the original film is great, it shouldn't be remade--remakes are only for films with SERIOUS flaws that can corrected in the remake. So, I am a VERY difficult sell for a film like "I Died a Thousand Times", as it's a remake both of the classic Bogart picture "High Sierra" as well as Joel McCrea's "Colorado Territory"==and both films have a higher IMDb rating as well.

"I Died a Thousand Times" turns out to be an extremely well made film--mostly because it is practically an exact copy of "High Sierra" and because Jack Palance was quite nice in the lead. The only major differences is the wonderful color film stock--it looks great because of the wonderful mountain locations. As for the acting, it's about on par with the original. So, if it offers no real major advantage, why not just see the original--especially since it stars Humphrey Bogart and Ida Lupino and is a classic. This 1955 version could have become a classic--if the story had been original. Good but see the original!