Gun Crazy (1950)

A well meaning crack shot husband is pressured by his beautiful marksman wife to go on an interstate robbery spree, where he finds out just how depraved and deadly she really is.

Director:

Joseph H. Lewis

Writers:

MacKinlay Kantor (screenplay), Dalton Trumbo (screenplay)

Stars:

John Dall, Peggy Cummins, Berry Kroeger

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peggy Cummins	...	Annie Laurie Starr
John Dall	...	Bart Tare
Berry Kroeger	...	Packett
Morris Carnovsky	...	Judge Willoughby
Anabel Shaw	...	Ruby Tare Flagler
Harry Lewis	...	Deputy Clyde Boston
Nedrick Young	...	Dave Allister
Trevor Bardette	...	Sheriff Boston
Mickey Little	...	Bart Tare (age 7)
Russ Tamblyn	...	Bart Tare (age 14) (as Rusty Tamblyn)
Paul Frison	...	Clyde Boston (age 14)
David Bair	...	Dave Allister (child) (as Dave Bair)
Stanley Prager	...	Bluey-Bluey
Virginia Farmer	...	Miss Wynn
Anne O'Neal	...	Miss Augustine Sifert

Storyline

Since he was a child, Bart Tare has always loved guns. After leaving the army, his friends take him to a carnival, where he meets the perfect girl; Annie, a sharp-shooting sideshow performer who loves guns as much as he. The 2 run off and marry, but Annie isn't happy with their financial situation, so at her behest the couple begins a cross-country string of daring robberies. Never one to use guns for killing, Bart's dragged down into oblivion by the greedy and violent nature of the woman he loves.

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Plot Keywords:

sharpshooter | murder | fugitive | lovers on the lam | national film registry | 

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Taglines:

SHE BELIEVES IN TWO THINGS...-love and violence! (original poster)

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Romance | Thriller

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bart Tare and Laurie Starr are modeled on the infamous Depression-era bandits Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker, who are also the subjects of Bonnie and Clyde (1967), You Only Live Once (1937) and The Bonnie Parker Story (1958).

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Goofs

After Bart and Annie ditch the car in the mountains and are on foot, Annie says she's tired. He tells her it's because of the altitude. At the end they're in a swamp. A swamp in the mountains at high altitude?

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Quotes

Bluey-Bluey: That's where the real money is made, buster. Yes sir, we got the crookedest carnival layout west of the Mississippi. Why, we got more ways of making suckers than we got suckers. When we pull out of this bird tomorrow morning, the natives will have nothing but some old collar buttons and rusty bobby pins.

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Connections

Featured in American Cinema: Film Noir (1995)

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Soundtracks

Laughing on the Outside (Crying on the Inside)
(uncredited)
Music by Bernie Wayne
Lyrics by Ben Raleigh
Sung by Frances Irvin at the dance club

User Reviews

The Real Sex Pistols.

Bart Tare (John Dall) had a fascination with guns from an early age, even getting sent to a reform school at the age of 14 for yet another gun related incident. Back home now as an adult, after a stint in the army, he falls for a sharp-shooting carnival girl called Annie Laurie Starr (Peggy Cummins) and promptly joins the act. But after a fall out with the boss, the pair hit the road and turn to a life of crime - with Annie particularly showing a thirst for gun-play.

No doubt inspired by real life outlaws Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, "Deadly Is the Female" (AKA: Gun Crazy) is as good a "doomed lovers on the lam" picture that has ever been made. It may be a "B" movie in terms of production, but no doubt about it, this film is stylish, crafty and also very sexy. Directed by the unsung Joseph H. Lewis ("My Name Is Julia Ross/The Big Combo"), it's based on a story written by MacKinlay Kantor that was reworked by Millard Kaufman (AKA: the then blacklisted "Dalton Trumbo"), into one that links sex and violence whilst simultaneously casting an eye over gun worship and its place in the American way of life. Dall & Cummings looked on the surface an odd pairing, but under Lewis' direction they go together like gun and holster (ahem). He is well spoken, almost elegantly fragile with his musings, yet underneath there is still this twitchy gun fanatic. She is savvy, almost virginal in sexuality, but ultimately she's a wild cat who's practically un-tamable.

The work of Lewis here should not be understated, check out the quite sublime continuous one take bank robbery. While marvel throughout at his long takes, use of angles, deep focus and jerking camera movements - all of which dovetail with our protagonists as they go on their nihilistic journey. But perhaps his master-stoke was with his preparation tactics for his two leads?. Sending them out with permission to improvise, he fired them up with sexual pep talks, and the result, in spite of the inevitable "code" restrictions, is a near masterpiece, a true genre highlight, and a film that continues to influence as much as it still entertains. 9/10

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 January 1950 (USA)

Also Known As:

Gun Crazy

Filming Locations:

Reseda State Bank Building, Sherman Way and Reseda Blvd., Reseda, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$400,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$17,322

Company Credits

Production Co:

King Brothers Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1