I, the Jury (1953)

Dectective Mike Hammer is determined to catch and kill the person who shot his close friend dead, so he follows clues that lead to a beautiful, seductive woman.

Director:

Harry Essex

Writers:

Harry Essex, Mickey Spillane (novel)

Stars:

Biff Elliot, Preston Foster, Peggie Castle

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Biff Elliot	...	Mike Hammer
Preston Foster	...	Police Captain Pat Chambers
Peggie Castle	...	Charlotte Manning
Margaret Sheridan	...	Velda
Alan Reed	...	George Kalecki
Mary Anderson	...	Eileen Vickers
Tom Powers	...	Milt Miller
Frances Osborne	...	Myrna Devlin
Bob Cunningham	...	Hal Kines (as Robert Cunningham)
Tani Guthrie	...	Esther Bellamy (as Tani Seitz)
Dran Hamilton	...	Mary Bellamy (as Dran Seitz)
Joe Besser	...	Pete - Elevator Operator
Paul Dubov	...	Marty
John Qualen	...	Dr. R.H. Vickers
Nestor Paiva	...	Manuel

Storyline

It's nearly Christmas, but Mike Hammer is on the vengeance trail when Jack, his wartime buddy, is murdered. Hotheaded Hammer sets out to find the killer, working his way through an increasingly large pile of suspects (and corpses). Along the way, he meets a new love interest, psychologist Charlotte Manning, a treacherous Santa, a gangster named Kalecki, and two weird sisters, the Bellamy twins.

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Plot Keywords:

christmas | mike hammer | twin | hard boiled | woman shot | 

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Taglines:

Now! His first motion picture blasts you out of your seat with its naked fury!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 August 1953 (USA)

Also Known As:

J'aurai ta peau

Filming Locations:

Samuel Goldwyn Studios - 7200 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Parklane Pictures Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

3 Channel Stereo (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally filmed in 3D; but, by the time it opened, 3D had lost favor among audiences, and many first run engagements, as well as most second run engagements, opted to offer it in the standard 2D version.

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Quotes

Charlotte Manning: Drink, Mr Hammer?
Mike Hammer: No, I'm not much of a champagne drinker, Doc I...
Mike Hammer: [she shows him the bottle] Beer! Pat tell you about too?
Charlotte Manning: No. Jack Williams did. He talked about you quite a lot.
Mike Hammer: That was while you were treating Myrna, isn't it?
Charlotte Manning: Captain Chambers was asking about Myrna when he was here. He wanted to know how strong she was mentally, and whether there was any chance of her resorting to her old habits again
Mike Hammer: There's no chance of that happening, is there Doc?
Charlotte Manning: Let's say, so far so good
Mike Hammer: I'll drink to...
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in The Many Faces of Mike Hammer: A Personal Recollection by Larry Cohen (2013)

User Reviews

Of Mike and Men

The first film adaptation of a Mickey Spillane novel, filmed in 3D and starring one of the all-time nobodies, Biff Elliot, as Mike Hammer. He looks like William Bendix's younger brother and acts like Lon Chaney, Jr. in "Of Mice and Men." The selling point of any movie based on a Spillane story, aside from the violence, should be the dialogue. That's true here, with lots of tough noir one-liners. Unfortunately, many of those are bellowed by Elliot, who barges into every scene like he's mad someone made him take this job. Seriously, watch this guy stomp around. Someone hired this moose to act and this is what they got. Even the film's famous final scene is tainted by his inability to deliver a line with emotion.

On the plus side, the movie was photographed by John Alton. He makes the most of the cheap production values. Good use of the Bradbury Building, which is recognizable to fans of films like D.O.A. and Blade Runner. Nice score from Franz Waxman. The supporting cast includes many lesser known actors but there are a few old pros like Preston Foster, John Qualen, and Elisha Cook, Jr. How any of them kept a straight face while that sack of meat was barking at them is beyond me. Attractive Peggie Castle makes an unconvincing psychologist and is even less convincing as a woman attracted to Elliot.

This movie has a lot that prevents it from being great. But all of the other issues combined don't equal the sheer ineptitude of casting Biff Elliot as Mike Hammer. This was his film debut and he never did anything this big again. He worked fairly steady for decades, mostly in television. I have no idea why he was cast. Worked cheap? Saved the producer's life? Knew where the bodies were buried? I don't know. All I do know is he stinks in this.