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 cover his tracks.

Directors:

Howard W. Koch, Edmond O'Brien

Writers:

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

Stars:

Edmond O'Brien, John Agar, Marla English

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Edmond O'Brien	...	Barney Nolan
Marla English	...	Patty Winters
John Agar	...	Mark Brewster
Emile Meyer	...	Capt. Gunnarson
Carolyn Jones	...	Girl at Bar
Claude Akins	...	Fat Michaels
Lawrence Ryle	...	Laddie O'Neil (as Larry Ryle)
Herbert Butterfield	...	Cabot
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 the money to buy a new home for his would-be lounge singer girlfriend.

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Plot Keywords:

murder | rogue cop | witness | police detective | swimming pool | 

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Taglines:

Here's the brutal story of a killer-cop and the dough and dames he murdered for!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

September 1954 (USA)

Also Known As:

Freibrief für Mord

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Camden Productions Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.75 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The $25,000 Noland steals from the bookie would be the equivalent of $221,000 in 2015.

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Goofs

Brewster gives out the address of the Castle Heights model home over the police radio as 466 South Camden Drive. That location is in Beverly Hills, between W. Olympic Blvd. and W. Pico Blvd. - not Castle Heights.

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Quotes

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

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Connections

Referenced in Biography: Carolyn Jones: Morticia and More (2002)

User Reviews

good cop goes bad

I cannot say that this is one of the better films noir, but it's a good example of the way this kind of film was drifting in the early fifties: away from the studios; toward independent production; more cars, fewer subways; a vaguely documentary air, ala Jack Webb, rather than the more elegant stylization we associate with the forties; more outdoor scenes, fewer cramped rooms; and overall a movement away from the Gothic and toward a more contemporary, which is to say paranoid mood. Having said this, it ain't a bad picture. Edmond O'Brien (who also had a hand behind the camera) plays a basically decent and fair cop who gives in to temptation and steals some money from a bad guy. He pays dearly for his transgression. O'Brien is edgier and tougher than usual; the rest of the cast is okay. This is an extremely watchable film. It involves you more than most police thrillers. I enjoyed it thoroughly.