Not as a Stranger (1955)

An ego-driven, aspiring physician, intolerant of the weaknesses of others, especially those closest to him, comes to grips with his own imperfections.

Director:

Stanley Kramer

Writers:

Edna Anhalt (written for the screen by), Edward Anhalt (written for the screen by)

Stars:

Olivia de Havilland, Frank Sinatra, Robert Mitchum

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Olivia de Havilland	...	Kristina Hedvigson
Robert Mitchum	...	Lucas Marsh
Frank Sinatra	...	Alfred Boone
Gloria Grahame	...	Harriet Lang
Broderick Crawford	...	Dr. Aarons
Charles Bickford	...	Dr. Dave Runkleman
Myron McCormick	...	Dr. Clem Snider
Lon Chaney Jr.	...	Job Marsh (as Lon Chaney)
Jesse White	...	Ben Cosgrove
Harry Morgan	...	Oley
Lee Marvin	...	Brundage
Virginia Christine	...	Bruni
Whit Bissell	...	Dr. Dietrich
Jack Raine	...	Dr. Lettering
Mae Clarke	...	Nurse Odell

Storyline

Lucas Marsh, an intern bent upon becoming a first-class doctor, not merely a successful one. He courts and marries the warm-hearted Kristina, not out of love but because she is highly knowledgeable in the skills of the operating room and because she has frugally put aside her savings through the years. She will be, as he shrewdly knows, a supportive wife in every way. She helps make him the success he wants to be and cheerfully moves with him to the small town in which he starts his practice. But as much as he tries to be a good husband to the undemanding Kristina, Marsh easily falls into the arms of a local siren and the patience of the long-sorrowing Kristina wears thin. She reasons he no longer needs her and asks for a divorce. A calamity now brings Marsh to his senses. Dr. Runkleman, Marsh's gruff and wise employer, is stricken with a heart attack and requires emergency surgery. Marsh is forced to operate.

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Plot Keywords:

marital estrangement | reconciliation | unwanted pregnancy | terminal illness | unplanned pregnancy | 

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Taglines:

Stands alone ! first as a book ... now as a motion picture !

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Genres:

Drama | Film-Noir | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

July 1955 (USA)

Also Known As:

Morton Thompson's Not as a Stranger

Filming Locations:

University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$7,100,000, 31 December 1955

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$8,000,000, 31 December 1955

Company Credits

Production Co:

Stanley Kramer Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

135 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Lon Chaney Jr and Lee Marvin were reunited later on the same year in I Died A Thousand Times. Years later they would be reunited on an episode of Wagon Train.

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Goofs

When Dr Runkleman is undergoing surgery near the end of the film, there are several close-ups of an electrocardiograph as it monitors the procedure. However, there are no leads (wires) connecting it to the patient.

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Quotes

Dr. Aarons: I can see the picture you got of yourself already... a country road and an old Ford. It's a white house and you are Saint George complete in spotless armor. You get to a farmhouse. There's this man bleeding to death. Now alone, without instruments, without assistance, you perform an impossible operation, and because your heart is pure, you save him.
Lucas Marsh: I haven't any th...
Dr. Aarons: [Interrupting] You're going to go down that road. When you get there, you know what you're going to find? A man with a boil on ...
[...]

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Connections

References Wicked Woman (1953)

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Soundtracks

Not as a Stranger
by Jimmy Van Heusen & Buddy Kaye

User Reviews

Miscast, but surprisingly good

Stanley Kramer made his directorial debut here, following story of a medical intern who marries for money, later becoming a country doctor with an unhappy love life. Surprisingly involving adaptation of Morton Thompson's novel is both cynical and humorous, and Kramer really excels in the scenes behind hospital doors, particularly in the patient montages. He takes a good while to warm up however, and the actors also struggle getting into character. Robert Mitchum doesn't strike me as the medic type, and neither does Frank Sinatra (cutting up à la Jack Lemmon, giving the film some bounce nevertheless), but Olivia de Havilland does good work in the romance department. Second-half of the picture is more assured, if more routine, but the film is quite entertaining on the whole. **1/2 from ****