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:

Not Rated

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

This is one of the first films where an actual human heart is seen beating during open-heat surgery.

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Goofs

As a nurse, Kristina might have known that she should avoid being exposed to a typhoid patient while pregnant.

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Quotes

Dr. Aarons: [Saying farewell to his graduating interns] Good-bye and God bless all of you... and don't endorse any cigarettes!

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Connections

References The Barefoot Contessa (1954)

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Soundtracks

Not as a Stranger
by Jimmy Van Heusen & Buddy Kaye

User Reviews

An ambitious physician with a well-doing wife

I am sympathetic with the films of the director Stanley Kramer, and this is not an exception. Here he was able to show how the professionals, still when they are students, project themselves and are able to go beyond their possibilities hurting many people surrounding them. This is the case of the Physician, Dr. Lucas Marsh (Robert Mitchum), who even forgot the financial and professional help given by his wife, the nurse Kristina Hedvigson (Olivia De Havilland) when he was student. This film touches many different aspects of the society, which are still actual at present, i.e. the relationship between the wife and the husband, the jealousy of the professional to be always the best, no matter at what cost this can be reached, the relationships of the students, and others. It is a very interesting film with plenty of morale, worth to be seen more than once. In addition, Frank Sinatra and Broderick Crawford had excellent performances in this film.