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Patterns

  • 1956
  • Approved
  • 1h 23m
IMDb RATING
7.7/10
3.5K
YOUR RATING
Van Heflin in Patterns (1956)
When Fred Staples is recruited onto the board of a high-powered New York corporation, he finds his ethics and ambition at odds.
Play trailer1:08
1 Video
99+ Photos
Drama

When Fred Staples is recruited onto the board of a high-powered New York corporation, he finds his ethics and ambition at odds.When Fred Staples is recruited onto the board of a high-powered New York corporation, he finds his ethics and ambition at odds.When Fred Staples is recruited onto the board of a high-powered New York corporation, he finds his ethics and ambition at odds.

  • Director
    • Fielder Cook
  • Writer
    • Rod Serling
  • Stars
    • Van Heflin
    • Everett Sloane
    • Ed Begley
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.7/10
    3.5K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Fielder Cook
    • Writer
      • Rod Serling
    • Stars
      • Van Heflin
      • Everett Sloane
      • Ed Begley
    • 91User reviews
    • 19Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award
      • 1 nomination total

    Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 1:08
    Watch Trailer

    Photos257

    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)
    Patterns (1956)

    Cast

    Edit
    Van Heflin
    Van Heflin
    • Fred Staples
    Everett Sloane
    Everett Sloane
    • Walter Ramsey
    Ed Begley
    Ed Begley
    • Bill Briggs
    Beatrice Straight
    Beatrice Straight
    • Nancy Staples
    Elizabeth Wilson
    Elizabeth Wilson
    • Marge Fleming
    Joanna Roos
    Joanna Roos
    • Margaret Lanier
    Valerie Cossart
    • Martha Stevens
    Eleni Kiamos
    • Sylvia Trammel
    Ronnie Welsh
    • Paul Briggs
    Shirley Standlee
    • Miss Hill
    • Director
      • Fielder Cook
    • Writer
      • Rod Serling
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Youthful industrial engineer Fred Staples (Van Heflin) is hired by ruthless CEO Walter Ramsey (Everett Sloane) to replace the aging Bill Briggs (Ed Begley). Heflin (48) was just seven years younger than Begley (55), and both were older than Sloane (47), the ages of the men listed when the film was released.
    • Goofs
      The dialog in the final scenes, starting with Staples' conversation with his wife in a coffee shop near his office, indicate the events take place well into the evening. However, the exterior shot linking this scene with Staples' confrontation with Ramsey in the Ramsey & Company building, as well as the exterior shot that follows the confrontation, were both taken in broad daylight.
    • Quotes

      Bill Briggs: On our level you don't get fired, you know that. After thirty years of productive work, they can't say to a man like me, "Alright, now get out!" They just can't do that. So what do they do? They create a situation. A situation you can't work in and finally that you can't live in with this tension, abuse. Small humiliations. It all starts out on a scale so subtle, so microscopic that at first you can't really believe it's happening at all. But gradually the thing begins to take shape. The pieces fit together - all the little bits. And it becomes unmistakable. They chip away at your pride, your security until you begin to have doubts, and then fears.

    • Connections
      Referenced in American Masters: Rod Serling: Submitted for Your Approval (1995)

    User reviews91

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    9/10
    I reserve the right to break your jaw.
    Patterns centres around the fierce and dog eat dog world of an executive conglomerate company. Written by Rod Serling (he of The Twilight Zone fame) and based on his own play, it's a stunning picture that relies (and succeeds) on spiky dialogue and a trio of superlative acting performances. Not containing any music at all and filmed primarily within the confines of an interior setting, Serling and his on form director, Fielder Cook, have crafted probably the essential picture dealing with the harsh and at times brutal realities of big business ladder climbing.

    Everett Sloane, Ed Begley and Van Heflin really provide the viewers with an acting tour de force. Sloane as the big boss Walter Ramsey, creates a strutting despotic character that is as memorable as it is harsh, here's a man who will not "pattern" a sacking of an employee, he would rather break him into resignation!, a totally vile and cruel "pattern" tactic. Begley (superbly playing weary emotion) plays the genial and honest William Briggs, who upon welcoming Van Heflin's Fred Staples to the company, realises it's likely to be at his own cost. This giving the film a deep emotional "pattern" as Staples (Heflin to me, donning a career high) gets conflicted about his role in this company, this leads us to a truly excellent finale as Heflin and Sloane go at each other with a gripping intensity that many modern actors could do no worse than to take note of, it really is something to behold.

    A fabulous movie that comes highly recommended to anyone who appreciates dialogue driven films with intelligence pouring from every frame. 9/10
    helpful•54
    3
    • hitchcockthelegend
    • Feb 9, 2009

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    FAQ14

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 26, 1956 (West Germany)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Morgen trifft es dich
    • Filming locations
      • Pine Street and Nassau Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA(Nancy drops off Fred on his first day at work)
    • Production companies
      • Jed Harris
      • Michael Myerberg
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 23 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Sound mix
      • Mono

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