I Want to Live! (1958)

A prostitute, sentenced to death for murder, pleads her innocence.

Director:

Robert Wise

Writers:

Nelson Gidding (screenplay), Don Mankiewicz (screenplay) (as Don M. Mankiewicz)

Stars:

Susan Hayward, Simon Oakland, Virginia Vincent

Won 1 Oscar. Another 5 wins & 16 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Susan Hayward	...	Barbara Graham
Simon Oakland	...	Edward S. 'Ed' Montgomery
Virginia Vincent	...	Peg
Theodore Bikel	...	Carl G.G. Palmberg
Wesley Lau	...	Henry L. Graham
Philip Coolidge	...	Emmett Perkins
Lou Krugman	...	John R. 'Jack' Santo
James Philbrook	...	Bruce King
Bartlett Robinson	...	District Attorney Milton
Gage Clarke	...	Attorney Richard G. Tibrow (as Gage Clark)
Joe De Santis	...	Al Matthews
John Marley	...	Father Devers
Raymond Bailey	...	San Quentin Warden
Alice Backes	...	Barbara, San Quentin Nurse
Gertrude Flynn	...	San Quentin Matron

Storyline

Barbara Graham is a woman with dubious moral standards, often a guest in seedy bars. She has been sentenced for some petty crimes. Two men she knows murder an older woman. When they get caught they start to think that Barbara has helped the police to arrest them. As a revenge they tell the police that Barbara is the murderer.

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Plot Keywords:

death row | jazz score | execution of woman | true crime | courtroom drama | 

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Taglines:

The murder trial that shook the world!

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Genres:

Biography | Crime | Drama | Film-Noir

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

Barbara's actual response to the guard advising her to "take a deep breath, it's easier" was supposedly "how _the hell_ would you know". Apparently it had to be cleaned up for the 1958 audience, which is ironic given the rather graphic nature of the scene.

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Goofs

When Barbara wakes up screaming from a nightmare, a prison matron comes in shining a flashlight on her. In close-up, the light has a Fresnel-type lens, but in the next long shot, the flashlight has a clear lens.

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Quotes

Barbara Graham: [just before being led to the gas chamber] I want a mask. I don't wanna' look at people. I don't wanna' see them staring at me.
San Quentin Matron: I have one. My sleep mask.

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Crazy Credits

The film opens with this statement: The pitiless story told in this film is a true story. This story had to be told to the whole world; the whole world should see it and hear it. What good are films if they do not make us face the realities of our time? Here is the reality of our time, and we have no right to be ignorant of it. The day will come when such documents will seem to us to refer to prehistoric times, and we shall consider them as unbelievable that in earlier centuries witches were burned or thieves had their right hands cut off. Such period of true civilization is still in the future, but this film has the honor of at least contributing to its coming". Albert Camus - Nobel Prize winner.

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Connections

Referenced in George Stevens: The Filmmakers Who Knew Him (2001)

User Reviews

Susan Hayward at her best!

After seeing this movie a few times I was able to get a DVD copy of it. It is one of the best, if not the best movie about death row. The final scenes in the gas chamber are the most realistic i have ever seen of an execution. The movie uses real information supplied by The newsman who followed the case from the start and by Barbra Graham herself. After watching her in the gas chamber,it's very easy ro see why Susan Hayward won the Oscar for best actress.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 December 1958 (Italy)

Also Known As:

The Barbara Graham Story

Filming Locations:

Bunker Hill, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,383,578 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walter Wanger Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1