Some Came Running (1958)

Dave Hirsch, a writer and an army veteran winds up in his small Indiana hometown, to the dismay of his respectable older brother. He meets and befriends various different characters and tries to figure out what to do with his life.

Director:

Vincente Minnelli

Writers:

James Jones (novel), John Patrick

Stars:

Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Shirley MacLaine

Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Frank Sinatra	...	Dave Hirsh
Dean Martin	...	Bama Dillert
Shirley MacLaine	...	Ginnie Moorehead
Martha Hyer	...	Gwen French
Arthur Kennedy	...	Frank Hirsh
Nancy Gates	...	Edith Barclay
Leora Dana	...	Agnes Hirsh
Betty Lou Keim	...	Dawn Hirsh
Larry Gates	...	Professor Robert Haven French
Steve Peck	...	Raymond Lanchak (as Steven Peck)
Connie Gilchrist	...	Jane Barclay
Ned Wever	...	Smitty

Storyline

In the post-war, the alcoholic and bitter veteran military and former writer Dave Hirsch returns from Chicago to his hometown Parkman, Indiana. He is followed by Ginnie Moorehead, a vulgar and easy woman with whom he spent his last night in Chicago that has fallen in love with him. The resentful Dave meets his older brother Frank Hirsh, who owns a jewelry store and is a prominent citizen of Parkman that invites him to have dinner with his family. Dave meets his sister-in-law Agnes that hates him since one character of his novel had been visibly inspired on her, and his teenage niece Dawn. Frank introduces the school teacher Gwen French to him and Dave feels attracted by the beautiful woman that is daughter of his former Professor Robert Haven French and idolizes his work as writer. However, his unrequited love with Gwen drives Dave back to the local bar where he befriends the professional gambler Bama Dillert and meets Ginnie again with the Chicago's mobster Raymond Lanchak that was ...

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Plot Keywords:

indiana | veteran | soldier | midwest | homecoming | 

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Taglines:

Dave was back and the whole town knew that trouble- and women- were close behind!

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 December 1958 (USA)

Also Known As:

Some Came Running

Filming Locations:

Pittsburgh ,Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$28,594

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sol C. Siegel Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

137 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System) 4-Track Stereo

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Shirley MacLaine thought that Dean Martin turned in his best ever performance, because "he was a lot like Bama, a loner with his own code of ethics who would never compromise, so maybe it wasn't really a performance."

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Goofs

Although "The Portable Steinbeck" was first published in 1946, the softcover edition Dave is shown having was first printed in 1957. This film is set in 1948.

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Quotes

Professor Robert Haven French: [Talking to Dave Hirsh] Dear Dave, first let me mix you a martini that's pure magic. It may not make one's problems disappear, but... it *does* reduce their size.

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Connections

Referenced in Contempt (1963)

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Soundtracks

To Love And Be Loved
Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
Music by Jimmy Van Heusen
Performed by unidentified male vocal trio and jazz combo

User Reviews

A Great American Tragedy

This is one of the most heartbreaking, heart-rending films I have ever seen. There are many levels in this story of the returning soldier: his conflict with his brother, with his community, with his beloved and with himself. But for me, the most poignant is the story of Dave Hirsh and Ginny Moorhead. Dave is searching for redemption; he is emotionally needy and spiritually enervated. He thinks he can find love in someone who can fill his creative needs and the void in his heart created by the war.

Here is the tragedy: Dave does not realize that real love can only come from a sense of self worth, from finding someone whom he not only needs but, just as important, who needs him. Ginny is an angel, an angel in the form of a wrong-side-of-the-tracks bimbo; but of all those in Dave's world, Ginny is the purest of heart and the purest in love, and her love is for Dave. When Dave finally realizes that his bliss lies with Ginny, it is too late, for both him and Ginny. And this ending comes in a moment that left me shattered, my mouth agape.

While the ending was not expected, neither was it contrived, and with hindsight, one could see its coming.

"Some Came Running" captures a time and culture only now beginning to fade from the collective memory, as its cohort ages and dies off, America immediately following World War II. And as a period piece, "Some Came Running" is quite successful. But I believe the story depicted here is a universal one, and I think the characters of Dave and Ginny and their sidekick Bama, played wonderfully by Dean Martin, are to be found anywhere. In fact, "Some Came Running," along with "From Here to Eternity," is the closest American cinema has come to being Shakespearian, without consciously trying to be.