Crossfire1947
Crossfire (1947)
Crossfire Photos
Movie Info
Watch it now
Cast
as Capt. Finlay
as Sgt. Peter Keeley
as Monty Montgomery
as Ginny Tremaine
as The Man
as Joseph Samuels
as Mary Mitchell
as Floyd Bowers
as Arthur Mitchell
as Harry
as Leroy
as Bill
as Detective
as Miss Lewis/Miss White
as Man
as Detective
as Deputy
as Military Police
as Military Police
as Military Police
as Military Police
as Police Sergeant
as Major
as Soldier
as Waiter
as Police Surgeon
Critic Reviews for Crossfire
All Critics (15) | Top Critics (5) | Fresh (12) | Rotten (3)
... the movie still has power, despite its pop psychology and message mongering.
Producer Dore Schary, in association with Adrian Scott, has pulled no punches.
While the film remains a respectable thriller, only Ryan's crafty, quietly deranged performance lifts it out of the ordinary.
This ultra-low-budget thriller did what all great B movies do: it broached a subject that 'respectable' movies wouldn't touch.
A thematically articulate film.
Crossfire is an unusually good and honest movie and may -- I hope, will - prove a very useful one.
Audience Reviews for Crossfire
I bought this socially conscious crime thriller based on the packaging and the actors. I had never heard of it, and that's a crying shame because this film deserves a wide audience, even today. It should be re-made with a more contemporary script because its message, regarding anti-Semitism and prejudice is more relevant than ever. Crossfire was adapted from the Richard Brooks novel The Brick Foxhole, in which the murder concerns a homosexual, whereas the film dropped the book's sub-theme of homophobia to focus on the more cinematically "acceptable" topic of anti-Semitism. That being said, I am surprised the original idea hasn't been filmed in the post-censorship era. I love the way the murder is filmed in shadows and thus the audience is "in the dark" as to the identity of the murderer until the climax. Although the killer's body language is instantly recognizable and the film has its characters drift to the same conclusion before the halfway point, the tension comes from proving it and saving the police's initial target, an innocent soldier. I could not imagine a better cast for the topic. I love Gloria Grahame in every noir she's been in, Mitchum is his usual laconic best, and Robert Young is the epitome of trustworthiness. It's tough seeing Robert Ryan, who I like in heroic roles, as the bigoted villain in this film. Crossfire didn't win any of the 5 Academy Awards for which it was nominated, which is a shame. Even though the similar Gentlemen's Agreement won Best Picture, Crossfire is superior due to its operating on two levels: an excellent murder mystery manhunt and a "message picture." Director Edward Dmytryk's stark, hard-hitting examination of a hate crime was way ahead of its time in 1947, and has lost neither its topicality nor its punch in the years since.
Super Reviewer
When a Jewish man is beaten to death in a hate crime, police detective Robert Young finds his suspicions as to the culprit difficult to prove. Although it has many of the visual trappings of Film Noir, Crossfire is more of an examination of prejudice and its repercussions in society. The crux of the film is Young's "hate is a gun" speech that highlights the dangers of blind hatred, and as such it's a very well meaning as well as well written film. Young gives a solid performance as the sardonic cop, as does Robert Mitchum as a soldier caught up in events although his dominating presence is a little too thin on the ground. The ever reliable Gloria Grahame also appears as a bitter vamp and Paul Kelly is an interesting supporting character but it's Robert Ryan's show all the way whose chilling portrayal of a racist psychopath was nominated for an Oscar. Perhaps lacking a focal character, Crossfire is still a very interesting and thoughtful detective story with a timeless message.
Super Reviewer
A man is found beaten to death in his apartment. The last people he was seen with were four soliders. One of them did it, but which one? Robert Young as a police detective, in a better performance than I would normally expect out of him, wants to find out. Even though it's pretty obvious who the killer is early on, I won't give it away here. This film about prejudice and Anti-Semitism should remind all of us how dangerous intolerance like that can be if taken to the extreme.
Super Reviewer
Crossfire Quotes
| Leroy: | He wants to see you, Monty. He asked me to tell ya he wants to see you. Honest, I didn't know whether I ought to tell you or not, you don't want to get mixed up in anything more than you are, but he was acting crazy Monty. He gave me a crazy thing to tell you. He said to tell you the necktie wasn't any good. What'd he mean by that Monty? |
| Capt. Finlay: | Well hate, Monty's kind of hate, is like a gun. If you carry it around with you it can go off and kill somebody. It killed Samuels last night. |
| Sgt. Peter Kelley: | You've got a mind like a dog catcher. |
| Ginny Tremaine: | Ha, sure I know - I remind you of your sister. |
| Arthur Mitchell: | You remind me of my wife. |