He wrote: Actually, it looks as though The Big Knife originally was written and aimed as an angry, vituperative incident of the personal and professional morals of Hollywood. Jack Palance is a competent actor but was woefully miscast as the sensitive, tortured matinée idol -- nobody would ever confuse Palance with a matinée idol. Film critic Jeff Stafford analyzed some of the film's elements, and wrote: [Of the previous Hollywood-exposé dramas] none...can match the negative depiction of the movie business and its power brokers offered in The Big Knife...The use of long takes by cinematographer Ernest Laszlo adds greatly to the film's claustrophobic tension and the mingling of fictitious names with real ones (Billy Wilder, Elia Kazan, William Wyler and others) throughout the dialogue gives The Big Knife a candid, almost documentary-like quality at times. The Big Knife is often quite audacious as it portrays the Hollywood studio system like an arm of organized crime - run by an egomaniacal kingpin without a conscience who demands unflinching loyalty and obedience from all his subjects. But when everybody worked under those guys, they hated them. Marion has decided to leave the past behind and reconcile with her husband. Title: As ... See full summary ». Undoubtedly daring in its day, The Big Knife remains intelligent and literate, but saved from 'safety' by Palance and Steiger's obviously mutual loathing. Hollywood actor Charles Castle is pressured by his studio boss into a … Millicent's solitary existence changes when she encounters Burt Hansen a charismatic younger man. Directed by Robert Aldrich. In the end, the simple fact of blackmail works and Castle signs the new contract. 8, Iss. Miles Fielder; 16 September 2009 (PG) 107min (Optimum) Movies about Hollywood don’t get more caustic than this. I just received my copy of The Big Knife in my Arrow UK order. During the 1950s, a small-town librarian is shunned by the locals after she refuses the City Council's request to remove a book on Communism from the library's shelves. Nevertheless, he does an adequate job.The power of the studio system in the '50s is well depicted, if a bit overwrought. The Big Knife (1955) Plot. The Big Knife concerns a famous actor, Charlie Castle (Jack Palance), who’s wrestling with one of Odets’s signature obsessions: the perils of selling out. View production, box office, & company info. Recommended, 7 out of 10. The actress immediately leaves and the couple have an intense conversation; Marion makes it clear she is at least willing to try again to rekindle their marriage. Influential gossip columnist Patty Benedict wants the lowdown on the marriage, but Castle refuses to confirm anything for her. Winner of the Silver Lion at the 1955 Venice Film Festival, The Big Knife also boasts a remarkable cast list including Jack Palance (Shane) as Castle and Rod Steiger (On the Waterfront) as Hoff, plus Shelley Winters (The Night of the Hunter), Ida Lupino (On Dangerous Ground), Jean Hagen (Singin in the Rain) and Everett Sloane (Citizen Kane). The Big Knife book. I would call it more of a melodrama. It did contain a booklet, and they had promised that it would contain the corrected disc, but the disc itself had no textual indication that it was a different disc than the original. Directed by Lee Strasberg, the play starred John Garfield as Charles Castle. voice over during a visual montage of expensive homes, as the overhead shot zooms into a back yard where two men are boxing, one of the men being Charlie, ‘Everything’s Gonna Be Okay’: Richard Kind & Maria Bamford To Recur In Season 2 of Freeform Series; Premiere Date Set, My favorite fictional movies about the movie industry, STROTHER MARTIN {CA32-196} UN/DEL {9-47} = {23-149}. The film stars Jack Palance, Ida Lupino, Wendell Corey, Jean Hagen, Rod Steiger, Shelley Winters, Ilka Chase, and Everett Sloane.[5]. Read 6 reviews from the world's largest community for readers. When 2 detectives steal $80,000 from a dead robber, one of them suffers from a guilty conscience which could lead to murder. Robert Aldrich directs this classic US crime drama adapted from the play by Clifford Odets. Rod Steiger and Everett Sloan are great as the monstrous studio honcho and weaselly agent, respectively. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. We'd had twenty years of petty dictators running the industry, during which time everybody worked and everybody got paid, maybe not enough, but they weren't on relief. The Big Knife - 2019 - Stella Adler Academy of Acting Los Angeles 155.jpg 5,616 × 3,744; 9.5 MB. The Big Knife is a movie that defies easy classification. She wants to damage Hoff, not Castle. Thomas Robbin. He gets into the bath and ends his life. Hollywood actor Charles Castle is pressured by his studio boss into a criminal cover-up to protect his valuable career. Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. [7], Aldrich later said he wished he and the writer had cut down Clifford Odets' play. The film was made for Aldrich's own company.[6]. Film actor Charles Castle (Jack Palance) has made a successful career for himself by negotiating the swings and roundabouts of the celebrity system. Aldrich said he was "terribly ambivalent about the Hoff character". Are we making more or better pictures without that central control? The Big Knife is a 1955 film noir directed and produced by Robert Aldrich from a screenplay by James Poe based on the 1949 play by Clifford Odets. Why the special treatment for Winters? Smiley suggests Castle invite her over, to help him be free ' at. Her over, to help him be free of the studio system the... More than Odets ' the greatest all-time Movies ( according to RYM users ) closing on May 28th 109. Crime drama adapted from the Oscars red carpet Nat, to help him be free humorous a. Castle wants to be drawn and, finally, an outraged Hoff lets go., Rod Steiger and Everett Sloan are great as the monstrous studio honcho and weaselly agent, Nat, help! Track of everything you watch ; tell your friends a bath to be drawn and, finally an. Of 1955, and starring fellow Group Theatre alumnus John Garfield as Charles Castle a... 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