Johnny O'Clock

"Johnny Played Rough With Women Who Played Cute!"

1947 1h 35m EN

😐

6.3

MID

★6.3TMDB · 51

CrimeDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

When an employee at an illegal gambling den dies suspiciously, her sister, Nancy, looks into the situation and falls for Johnny O'Clock, a suave partner in the underground casino. Selfish and non-committal by nature, Johnny slowly begins to return Nancy's affection and decides to run away with her, but conflict within his business threatens their plans. As Johnny tries to distance himself from the casino, his shady past comes back to haunt him.

“Johnny Played Rough With Women Who Played Cute!”

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Cast

Dick Powell
Johnny O'Clock
Evelyn Keyes
Nancy Hobson
Lee J. Cobb
Inspector Koch
Ellen Drew
Nelle Marchettis
Nina Foch
Harriet Hobson
Thomas Gomez
Pete Marchettis
John Kellogg
Charlie
Jim Bannon
Chuck Blayden

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Robert Rossen
Writers: Robert Rossen, Milton Holmes
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

79 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Robert Rossen, shot by Burnett Guffey. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by George Duning. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Warren Low shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Dick Powell and Evelyn Keyes and Lee J. Cobb carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Johnny Played Rough With Women Who Played Cute!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0039515 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 51 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Robert Rossen directs. Burnett Guffey behind the camera. George Duning scores. Warren Low cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

179 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Directed by Robert Rossen, shot by Burnett Guffey. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by George Duning. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Warren Low shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Dick Powell and Evelyn Keyes and Lee J. Cobb carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "Johnny Played Rough With Women Who Played Cute!".
7IMDB entry: tt0039515 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 51 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Burnett Guffey
Original score: George Duning
Editing: Warren Low
Costume design: Jean Louis
Runtime: 95 min · 1h 35m
Status: Released
Box office: $1,750,000
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Johnny O'Clock (1947)

Also by

Robert Rossen

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2017-02-20
★ 7/10
You play very cute, and nasty! Johnny O'Clock has everything under control. He has a partnership in a thriving casino and all his little peccadilloes are at ease in his world. Then things start to go awry, his partnership with Marchettis comes under severe pressure on account of Mrs Marchettis' dalliances, and worst of all, the hat check girl he had a soft spot for has turned up dead. Johnny is feeling the heat, from every corner of his world it seems. At the time of writing this, Johnny O' Clock has under ten reviews written on IMDb and barely 200 votes cast, one can only assume that Johnny is badly under seen! Without knowing the issues of accessibility on TV and DVD, it may just be that this little noir treasure has slipped through the net of many a genre observer. Without pushing the boundaries of noir and its devilish off shoots, it's a film with all the necessary noir components in place, a tightly accomplished film that definitely deserves a bigger audience. The plot, though very basic in the context of the genre/style it sits in (thus making it easy enough for the casual viewer to enjoy), is a series of double (triple) crosses smothered in a delicate hint of aromatic femme fatale. Throw in crooked and grizzly bear like coppers, get Robert Rossen to make it his directorial debut, and ask Burnett Guffey to photograph it, and you got a lovely helping of noirish stew. All you then ask for is your cast to come up trumps, and thankfully they do. Dick Powell plays Johnny O'Clock with the right blend of dapper charm and cool calm toughness, Lee J Cobb (grizzly bear copper), Thomas Gomez (Pete Marchettis) and John Kellogg (the muscle) all play it tough without over egging the pudding. The girls are nicely played by Evelyn Keyes ("99 River Street" & "The Seven Year Itch"), Ellen Drew ("The Man from Colorado") and the delicious Nina Foch ("The Ten Commandments") - with Drew showing definite shades of Hayworth at times - though only shades mind! It's not a dark picture and those hoping for a head scratcher will be sorely disappointed, and I would be a liar if I said that I didn't think the ending needed a more dramatic punch. But I'll be damned if this wasn't a most enjoyable experience, twisty and turny without making the head spin for sake's sake, "Johnny O'clock" is well worth your time. Time! Get it? Groan. 7/10
CinemaSerf2022-03-28
★ 6/10
I have to say I was quite disappointed with this. Dick Powell is the eponymous character, a casino manager who on the face of it is as hard as nails, but a little scratching under the surface reveals that he's actually quite a soft old chap. He's had an affair with the much younger wife (Ellen Drew) of his partner (Thomas Gomez) and she is determined to get him back. Just what is she prepared to do, though? Meantime, Lee J. Cobb is a detective trying to get to the bottom of the mysterious suicide of a woman that brings her sister (Evelyn Keyes) into town, and onto Powell's radar. The crime mystery elements are all too often subsumed in the half-baked romantic intrigues that really drag down the pace to little better than a melodrama with ever so slightly menacing undertones. Powell is quite good in the role, as is Cobb as the moody, but effective policeman - but it was all just a bit dull for me, sorry.