Cornered

1945 1h 42m EN

😐

6.2

MID

★6.2TMDB · 45

Thriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A World War II veteran hunts down the Nazi collaborators who killed his wife.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Dick Powell
Laurence Gerard
Walter Slezak
Melchior Incza
Micheline Cheirel
Mme. Madeleine Jarnac(Laurent)
Nina Vale
Señora Camargo
Morris Carnovsky
Manuel Satana
Edgar Barrier
DuBois, Insurance Man
Steven Geray
Señor Tomas Camargo
Jack La Rue
Diego, Hotel Valet

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Edward Dmytryk
Writers: John Wexley, John Paxton, Ben Hecht
Languages: Spanish, French, 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

81 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: Spanish, French, English.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Edward Dmytryk, shot by Harry J. Wild. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Dick Powell and Walter Slezak and Micheline Cheirel carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0037615 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 45 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Edward Dmytryk directs. Harry J. Wild behind the camera. Roy Webb scores. Joseph Noriega cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in Spanish, French, English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

181 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Dialogue crosses 3 languages: Spanish, French, English.
3Directed by Edward Dmytryk, shot by Harry J. Wild. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Roy Webb. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Joseph Noriega shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Dick Powell and Walter Slezak and Micheline Cheirel carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt0037615 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 45 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Harry J. Wild
Original score: Roy Webb
Editing: Joseph Noriega
Costume design: Renié
Makeup / hair: Mel Berns
Runtime: 102 min · 1h 42m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Cornered (1945)

Also by

Edward Dmytryk

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2020-06-09
★ 8/10
Which gives you the insane privilege to blow people to bits? Cornered is directed by Edward Dmytryk and adapted to screenplay by John Paxton from a story by John Wexley. It stars Dick Powell, Walter Slezak and Micheline Cheirel. Music is by Roy Webb and cinematography by Harry J. Wild. Story is set at the end of World War II and finds Powell as demobbed Canadian flier Laurence Gerard. He returns to France to discover who ordered the killing of a group of French Resistance fighters, one of which was his new bride. Learning from his father-in-law that it was a Vichy collaborator named Marcel Jarnac. Gerard refuses to believe the rumour that Jarnac is dead and sets off on a trail that will lead him to Argentina, from where it soon becomes evident that Fascism is alive and well. From the off Powell's intense miserablist Laurence Gerard sets the tone for Dmytryk's no-nonsense picture. Mood is set at revenge bleak and spills over into a humourless detective picture with huge anti-fascist leanings. As Gerard snakes his way from France to Argentina, via Switzerland, and heavy with a black heart, he encounters a myriad of shifty characters and traverses what would become a roll call of film noir locations. Enter dark streets, alleys and low lighted rooms. Wedge in some murder and grim violence and Cornered clearly isn't a film for those in need of a pick me up!. It's also a twisty narrative, a plot that demands the utmost attention to follow what is going on. But that attention is rewarded with a spiky script that lets the number of characters really come to life, especially Gerard, who reels off a number of cutting remarks befitting his gait. Dmytryk ("Farewell My Lovely/Crossfire") and Wild ("Pitfall/The Big Steal") shoot it mostly as night time set-ups, thus enforcing the murky atmosphere, and Webb's musical accompaniment carries with it a ticking time bomb effect. Powell (also "Farewell My Lovely/Pitfall") and Slezak ("Lifeboat/Born To Kill") shine in a cast list of mostly unknowns or stock character actors. The former broods convincingly, the latter is the epitome of sweaty untrust. But there are some fine performances in the support slots, notably from Nina Vale as slinky femme fatale in waiting, Señora Camargo, of whom little is known since her film career numbers only three. While Luther Adler ("D.O.A./Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye"), in the early throes of his career, menacingly strolls into the picture for the last quarter for great viewing impact. Good stuff and recommended with confidence to film fans who enjoy some grit and blackness in their viewing diets. 8/10

Production companies