1 / 8
RUNTIME
Did you know
Tight 76-minute runtime β shorter than most television pilots.
MoodPlayr Β· trivia#01
Midnight
"One woman was to die at midnight!...another woman was to kill at the same hour...why?"
1934 1h 16m EN
π
4.9
SKIP
β
4.9TMDB Β· 28
DramaCrime
Synopsis
Spoiler shield
Jury foreman Edward Weldon's questioning leads to the death sentence for Ethel Saxon. His daughter Stella claims to have killed her lover, the gangster Garboni, just as Saxon was to sit in the electric chair.
βOne woman was to die at midnight!...another woman was to kill at the same hour...why?β
Cast
Humphrey Bogart
Gar Boni
Sidney Fox
Stella Weldon
O. P. Heggie
Edward Weldon
Henry Hull
Nolan
Margaret Wycherly
Mrs. Weldon
Lynne Overman
Joe Biggers
Cora Witherspoon
Elizabeth McGrath
Richard Whorf
Arthur Weldon
Credits
Behind the camera
- Director
- Chester Erskine
- Writers
- Chester Erskine
- Languages
- English, Latin
- 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 πΏ
2 / 8
ERA
Did you know
92 years old β a genuine piece of film history.
MoodPlayr Β· trivia#02
3 / 8
WORLD
Did you know
Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Latin.
MoodPlayr Β· trivia#03
4 / 8
ERA
Did you know
Lean credit list β fewer than 30 people officially credited.
MoodPlayr Β· trivia#04
5 / 8
DIRECTOR
Did you know
Directed by Chester Erskine, shot by William O. Steiner. Note their partnership β DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
MoodPlayr Β· trivia#05
6 / 8
DIRECTOR
Did you know
Editor Leo Zochling shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
MoodPlayr Β· trivia#06
7 / 8
CAST
Did you know
Humphrey Bogart and Sidney Fox and O. P. Heggie carry the top of the cast.
MoodPlayr Β· trivia#07
8 / 8
FACT
Did you know
Marketing tagline: "One woman was to die at midnight!...another woman was to kill at the same hour...why?".
MoodPlayr Β· trivia#08
Cinephile deep dive
The take
Chester Erskine directs. William O. Steiner behind the camera. Leo Zochling cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English, Latin.
Trivia
Things worth knowing
- 1Tight 76-minute runtime β shorter than most television pilots.
- 292 years old β a genuine piece of film history.
- 3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Latin.
- 4Lean credit list β fewer than 30 people officially credited.
- 5Directed by Chester Erskine, shot by William O. Steiner. Note their partnership β DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
- 6Editor Leo Zochling shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
- 7Humphrey Bogart and Sidney Fox and O. P. Heggie carry the top of the cast.
- 8Marketing tagline: "One woman was to die at midnight!...another woman was to kill at the same hour...why?".
- 9IMDB entry: tt0025499 β still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
- 10Only 28 TMDB ratings β you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
The technical file
- Cinematography
- William O. Steiner
- Editing
- Leo Zochling
- Runtime
- 76 min Β· 1h 16m
- Aspect ratio (typical)
- 1.37:1 (Academy)
- Status
- Released
- Original language
- EN
- Certification (US)
- NR
- IMDB
- Midnight (1934)
Also by
Chester Erskine
Stills Β· wallpapers
Selected frames
Full-resolution frames β open one to save it as a wallpaper.
Trailers & featurettes
Watch the pieces
Community reviews
What people are saying
- CinemaSerfβ 5/10
Every expense has been spared with this truly mediocre crime drama. A woman is accused and convicted for murder, but as the evening before her comeuppance draws near, the foreman of the jury "Weldon" (OP Heggie) is being solicited to try and stop the execution. Quite what he was supposed to do is anyones guess, and so justice takes it's course. The plot, somewhat glacially, now moves on to a woman "Stella" (Sidney Fox) finding herself in a very similar situation - pleading a defence of crime passionnel. Guess what, though... she is the daughter of the aforementioned jury foreman. She has been charged with killing the rather unsavoury "Gar Boni" (Humphrey Bogart). Can she escape the same fate? The dialogue is delivered as if each were being individually cued, and despite his billing Bogart features hardly at all in what is otherwise a rather weakly directed and presented sob story in which I had no investment. Early talkie maybe, but all in all it's pretty unremarkable stuff.
Production companies
Who made it
- AL
All Star Productions
Key crew
- Theatre PlayClaire Sifton
- EditorLeo Zochling
- Theatre PlayPaul Sifton
- ProducerChester Erskine
- SoundC.A. Tuthill
Themes & keywords
What it's about, really
- death sentence
- pre-code
Release history Β· US
When it landed
- Theatrical1934-03-07NR
Also known as
International titles
- Call It MurderUS
- Call It MurderGB
- GecΙyarΔ±sΔ±AZ
