| Ricardo Montalban | ... | Peter Moralas | |
| Sally Forrest | ... | Grace Shanway | |
| Bruce Bennett | ... | Dr. McAdoo | |
| Elsa Lanchester | ... | Mrs. Smerrling | |
| Marshall Thompson | ... | Henry Shanway | |
| Jan Sterling | ... | Vivian Heldon | |
| Edmon Ryan | ... | James Joshua Harkley | |
| Betsy Blair | ... | Jackie Elcott | |
| Wally Maher | ... | Tim Sharkey | |
| Ralph Dumke | ... | A Tattooist | |
| Willard Waterman | ... | A Mortician | |
| Walter Burke | ... | An Ornithologist | |
| Don Shelton | ... | A District Attorney | |
| rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
| Elsie Baker | ... | Elderly Lady (uncredited) | |
| George Brand | ... | Man in Bedroom (uncredited) | |
| Ralph Brooks | ... | Reporter (uncredited) | |
| Douglas Carter | ... | Counterman at The Dunes (uncredited) | |
| Mack Chandler | ... | Doorman (uncredited) | |
| George Cooper | ... | Reporter (uncredited) | |
| John Crawford | ... | Reporter (uncredited) | |
| Lucille Curtis | ... | Mrs. Harkley (uncredited) | |
| Bert Davidson | ... | Dr. Thorpe (uncredited) | |
| King Donovan | ... | Reporter at Beach House (uncredited) | |
| Mike Donovan | ... | Porter (uncredited) | |
| Robert Foulk | ... | Detective O'Hara (uncredited) | |
| Jim Frasher | ... | High School Boy (uncredited) | |
| Ned Glass | ... | Dr. Ben Levy, McAdoo's asst. (uncredited) | |
| Eula Guy | ... | Mrs. Fischer (uncredited) | |
| Sherry Hall | ... | Car Insurance Clerk (uncredited) | |
| Bradford Hatton | ... | Al - Grass Skirt Cafe Bartender (uncredited) | |
| Jim Hayward | ... | Constable Fischer (uncredited) | |
| Perry Ivins | ... | Alienist (uncredited) | |
| William F. Leicester | ... | Doctor (uncredited) | |
| Arthur M. Loew Jr. | ... | Sailor (uncredited) | |
| Louise Lorimer | ... | Mrs. Shanway (uncredited) | |
| John Maxwell | ... | Detective Kilrain (uncredited) | |
| May McAvoy | ... | Nurse (uncredited) | |
| David McMahon | ... | Detective Garrity (uncredited) | |
| Ralph Montgomery | ... | Waiter (uncredited) | |
| Matt Moore | ... | Dr. Rockton (uncredited) | |
| Melvin H. Moore | ... | Oyster Shucker (uncredited) | |
| Ernesto Morelli | ... | Portuguese Fisherman (uncredited) | |
| Virginia Mullen | ... | Neighbor (uncredited) | |
| Allen O'Locklin | ... | Photographer (uncredited) | |
| Frank Overton | ... | Guard (uncredited) | |
| John Payne | ... | Law Student (uncredited) | |
| Juanita Quigley | ... | Daughter (uncredited) | |
| Suzanne Ridgeway | ... | Bar Girl at Grass Skirt Cafe (uncredited) | |
| Maurice Samuels | ... | Tailor (uncredited) | |
| Fred Santley | ... | Pawnbroker (uncredited) | |
| Jack Shea | ... | Policeman (uncredited) | |
| Fred Sherman | ... | Photographer (uncredited) | |
| George Sherwood | ... | Reporter (uncredited) | |
| Mary Jane Smith | ... | Daughter (uncredited) | |
| Robert Strong | ... | Policeman (uncredited) | |
| Peter M. Thompson | ... | Law Student (uncredited) | |
| Charles Wagenheim | ... | Baggage Clerk (uncredited) | |
| Napoleon Whiting | ... | Red Cap (uncredited) | |
Directed by | |||
| John Sturges | |||
Writing credits | ||
| Sydney Boehm | (screenplay) and | |
| Richard Brooks | (screenplay) | |
| Leonard Spigelgass | (story) | |
Produced by | |||
| Frank E. Taylor | .... | producer | |
Original Music by | |||
| Rudolph G. Kopp | |||
Cinematography by | |||
| John Alton | |||
Film Editing by | |||
| Ferris Webster | |||
Art Direction by | |||
| Cedric Gibbons | |||
| Gabriel Scognamillo | |||
Set Decoration by | |||
| Edwin B. Willis | |||
Makeup Department | |||
| Jack Dawn | .... | makeup designer | |
| Sydney Guilaroff | .... | hair stylist | |
| Ethel Neejus | .... | hair stylist (uncredited) | |
| Sam Palo | .... | makeup artist (uncredited) | |
Production Management | |||
| Charles J. Hunt | .... | production manager (uncredited) | |
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director | |||
| Sid Sidman | .... | assistant director (uncredited) | |
Art Department | |||
| Ralph S. Hurst | .... | associate set decorator | |
Sound Department | |||
| Douglas Shearer | .... | recording supervisor | |
| Joe Edmondson | .... | sound (uncredited) | |
Camera and Electrical Department | |||
| Joe DeAce | .... | grip (uncredited) | |
| Otto Dyar | .... | still photographer (uncredited) | |
| A. Lindsley Lane | .... | camera operator (uncredited) | |
| Wes Shanks | .... | gaffer (uncredited) | |
Other crew | |||
| Don McDougall | .... | script supervisor (uncredited) | |
Thanks | |||
| President and Fellows of Harvard College | .... | thanks | |
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| Mystic River | Tension | Basic Instinct | Dangers of the Canadian Mounted | The Spider Returns |
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| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| IMDb Crime section | IMDb USA section | Add this title to MyMovies |
John Sturges' taut, tense thriller combines a documentary style (including location shooting in Boston) with intense performances, striking photography, and a fresh-for-its-time approach to its murder mystery plot. When floozy Vivian Heldon (Jan Sterling as the anti-Judy Holliday :-) hijacks grieving father Henry Shanway's (Marshall Thompson) car to go shake down James Harkley (Edmon Ryan), the rich father of her baby-in-progress, she's next seen as a skeleton washed up on a Hyannis beach. Lt. Pete Moralas (Ricardo Montalban) enlists the help of Harvard forensic criminologist Dr. McAdoo (an avuncular yet no-nonsense Bruce Bennett), and the results are as riveting as a good episode of one of the "CSI" series. I liked the way the investigation and forensic evidence rang true while the story (Leonard Spigelgrass got an Oscar nomination) kept me on the edge of my seat with twists and turns, including a monkey wrench thrown into the works by the late Vivian's blackmail-minded landlady, Mrs. Smerrling (a delightfully sly Elsa Lanchester). The details about the effect that the wrongly-accused Henry Shanway's incarceration has on his wife Grace and their finances were movingly and believably rendered. I found myself empathizing and thinking, "Man, why didn't you stay with Grace in the hospital when your baby died, instead of going off in your misery to get drunk at 'The Grass Skirt'? Sheesh, you think you're the only one mourning?!" The performances are uniformly excellent, although I was particularly pleasantly surprised by Montalban. Having grown up watching Montalban in relatively lighthearted fare like TV's FANTASY ISLAND, I was impressed at how good he was as tough, cynical Pete, the kind of cop who thinks a suspect is guilty until proved innocent. Even when I was annoyed with Pete for refusing to believe Grace when she insists that Henry's innocent, I could feel his frustration when he realizes that, after all his hard investigative work, his airtight case against the accused man isn't so airtight after all. There's also a great moment when the smug Harkley notices Pete's accent (smoothly explained away as Pete being from the Portuguese district) and starts trying to pull rank on Pete, class-wise. There are even some witty moments, like when Pete and his partner end up walking all over Harvard Square trying to find out where the heck the department of legal forensics is. This all-but-neglected post-war film noir gem turns up on Turner Classic Movies from time to time, and it's well worth watching for in the TV listings!