Soldier of Fortune (1955)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Edward Dmytryk

Writers:

Ernest K. Gann (novel)
Ernest K. Gann (screenplay)

Release Date:

27 May 1955 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama

Plot Keywords:

Communist | Beautiful Woman | Smuggling | Husband Wife Relationship | Chinese

Cast

Clark Gable	...	Hank Lee
Susan Hayward	...	Mrs. Jane Hoyt
Michael Rennie	...	Inspector Merryweather, Hong Kong Marine Police
Gene Barry	...	Louis Hoyt
Alexander D'Arcy	...	Rene Dupont Chevalier (as Alex D'Arcy)
Tom Tully	...	Tweedie, Owner of Tweedie's Bar
Anna Sten	...	Madame Dupree
Russell Collins	...	Icky, Piano Player
Leo Gordon	...	Big Matt
Richard Loo	...	General Po Lin
Soo Yong	...	Dak Lai
Frank Tang	...	Capt. Ying Fai (Chicago)
Jack Kruschen	...	Austin Stoker, Lee's assistant
Mel Welles	...	Fernand Rocha

Runtime:

96 min | 92 min (FMC Library Print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (optical prints) (Western Electric Recording) | 4-Track Stereo (magnetic prints) (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Iceland:L | West Germany:12 (nf) | USA:Approved (certificate #17243) | Canada:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-16 | Spain:T | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Hong Kong, China

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Average Shot Length = ~10.1 seconds. Median Shot Length = ~10.6 seconds.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): While looking through the binoculars at the Chinese gunship, Hank is holding them upside down.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Proof of Life (2000)

Soundtrack:

Don't Fence Me In

One of my Favorites

Gable and Hayward are great to watch and Hong Kong is the uncredited star of this flick. Admittedly, Gable was not in his prime but he had the charm and sex appeal to keep viewers, especially females, interested. There is one scene between Gable and Hayward showing the harbor entrance of a typhoon that is sexier than any current movie showing actual sex. My only complaint with Susan Hayward was her hair. Her stylist really goofed on this one. Her hair was parted in such a way that she looked like she had a "comb-over" from the back. Her clothes were perfect for her neat, compact figure. She really was an adorable woman and I'm glad that she had a happy second marriage. Richard Loo was marvelous as the anti-communist, expatriate general. His comments are as relevant today as they were in 1955. Michael Rennie was as usual the superb Brit that we all loved to watch and listen to in the '50s. But the music has always been the real hook for me. I watch this movie again and again to enjoy the wonderful music. I think David Raksin of "Laura" fame wrote the score.