Some Came Running (1958)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Vincente Minnelli

Writers:

James Jones (novel)
John Patrick (writer) ...
(more)

Release Date:

18 December 1958 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Dave was back and the whole town knew that trouble- and women- were close behind!

Plot:

Dave Hirsch, a writer and army veteran, returns to 1948 Parkman, Indiana, his hometown. His prosperous brother introduces him to Gwen French...

Plot Keywords:

Writer | Hometown | Indiana | Veteran | Brother Sister Relationship

Awards:

Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 7 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Frank Sinatra	...	Dave Hirsh
Dean Martin	...	Bama Dillert (professional gambler)
Shirley MacLaine	...	Ginnie Moorehead
Martha Hyer	...	Gwen French (schoolteacher)
Arthur Kennedy	...	Frank Hirsh
Nancy Gates	...	Edith Barclay (Frank Hirsh's secretary)
Leora Dana	...	Agnes Hirsh
Betty Lou Keim	...	Dawn Hirsh
Larry Gates	...	Prof. Robert Haven French
Steve Peck	...	Raymond Lanchak (Ginny's suitor) (as Steven Peck)
Connie Gilchrist	...	Jane Barclay (Edith's mother)
Ned Wever	...	Smitty (owner, Smitty's Bar)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jan Arvan	...	Nightclub manager (uncredited)
George Brengel	...	Ned Deacon (uncredited)
John Brennan	...	Wally Dennis (uncredited)
George Cisar	...	Hubie Nelson (uncredited)
Chuck Courtney	...	Parkman Hotel clerk (uncredited)
Sheryl Deauville	...	Julia, Solo Dancer in Bar (uncredited)
Roy Engel	...	Sheriff (uncredited)
Joe Gray	...	(uncredited)
Don Haggerty	...	Ted Harperspoon (Dawn's date in Terre Haute) (uncredited)
Anthony Jochim	...	Judge Baskin (uncredited)
James Jones	...	Crew cut man playing poker (uncredited)
Paul Jones	...	George Huff (uncredited)
Donald Kerr	...	Waiter at Smitty's (uncredited)
Harold Lakeman	...	Extra (uncredited)
Len Lesser	...	Indianapolis poker player (uncredited)
William Lockridge	...	Bus driver (uncredited)
Joe McKenna	...	Extra (uncredited)
Denny Miller	...	Dewey Cole (uncredited)
Frank Mitchell	...	Nightclub waiter (uncredited)
Carmen Phillips	...	Rosalie ('Bama's girl) (uncredited)
Janelle Richards	...	Virginia Stevens (uncredited)
Ric Roman	...	Joe (uncredited)
Marion Ross	...	Sister Mary Joseph (hospital nurse) (uncredited)
William Schallert	...	Al (jewelry store clerk) (uncredited)
Diane Signore	...	Extra (uncredited)
George E. Stone	...	Slim (uncredited)
Albert T. Viola	...	Guitarist (uncredited)
Geraldine Wall	...	Mrs. Stevens (uncredited)
Dave White	...	Bus driver (uncredited)
John Wurtz	...	Extra (uncredited)

Directed by
Vincente Minnelli

Writing credits
James Jones		(novel "Some Came Running")
John Patrick		(writer) &
Arthur Sheekman		(writer)

Produced by
Sol C. Siegel	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Elmer Bernstein

Cinematography by
William H. Daniels

Film Editing by
Adrienne Fazan

Art Direction by
William A. Horning
Urie McCleary

Set Decoration by
Henry Grace
Robert Priestley

Costume Design by
Walter Plunkett

Makeup Department
William Tuttle	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Dave Friedman	....	production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
William McGarry	....	assistant director
Tom McCrory	....	second assistant director (uncredited)
Kurt Neumann	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department
Franklin Milton	....	recording supervisor
Van Allen James	....	sound editor (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Doug Hubbard	....	special effects (uncredited)

Stunts
Joe Gray	....	stunts (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Charles K. Hagedon	....	color consultant

Music Department
Elmer Bernstein	....	conductor (uncredited)
Jack Hayes	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Leo Shuken	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1958) (USA) (theatrical)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1964) (USA) (TV) (original airing) (pan/scan)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (199?) (USA) (VHS) (pan/scan)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1959) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (2008) (Germany) (DVD)

Runtime:

137 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System) | 4-Track Stereo

Certification:

Canada:PA (Ontario) | USA:Approved (PCA #19154) | West Germany:16 (f) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Jefferson County, Indiana, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

It was during the making of this film that Shirley MacLaine found herself welcomed into what would later be called the "Rat Pack" fraternity that included Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, her co-stars in this film. Shirley MacLaine says the group known as the "Rat Pack" was actually called "The Clan" by the members while "Rat Pack" was a term given in the 1950s to Humphrey Bogart and his pals.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the end, Jenny says she wants to go back and get her pillow; they never make it to her house. Nonetheless, in the final shot in the amusement park, there's the pillow.

Quotes:

[In reference to Dave Hirsh's Brother, Frank]
Hotel Clerk: You don't look like him.
Dave Hirsh: Thanks

Movie Connections:

References Courage of Lassie (1946)

Soundtrack:

To Love And Be Loved

Entertaining But Ill Conceived

At 1200+ pages the James Jones novel "Some Came Running" deals with family divisions, drinking, gambling, sexual repression, adultery and other small town USA vices. All this is embedded in a general theme about the hypocrisy so pervasive in 1948 Middle America.

Jones was most famous for his explorations of WWII and its aftermath. "Some Came Running" is somewhat autobiographical as Jones was one of those returning soldiers from WWII whose long absence gave them a new perspective on details in the social fabric that they had not really noticed before. He was from a small town in Illinois and served in the 25th Infantry Division. He was present during the attack on Pearl Harbor and the battle of Guadalcanal. Basing "From Here to Eternity" and "The Thin Red Line on his experiences.

The film adaptation of "Some Came Running" is long but entertaining, especially if you like seeing a lot of big-name stars. Despite its setting in a small town (it was filmed in Madison, Indiana) this was a big budget epic picture.

The Jones character is named Dave Hirsch and played by Frank Sinatra. He is a successful writer but has not written anything for several years. The film begins inside a bus on its way to Dave's hometown of Parkman, Indiana. He has just been discharged from the army and is wearing his uniform (no rank insignia is visible).

His brother Frank (Arthur Kennedy) has become a big shot in the town and introduces him to Gwen French (Martha Hyer), a college literature teacher who is impressed with his writing but put off by his wild life style. Dave has been followed to Parkton by Ginny (Shirley MacLaine), an airhead he met in a Chicago bar. This sets up the film's love triangle.

Dave becomes friends with a local gambler named Bama Dillert (Dean Martin), moves into his house, and pairs up with him on the regional poker circuit where they are very successful.

While Dave tries to come to terms with his roots and with his future, his brother Frank begins an affair with his secretary.

Generally speaking, adopting a 1200 page book to the screen is ill advised and "Some Came Running" is no exception, if only because the screenwriter incorporated too much of the story for a feature length film to handle effectively.

But the producers compounded this problem with the hiring Vincente Minnelli as director and by casting for box office draw instead of acting talent. This resulted in a film with slick production values, an extremely thin plot, lots of characters (but none with any depth), and a too long running time. Can you say flat, lifeless, prosaic, and unconvincing?

Minnelli was a freak about visual details. He was more interested in whether an actress' dress coordinated well with the wallpaper in the set than how the actress handled her character. The inexperienced MacLaine has commented on how the only guidance she received during filming was from her male co-stars. In fact it was Sinatra who insisted the film end differently than the book as a way to make MacLaine's character more memorable. Minnelli's lack of interest in acting for the camera made him an especially poor choice for an overloaded film that needed subtle and nuanced elements in each scene to flesh out the characterization.

For the same reason, a non-actor like "one-take" Sinatra was completely over-matched by the demands of playing his character. Sinatra was comfortable playing himself in front of the camera and in most of his roles this was more than satisfactory, as it is during the early stages of "Some Came Running". But things start to crash and burn with the start of his scenes with Hyer, and the film essentially collapses the first time he reveals that he loves her.

Because of time constraints this romance had to be compressed, requiring a really skilled performance to set up things for the declaration of love, if it is to be at all convincing. Even if Sinatra took direction well (he didn't) and even if Minnelli was a master of acting for the camera (few were worse), the sudden transformation from Sinatra to lovesick puppy would have been a difficult sell.

A very interesting element of this film is Minnelli's obsession with the sets and the moving camera. There are no close-ups and relatively few medium shots. Almost everything is a wide shot or the master shot itself. This could reflect Minnelli's overriding interest in showcasing his sets, or indicate that Sinatra's work habits made changing camera setups difficult, or that the editor found that many of the performances could not withstand close scrutiny. Whatever the cause, it makes it much more difficult to identify and connect with characters who are always so distant from the camera. This is a detail you may want to watch for the next time you see the film.

This was Dean Martin's signature performance and he is truly excellent. Arthur Kennedy won an Oscar for his portrayal of Frank Hirsh but I think the best performance of all was by Leora Dane as his wife Agnes. Their scenes together have real energy, and almost creepy believability.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.