Directed by:
Joseph PevneyCinematography:
Irving GlassbergCast:
Howard Duff, Brian Donlevy, Peggy Dow, Lawrence Tierney, Bruce Bennett, Anne Vernon, Rock Hudson, Peggie Castle, Joseph Pevney, Chester Conklin (more)Plots(1)
If there was a poll for the most villainous character in film noir, one of the hot candidates to win would be journalist Jack Early from Shakedown. Played by Howard Duff, he’s a man with no scruples and no morals, who will stop at nothing in his quest to become a leading reportage photographer. In order to achieve his professional goal and get a good picture, he literally goes over dead bodies – he lets people pose in front of the camera lens in imminent danger of their lives and cold-bloodedly watches a murder. This remarkable contribution to the journalistic noir cycle, set like many noirs in San Francisco, was directed by actor Joseph Pevney in his directorial debut. Rather than a condemnation of media sensationalism, Shakedown can be read as an indictment of materialism and consumerism – for it reads like an anamnesis of a man who has been bound by his desire to fulfill the American Dream. (Noir Film Festival)
(more)Cast
Howard Duff
USA
Best movies:
Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
The Name of the Game (1968) (series)
East of Eden (1981) (series)
Brian Donlevy
Ireland
Best movies:
Destry Rides Again (1939)
Union Pacific (1939)
Birth of the Blues (1941)
Lawrence Tierney
USA
Best movies:
Reservoir Dogs (1992)
The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)
A Child Is Waiting (1963)
Bruce Bennett
USA
Best movies:
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)
Mildred Pierce (1945)
Sudden Fear (1952)
Anne Vernon
France
Best movies:
Il Generale Della Rovere (1959)
Arsène Lupin vs. Arsène Lupin (1962)
Shakedown (1950)
Rock Hudson
USA
Best movies:
Giant (1956)
Winchester '73 (1950)
All That Heaven Allows (1955)
Peggie Castle
USA
Best movies:
99 River Street (1953)
Shakedown (1950)
Frontier Scout (1956)
Joseph Pevney
USA
Best movies:
Body and Soul (1947)
Shakedown (1950)
Thieves' Highway (1949)
Chester Conklin
USA
Best movies:
The Great Dictator (1940)
Modern Times (1936)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
William H. O'Brien
Australia
Best movies:
Some Like It Hot (1959)
The Mysterious Lady (1928)
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
Forbes Murray
Canada
Best movies:
Singin' in the Rain (1952)
Edison, the Man (1940)
The Barkleys of Broadway (1949)
Donald Kerr
USA
Best movies:
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
The Big Country (1958)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
Jack Chefe
Russian Empire
Best movies:
Miracle of Fatima (1952)
It Started with Eve (1941)
All About Eve (1950)
Ralph Brooks
USA
Best movies:
Love Crazy (1941)
After the Thin Man (1936)
Monsieur Verdoux (1947)
Stephen Roberts
USA
Best movies:
Miracle of Fatima (1952)
Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
The Song of Bernadette (1943)
Charles Sherlock
USA
Best movies:
East of Eden (1955)
Strangers on a Train (1951)
Storm Warning (1951)
Roy Engel
USA
Best movies:
The Name of the Game (1968) (series)
Strangers on a Train (1951)
Spartacus (1960)
William Marks
Best movies:
The Harder They Fall (1956)
The Cimarron Kid (1952)
Shakedown (1950)
Eric Wilton
UK
Best movies:
Limelight (1952)
Gaslight (1944)
After the Thin Man (1936)