Shoot to Kill (1947 film)

Shoot to Kill, also known as Police Reporter is a 1947 American film noir directed by William Berke and starring Robert Kent, Luana Walters, Edmund MacDonald and Russell Wade.[1]

Shoot to Kill
Theatrical release poster
Directed byWilliam Berke
Produced byWilliam Berke
Screenplay byEdwin V. Westrate
StarringRobert Kent
Luana Walters
Edmund MacDonald
Music byDarrell Calker
Gene Rodgers
CinematographyBenjamin H. Kline
Edited byArthur A. Brooks
Production
company
Robert L. Lippert Productions
Distributed byScreen Guild Productions
Release date
  • March 15, 1947 (1947-03-15) (United States)
Running time
64 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

Being pursued by police cars, a fleeing motor vehicle crashes off the side of the road. The survivor relates the events that preceded the chase in flashback format. A former gangster is framed by a corrupt district attorney. With his wife and an investigative reporter, he gathers proof of his innocence in hopes of clearing his name.

Cast
  • Russell Wade as investigative reporter George "Mitch" Mitchell
  • Luana Walters (billed as Susan Walters) as Marian Langdon - Logan's wife
  • Edmund MacDonald as the corrupt Asst. DA, Lawrence Dale
  • Robert Kent (billed as Douglas Blackley) as former gangster "Dixie" Logan aka Judge Joel Conroy
  • Vince Barnett as Charlie Gill - Janitor
  • Nestor Paiva as Gus Miller - Gangster
  • Charles Trowbridge as District Attorney John Forsythe
  • Harry Brown as Jim Forman - Paid witness
  • Ted Hecht as Al Collins - Paid witness
  • Harry Cheshire as Mike Blake - Gangster
  • Robert Riordan as Ed Carter
  • Joe Devlin as Smokey, Man Tailing Dale
  • Eddie Foster as Bingo, Man Tailing Dale
  • Frank O'Connor as Deputy Clem Sparks
  • Sammy Stein as Blackie
  • Gene Rodgers as Piano Player

Reception

When the film was released The New York Times panned the film, writing, "Screeching tires and the barking of guns are the chief sound effects in Shoot to Kill, an all-around amateurish job of movie-making which found its way into the Rialto yesterday. An outfit called Screen Guild Productions is responsible for this dilly about an assistant district attorney who double-crosses all his racketeer pals and winds up his career on a slab in the morgue. William Berke as the director-producer did not get anything resembling a performance, much less characterization, out of his players, chief of whom are Russell Wade, Susan Walters, Edmund MacDonald and Douglas Blackley."[2]

Soundtrack

Gene Rodgers appears on screen performing two of his own compositions: "Ballad of the Bayou" and "Rajah's Blues"; the film's score was provided by Darrell Calker.

References
  1. Shoot to Kill at IMDb.
  2. The New York Times, film review, May 17, 1947. Accessed: July 13, 2013.
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