Stubs - Pushover

Pushover (1954) starring Fred MacMurray, Phil Carey, Kim Novak, Dorothy Malone, E.G. Marshall Directed by Richard Quine. Screenplay by Roy Huggins Based on the novel The Night Watch by Thomas Walsh (New York, 1952) and the novel Rafferty by William S. Ballinger (New York, 1953).  Produced by Jules Schermer. Black and White. Run time: 88 minutes. USA. Film Noir, Detective, Drama

While it’s not unheard of, it is still interesting when a movie is based on two sources. In the case of Pushover, the film is based on the novels The Night Watch by Thomas Walsh and Rafferty by William S. Ballinger, even though neither book received onscreen credit.

Even though the film starred Fred MacMurray, an established star, the film’s low budget required a less expensive actress as the female lead. The choice was Kim Novak, a little-known actress who, despite the “Introducing,” label attached to her name, had appeared in small roles (billed under her real name, Marilyn Novak) in earlier RKO productions The French Line (1953) and Son of Sinbad (1953, released 1955). When she signed with Columbia, CEO Harry Cohen wanted to change her name, but Novak would only agree to changing her first to Kim.

Producer Jules Schermer summed up his lead actress, "Kim was not an actress when we started shooting. The face was beautiful. The body was great. She photographed sensationally. But she couldn’t show any emotion. So, we kept her dialogue to a minimum. When you can’t act, you react — which is what we counted on."

The film’s production took about a month, from January 16 to February 13, 1954. Working titles for this film included The Killer Wore a Badge, 322 French Street and The Night Watch. The film premiered on July 30, 1954 as Pushover.

 

Harry Wheeler (Paul Richards) and his partner disarm the bank guard (K.L. Smith).

The film opens with a carefully planned bank heist by hoodlum Harry Wheeler (Paul Richards) and his partner. But the bank guard (K.L. Smith) tries to be a hero and makes a grab for the partner’s gun. But his attempt fails and he’s killed. Wheeler manages to escape with the $200,000 stolen.

 Paul Sheridan (Fred MacMurray) picks up Lona McLane (Kim Novak) and brings her back to his apartment.

Later, after a movie, Lona McLane (Kim Novak) can’t get her car to start. Coming to her aid is Paul Sheridan (Fred MacMurray). While he can’t find the reason for the car’s engine flooding, he does offer to help her. They call an all-night Beery – Mechanic (James Anderson), who informs them that he’ll have to take her car into his shop. It will be a couple of hours, longer than the bar they’re in will be open, so Paul offers to take her home. They end up back at his place, where there is little doubt that they get along really well.

Police Lt. Carl Eckstrom (E.G. Marshall) maps out the stakeout with Paul and Rick McAllister (Philip Carey).

We find out the truth behind the encounter, later in Police Lt. Carl Eckstrom’s (E.G. Marshall) office, when Paul reveals that after three days with Lona, he’s convinced that she’s Wheeler’s girlfriend and he’s happy to get off that duty. Eckstrom has devised a stakeout across the way from Lona’s apartment. Paul, his partner Rick McAllister (Philip Carey), and Paddy Dolan (Allen Nourse) will work together. They have a view of her apartment and a tap on her phone. The third one will stay down on the street and call up if Wheeler is seen. Though he doesn’t elaborate, Eckstrom warns Paul to be on guard about Dolan, alluding to a problem that might mean he’d lose his pension.

Lona leaves the apartment and Paul follows her.

On Paul and Rick's first shift, Lona leaves the apartment and Paul follows her, only to be startled when she drives to his apartment. She accuses him of staging their meeting and of being a cop. Paul admits to being a detective, but insists that he had been seeing her for personal reasons. Lona discloses that she is frightened of her involvement with Wheeler and insists that she did not know about his criminal activities until after the bank robbery.

Paul is surprised that Lona ends up at his apartment.

On her way out the door, Lona asks what would happen to Wheeler if she turned him in and suggests that she and Paul would be happy with the robbery money. While he admits that would be a perfect situation for a detective to exploit,  he is angry that she would suggest such a thing and demands she leave.

Paul keeps watch during the stakeout.

When Paul returns to the stakeout room, he discovers Rick is watching Lona's neighbor, a young nurse, Ann Stewart (Dorothy Malone), whom Rick comes to admire. Later, on his way to the stakeout, Rick sees Ann being hit upon by a Masher (Paul Picerni), who takes her purse to get her to talk to him. Paul intercedes and makes the guy give back the purse before he throws him out. Ann is impressed, but Rick can’t take her up on her offer to have coffee.

 Rick rescues Ann Stewart (Dorothy Malone) from a masher, but has to get back to the stakeout.

Depressed over his argument with Lona, Paul grows restless and his increasing exhaustion is noted by Rick and the other members of the stakeout team. One evening, when Rick leaves the stakeout room briefly, Paul telephones Lona and asks to meet her on the roof.

When they meet, Paul promises to get the money when they apprehend Wheeler if she will run away with him. Lona agrees and reveals that Wheeler will be contacting her the next day by phone to find out through an agreed upon signal, whether it is safe for him to meet her. Paul tells her not to answer the phone until he’s on duty after 7 PM the next day. Then, once she gives the all-clear to leave the apartment immediately, she’s to call her apartment and if Paul answers, it’s safe for her to come back. If he doesn’t, he tells her to stay away.

Early in Paul and Rick's shift, Wheeler calls and, after Lona gives the signal and departs, Paul has Rick follow her. Intending to capture Wheeler alone, Paul telephones detective Paddy Dolan, who is keeping watch in a squad car outside, and is disturbed when there is no answer.

Paul, with Paddy Dolan (Allen Nourse), spots Wheeler's arrival at Lona's apartment building.

Paul goes downstairs to check on Paddy and sees him leaving a nearby bar. Paddy is guilt-stricken over his lapse and, as he apologizes, the detectives notice Wheeler entering the apartment building. Paul assures Paddy he will cover for him and the detectives arrest Wheeler on his way out.

Paul makes Wheeler lead them to his car to retrieve the money. While Paddy is examining the bag of money,  Paul shoots Wheeler, claiming he was about to attack Paddy. Paul makes Paddy help put Wheeler’s body in the trunk. Paddy is somewhat confused that Paul wants to cover for him, but grows suspicious when Paul suggests they come back the next day and hide Wheeler's car, then call it in. Wheeler makes Paul give him the keys to Wheeler’s car.

Later, as arranged with Lona, Paul slips into her apartment and waits for her call to assure her all is well. After the call, as he’s leaving her apartment, Paul runs into Ann, who has come looking for ice cubes for a party going on in her apartment. Paul practically closes the door on her and then waits for her to go back into her apartment before heading back to the stakeout room.

Rick returns shortly, followed by Eckstrom, who sends Paul out on a pretext. Eckstrom informs Rick that he telephoned the stakeout room for an hour and received no answer. Rick admits that as he was leaving to trail Lona, he noted Paddy's empty car and saw him going into the bar and suggests that Paul may be covering for the older detective.

Meanwhile, Paul finds Paddy and instructs him to move Wheeler's car so it will not be discovered too soon. Certain that Paul is after the money, Paddy refuses and, pulling his gun, declares his intention to report his failure to Eckstrom. When Paddy's car phone rings, Paul lunges for the gun, which goes off, killing Paddy.

Afterward, Paul hurries to where they had left Wheeler’s car and discovers that it has been moved. Paul then telephones Lona for another meeting on the roof. Suspecting Paddy moved the car, but it would still be nearby, Lona spots it parked in an alley.

Meanwhile, Ann, who knows about the police presence, runs into Rick and informs him that she saw a man coming out of Lona's apartment, who Rick assumes was Wheeler.

Later, as Lona takes Rick on another fruitless drive, Paul moves Wheeler's car and dumps the body, which is discovered just as he returns to the stakeout room.

Eckstrom and Rick then question Lona, who reveals nothing. Paul is called down to the apartment and when Ann spots him, she reports it to the police. Paul gets the call to check on Ann’s call and forces his way into her apartment. He holds her until Eckstrom and Rick leave.

He then takes her next door at gunpoint and leaves the building with Lona.

Eckstrom and Rick go outside, where the police presence has grown considerably. There, they receive Ann's report. Rick, recognizing the name, runs inside to check on her.

Paul tries to make Ann retrieve the money.

Meanwhile, Paul leads the women around the back to where he’s parked Wheeler’s car, but spots two squad cars around the car. He sends Ann to the trunk to retrieve the bag with the money in it. Rick sees this and, hiding behind one of the squad cars, tells Ann to duck as he opens fire on Paul.

Rick fires at Paul.

Retreating, Paul stops and tells Lona to meet him at Wilshire and Western and that he’s going back to get the car. While Rick goes around one way to look for Paul, another detective intercepts him and calls for Paul to stop. When he doesn’t, he fires, but Paul tries to get into the car and is shot again.

A wounded Paul lies in the street while his partner and Ann look on.

Lona, who had not left, goes back to Paul, who tells her that they really didn’t need the money to be happy. Lona is arrested and a wounded Paul apologizes to Rick, who then escorts Ann back to her apartment.

I get a Double Indemnity vibe from the film, mostly because both star Fred MacMurray and since both seem to have familiar plot points. Just like Walter Neff knew the way to get the most insurance money when he kills his lover’s husband, here Paul Sheridan sees the angle wherein he can keep the money and when he gets rid of Wheeler. Oh, Lona may suggest it, just as Phyllis Dietrich does, but Paul, like Neff, works out the scheme and tries to carry it out. In both films, the plans go awry and, in the end, MacMurray’s character must face his disappointed superior, though there doesn’t seem to be any love lost between the two here.

But it is not MacMurray who gets all the attention. A lot is made of this being Kim Novak’s first starring role. Although the onscreen credits read "And introducing Kim Novak," the film did not mark her debut. She had a small role (billed under her real name, Marilyn Novak) in two earlier RKO productions. The HR review of Pushover predicted Novak would have a future in film, describing her as "possessed of a face and figure to set men dreaming and a Jean Harlow-like personality that may set wives seething." DV observed that Novak, "[A] beaut, has an attractive personality."

All that praise and she’s still not much more in this film than, as H.H.T. in The New York Times writes, a “conventionally decorative” role. For the most part, she spends her time either doing what Wheeler tells her to do or what Paul tells her to do. And only in films does a 20-year-old woman fall in love with a man 25 years her senior. I can’t say I was blown away by her performance, even though it is said to have launched her career.

E.G. Marshall is a fine actor, but his role as Lt. Carl Eckstrom is pretty much a one note angry dog. He’s effective, but I wouldn’t say this was the best acting he’s capable of.

Phil Carey is good as the side kick detective who falls in love with a nurse he spots on surveillance of her neighbor. Probably best known for his three-decades work as Asa Buchanan on the soap opera One Life to Live or for his tongue-in-cheek portrayal as Granny Goose in a series of commercials for a potato chip, he does good work here.

The object of his affections in the movie is played by Dorothy Malone, an actress who made a big impression in her small role in The Big Sleep (1946). Her role here is, again, small, but she does the most with it. Here, she symbolizes the good girl as opposed to the gun moll played by Kim Novak and a better fit for Carey’s Rick.

The story moves along pretty well under the direction of Richard Quine, a former vaudevillian and actor. When his career waned after World War II, he moved into producing and directing at Columbia Pictures. Quine is probably best remembered for his work with then-writer Blake Edwards on such film as Sound Off (1952); Rainbow 'Round My Shoulder (1952);  and, All Ashore (1953) as well as films like Bell, Book and Candle (1958), The World of Suzie Wong (1960), Paris When It Sizzles (1964), How to Murder Your Wife (1965), and The Prisoner of Zenda (1979).

While the film may play like a B-version of Double Indemnity, Pushover is a pretty good film noir and would be worth checking out.