User reviews

Pushover is directed by Richard Quine and adapted to screenplay by Roy Huggins from stories written by Bill S. Ballinger and Thomas Walsh. It stars Fred MacMurray, Phillip Carey, Kim Novak, Dorothy Malone and E. G. Marshall. Music is scored by Arthur Morton and cinematography by Lester White.

Straight cop Paul Sheridan (MacMurray) is on the trail of the loot stolen in a bank robbery where a guard was shot and killed. He is tasked with getting to know Lona McLane (Novak), the girlfriend of the chief suspect in the robbery. But once contact is made, and surveillance set up over the road from her apartment complex, Sheridan begins to fall in love and lust with the sultry femme.

Comparisons with the superior Double Indemnity are fair enough, but really there is enough here, and considerable differences too, for the film to rightfully be judged on its own merits. Also of note to point out is that one or two critics have questioned if Pushover is actually a film noir piece? Bizarre! Given that character motives, destinies and thematics of plot are quintessential film noir.

A good but weary guy is emotionally vulnerable and finds his life spun into a vortex of lust, greed and murder. Yet the femme fatale responsible, is not a rank and file manipulator, she too has big issues to deal with, a trophy girlfriend to a crook, she coarsely resents this fact. The cop who never smiles and the girl who has forgotten how too, is there hope there? Do they need the money that has weaved them together? What does that old devil called fate have in store for them? Classic noir traits do pulse from the plot. True, the trajectory the pic takes had been a well trodden formula in noir by the mid fifties, where noir as a strong force was on the wane, but this holds up very well.

It isn't just a piece solely relying on two characters either, there's the concurrent tale of Sheridan's voyeuristic partner Rik McAllister (Carey), who has caught the eye of Lona's next door neighbour, Ann Stewart (Malone). Both these characters operate in a different world to the other two, yet the question remains if a relationship can be born out from such shady beginnings? The presentation of relationships here is delightfully perverse. The visual style wrung out by Quine (Drive a Crooked Road) and White (5 Against the House) is most assuredly noir, with 99% of the film set at night, with prominent shadows, damp streets lit by bulbous lamps and roof top scenes decorated sparsely by jutting aerials. The L.A. backdrop a moody observer to the unwrapping of damaged human goods.

Cast are very good, all working well for their reliable director. Novak sizzles in what was her first credited starring role, she perfectly embodies a gal that someone like Paul Sheridan could lose his soul for. MacMurray is suitably weary, his lived in face telling of a life lacking in genuine moments of pleasure. Carey, square jawed, tall and handsome, he is the perfect foil to MacMurray's woe. Malone offers the potential ray of light trying to break out in this dark part of America, while Marshall as tough Lieutenant Eckstrom and Allen Nourse as a copper riding the noir train to sadness, score favourably too.

It opens with a daylight bank robbery and closes in true noir style on a cold and wet night time street. Pushover, deserving to be viewed as one of the more interesting 1950s film noirs. 8/10

Don't read the reviews comparing it to other films before watching it on it's own merits, which are many. A damn fine Noir which isn't beholding to any other.

IMDb requires ten lines of text, but instead of impressing you with my opinions, I'll do this:

Kim Novak is stunning physically and memorable performance wise.

Fred Mc Murray is excellent on the northern-edge of his leading man days.

The first 3 minutes are perfect.

Really, the first 3 minutes make it worth watching.

LA at night, the land that built noir.

See it. Trust me.

PUSHOVER is an underrated, little known crime melodrama from the mid-'50s that introduced the blonde beauty of KIM NOVAK to audiences and gave FRED MacMURRAY another chance to play an authority figure seduced by the charms of a femme fatale. When the story begins, it turns out his accidental meeting with Novak was really a set-up, he being a cop assigned to keep track of her whereabouts after a bank hold-up results in the death of a police officer.

He suspects that her mobster boyfriend pulled the job and at first resists when she tries to convince him they can use the bank money for themselves. But eventually, he weakens and before you know it he's informing her that her phone is wire tapped and the two of them are just one step ahead of the police for the rest of the film.

PHIL CAREY, as a fellow officer and E.G. MARSHALL as the lead detective are excellent in supporting roles, as is DOROTHY MALONE in a pivotal role as a girl occupying the apartment next to Novak in a U-shaped building that enables MacMurray and Carey to keep an eye on both gals through binoculars (shades of REAR WINDOW).

Conveniently, no one ever draws the blinds in these sort of thrillers and spying is made so easy for the sake of plotting, as the 24-hour surveillance occupies much of the story. The noir elements are present throughout, the dark rainy streets, the shadowy photography during car chases, the clipped delivery of lines, the murder scheme gone awry, the femme fatale angelic on the outside, bad within.

But somehow it never becomes a major film noir, relegated to its place in obscurity over the years and not really a title that pops up when one speaks of film noir--but it does qualify as noir, on a minor scale, and it's given some taut direction and tight suspense by director Richard Quine.

Kim is as easy as ever on the eyes although a bit robotic in her acting technique and never quite convincing as a mobster's moll. MacMurray has a less interesting, more one-dimensional role as a cop corrupted by beauty.

All in all, definitely worth watching.

Tight, driven little peice of "film noir" with MacMurray as a good cop driven to distraction (and murder) by the gangester moll (Novak, in her film debut, somewhat more effective than usual) he's been assigned to spy on. Malone fills in for a charming bit as the girl-next-door who MacMurray's sidekick falls for. Typically, a mistake is made by the criminals, and they will pay for it, but they're having fun along the way. Some confusion in the script seems to have resulted in Novak's character turning somewhat sympathetic towards the ending, sounding a disingenuous note. Still, good solid bit of film.

It's Fred MacMurray again, as a virtuous agent for the causes of good. Instead of playing an insurance salesman with an eye for the fast buck, here he's playing a cop assigned to shadow Novak, the mobster's moll. Kim Novak is as beautiful as she's ever appeared on the screen. The lighting in her early scenes is as dramatic and sensual as it can be. Who wouldn't fall in love with her? Comparisons with Double Indemnity just can't be ignored. She is the vamp that Barbara Stanwyck could never be. She's softer and more feminine in that 50's style, and less hard-edged than Stanwyck, which makes her much more dangerous. Novak's generally wooden acting style & "flat affect" gives way to a softer sex-kitten demeanor. MacMurray's character is a more active participant in the events that unfold than in "DD", where he seemed to get his courage and strength from Stanwyck's cold & calculating personna. Billy Wilder could have made this a masterpiece, but even without the guidance of the master's hand, this one is definitely well-worth watching.

Enjoyed this great classic film from 1954 starring Fred MacMurray, (Paul Sheridan) who is a detective and gets involved with Lona McLane,(Kim Novak) who is connected with a bank robber and Lona cons Paul to kill her boyfriend so they can take the money for themselves. The only problem is that Paul Sheridan is assigned to watch Lona on a stake out with other detectives and have her apartment watched and her telephone wires tapped. There are many problems that face Paul and Lona and one of Paul's detective friends gets involved with a girl named Ann Stewart, (Dorothy Malone) who lives in the same apartment house as Lona and lives down the hall. This story becomes quite exciting as a crooked cop tries to cover his tracks and makes mistakes after mistakes. Don't miss this Classic it is great with outstanding acting and a great cast of actors. Enjoy.

This film is especially notable as being the first film of Kim Novak. She is already a sizzler, from her very first scenes. The camera loves her, and her career from this point on was inevitable. It was only the next year that she set all the men of America afire by her sensuous role in Bill Inge's 'Picnic', opposite William Holden. High cheekbones never hurt a gal in films, and as Kim Novak must be of Czech descent judging from her name, we have here the classic Slav look. It wasn't long before 'Vertigo' and by then, Kim Novak had become an icon, which she remains to this day. Fred MacMurray is the leading man in this film, excellent as usual but really too old for someone like Novak to fall in love with at first sight as called for in this story. Oh well, that's casting for you. Dorothy Malone appears in this as a sweetie. The film is gripping, at the tail end of noir, a mixture of crime, cops, and mystery. The post-War mood of sombre brooding is ending, things are lightening up a bit, and crime and corruption are no longer seen as an intrusive Dark Hand of Doom but as eruptions into daily life of natural human impulses of greed, lust, and evil, which are as spontaneous as barbecues are in summer in Texas. These things 'just happen', and an end of the world scenario of being engulfed by wickedness is now seen more prosaically as 'oh no, not another crook and another crime!' As crime keeps on happening, you kind of get used to it, and films like this take on an air of 'here we go again'. So it is no longer brooding atmosphere but gripping intrigue which makes the movies work by the mid-1950s.

Greed, corruption, deception, femme fatale dame, key elements of a noir thriller that here in totality are deficiently dramatized. Likely the fault of director Richard Quine who failed to infuse the storyline and actors with the necessary passionate momentum. We get Fred MacMurray presenting his usual average American guy this time cast as an undercover police detective. And in this context still not able to fully cancel out his innate milk toast image. Takes what's called suspension of disbelief to buy into the premise this dedicated cop can so easily become a corrupt cop even when the lure is a seductive gangster moll. Even one dished up so tantalizingly by Kim Novak. Kim Novak in her intro featured movie role is 21 years old and carries herself like a woman of the world who at a young age has been around. Has already seen, heard and done plenty. It fits her character well as she manages to flavor her resilient worldliness with the right amount of poignant vulnerability. Dorothy Malone appears here still in her brown haired days before she renovated into a platinum blonde. An image transition that jump started her career and brought her to public attention. All in all, the movie is no great shakes but well worth watching. Has significant entertainment value. Not strictly a B movie but more like a B+.

In Pushover Fred MacMurray dusts off his acclaimed portrayal of Walter Neff the luckless insurance agent from Double Indemnity and gives him a badge as an easily corruptible cop. The temptation in his path is another dame, in this case Kim Novak being 'introduced' in this film as Columbia's answer to Marilyn Monroe.

MacMurray's a cop who is assigned to get close to gangster Paul Richards's moll Novak. Richards and his mob have pulled off a bank heist and if they had any sense, they'd be out of the country and fleeing. But police captain E.G. Marshall reasons that Richards ain't going nowhere without Novak.

Of course what he doesn't figure on MacMurray's libido as well as Richards. Novak's one cool ice princess in this one, she's willing to spend the loot with one crook as another and one with a badge sounds pretty good to her.

There's a side romance going as well with Novak's neighbor, nurse Dorothy Malone and fellow officer Philip Carey. Malone gets innocently caught up in the intrigue. Carey while doing surveillance on Novak's apartment gets to peeping in on Malone next door. His little Rear Window act pays off in the end.

Pushover is a fine noir drama and highly recommended for those who like myself know full well that Fred MacMurray is capable of a lot more than Disney films and My Three Sons which I think most know him for today. Novak makes a stunning debut as the ultimately luckless moll and the rest of the cast backs them up with a splendid ensemble effort.

I didn't expect this movie to be this good knowing nothing about it. Kim Novak is not the bitch that Barbara Stanwyck is, but the most beautiful actress on the movie screen and shy way about her that was truly sensuous. No matter who the leading man in her movies was, you just felt the helplessness of them being totally enthralled with this soft, sensuous, unbelievable sex goddess, for lack of another original description.

This is only the second movie I seen Fred MacMurray in (no my three sons here) besides Double Indemnity and his performance is very good here also,... just as Double Indemnity... I found myself hoping he would get away with it!

Pushover (1954)

An early widescreen black and white film noir gem. It comes late in the noir cycle but it crackles with precision and sharp acting. Though the details of the plot differ, it is an obvious echo of "Double Indemnity" with the leading man, played again by Fred MacMurray, sucked into a risky plot for big money and alluring love. And of course things don't go as planned.

MacMurray is an interesting choice in both films, because he really is more of an everyman than a noir type. Noir types are variable, I know, but you can range from Mitchum to Bogart to Dana Andrews to a whole bunch of minor actors who all have a kind of coolness or hardness to them, and you never see a regular fellow like MacMurray (the closest might be Mickey Rooney, of all people, in a neglected oddball noir, the 1950 "Quicksand"). MacMurray would later find his true calling as the dad in "My Three Sons" but when you see him in these early film roles there is something wrong and some perfect about his presence.

I don't mean to neglect the femme fatale here, a young Kim Novak, in her first full role. She's terrific, really, a bit cool (which was her style) but more convincing, to me, than her more famous appearance across from Sinatra in "Man with the Golden Arm." Maybe it's partly how well matched she is as an actress to MacMurray, though if there is a flaw to the film , it might be the unlikeness of these two falling in love, even with $210,000 to persuade them. But love is love and who's to say? The two of them, often playing in separate scenes (talking on the phone, or MacMurray watching her through binoculars), make this a full blooded drama as well as a crime noir.

The pace and editing of this movie, and the script and story, are perfect. It's easily the kind of film you could study for its structure, and for the writing, which isn't filled with noir doozies but with believable fast lines between two people looking to get through a growing debacle. It's a conventional structure, but its precision is comparable (for its precision) to "The Killing," that famous Stanley Kubrick film from 1956. And if it isn't as inventive, and if it lacks that amazing ending, "Pushover" is resilient because it is so reasonable. It could very well happen, and these relatively ordinary types (Novak being admired for her looks, but there are lots of lookers like her out there, especially gangster's girls) make it all the more compelling.

The filming is great, Lester White not known in particular in the cinematography world but shot a whole slew of decent and unamazing westerns (as well as the Ida Lupino "Women's Prison" which has it moments). Little known director Richard Quine made lots of lightweight and comic fare (he worked a bit with both Blake Edwards and Mickey Rooney, then later with Jack Lemmon) and this might be his most serious 1950s film, in tone. It's certainly the kind that you can't look away for a second because it clips along without a lull for an hour and a half.

Very few would regard this as a classic Noir but thanks to Richard Quine's taut direction it does what it has to do in the space of a little less than ninety minutes and pretty well fulfils the promise of its excellent opening scene.

The voyeuristic element anticipates 'Rear Window' whilst comparisons, albeit rather tiresome, have inevitably been made with 'Double Indemnity', solely because Fred MacMurray again plays a sap. This minor opus cannot of course hold a candle to Wilder's masterpiece and here the femme fatale of Kim Novak is an unwitting one whose blonde hair is her own.

Mr. MacMurray has been unfairly disparaged by some IMDb members who evidently cannot recognise a good actor when they see one. Although appearing to be the acme of affability he was at his most effective when playing against type, which is certainly the case here.

There is excellent support from stalwart E. G. Marshall, mucho macho Philip Carey and appealing Dorothy Malone. This marks the first speaking role for Kim Novak and already she has that elusive air which the camera adores. If you are as much of a pushover for Miss Novak as I, then this film is a must.

I'm glad so many reviewers really liked this movie, but I feel like I must have watched a different one than they did. This film is bland. While there's nothing truly wrong with recycling plots, circumstances, or characters, it darn well better be taken up a notch in order to outshine its predecessors.

I find MacMurray miscast. Although Ms. Novak contributed many exciting performances throughout her career, she's lackluster in this one. I blame the director, Richard Quine. It's as though he didn't quite know how to elicit from her the kind of performance she was truly capable of.

The story is okay. The script adequate, but whatever noir-style elements it has are overlooked or seriously downplayed. The remaining cast aren't standouts, although it's always a delight to watch Ms. Malone.

It's by no means a total waste of time, but I wouldn't go out of my way to search it out.

Pushover (1954) : Brief Review -

Fred MacMurray gets into the "Double Indemnity" zone again after a decade for another brilliant crime noir. This film was adapted from two novels, Thomas Walsh's The Night Watch and William S. Ballinger's Rafferty-two of the most successful novels of the time with successful TV adaptations. Pushover pushes the crime noir a step above as far as other contemporary noirs are concerned. Be it James Cagney, Burt Lancaster, Orson Welles, or Robert Mitchum, all their noirs were inclined to glorify criminals or their crimes. Richard Quine's Pushover pushes the criminal angle aside and adds a cop's honesty for a change. The film will remind you of Billy Wilder's classic noir "Double Indemnity" (1944), as our protagonist, Fred MacMurray, kills a man for a lady and the dough. The difference here is that Fred plays a cop, whereas in Double Indemnity he played an insurance agent. The story follows a similar angle of his attempts to cover the crime and get away with money, but, as the law of nature would have it, it's not that easy. Things start getting out of his hands, and he struggles to get away. The rest is supposed to be kept a secret as it might spoil the fun of the climax, but maybe you know it already. What I liked about it is that you see honest cops all over, except for the protagonist. One of them even dies saying that for 25 years he has been a dumb, honest cop. Many of the well-known crime noirs of the 40s and 50s lacked this loyalty. Anyway, it's a fine noir with a pacy screenplay and thrilling storyline. Fred MacMurray is a thing to watch on screen with an intense look. Introducing the Kim Novak in her first ever big role. Not a femme fatale, but pretty much along the same lines as a helpless girl. Phil Carey, Dorothy Malone, and E. G. Marshall provide great support. Besides acting, Richard Quine knew a lot about direction too, and Pushover proves it.

RATING - 7/10*

By - #samthebestest.

Really taut little thriller, with enough cat and mouse to satisfy fans of the old Tom and Jerry. Fred Mac Murray's cop starts out as a professional but ends up in a vortex of crime thanks to the compelling allure of the shapely Miss Novak. Good thing she's called on to do little more than stand around looking sexy, because her bad, breathy imitation of Marilyn M. in the opening garage scene had me reaching for the off button. I gather Columbia (read Harry Cohn) had high hopes of launching Novak's career with this role. Too bad she had to compete with a hundred other bosomy blonde Marilyn's for the honor. I like the seduction scene with its subtly unzipped zipper, about as far as the screen could go at that time. The plot wrinkles get pretty complicated at times, but the pace keeps moving nicely along. Then too, the final line presents a poignant slice of ironic insight.There's the inevitable comparison here with the thematically similar Double Idemnity, but then Novak is no Stanwyck and MacMurray is a ten dissipated years older. Still, this little suspenser needs no help from the past and can stand firmly on its own.

Riichard Quine was certainly no Billy Wilder and "Pushover" was a long way from "Double Indemnity" but perhaps someone somewhere had the idea that if they cast Fred MacMurray as the crooked cop who falls for gangster's moll Kim Novak, (in her debut), perhaps some of the old "Double Indemnity" magic might rub off. It didn't but this noirish crime film is still a very solid entertainment with a more than decent plot.

It might have been better, of course, had Novak a tenth of Stanwyck's talent or if it had a screenplay by someone like Chandler but on the plus side it did have a supporting cast that included Philip Carey, Dorothy Malone and E. G. Marshall and some first-rate cinematography from Lester White and if, fundamentally, it's a B-Movie it's a good one and MacMurray is always worth watching. No classic, then, (though it is quite highly thought of in some quarters), but a very enjoyable genre piece nevertheless.

Fred MacMurray clearly has not learned his lesson in Pushover where another fatale scrambles his brain and career with a promise of happily after after. While no Double Indemnity it is a more than passable suspense tightly edited with its fair share of tense moments.

After a huge bank haul cops put a 24/7 surveillance on the thief's moll Lona Mc Clane (Kim Novak). One of the squad, detective Sheridan (Mac Murray) gets too close however making him a "pushover " for the experienced Lona.

Released a month before Hitchcock's Rear Window, Pushover establishes a similar beach head with the cops observing from an apartment across the courtyard the comings and goings of Lona along with her neighbor, a nurse (Dorothy Malone) next door. The voyeuristic overtones are cleverly handled by director Richard Quine who economically leaves the uncouth to a couple of reliefs who have half a minute of screen time allowing Sheridan to focus on getting Lona out of her fix and his partner (Phil Carey) to carry on a chaste observation of the nurse next door.

Novak in her debut is surprisingly effective, especially when she has to get tough. Outstanding as he was in Double, MacMurray is miscast here, lacking the intensity of a more suitable Kirk Douglas. There is simply no passion in the clinches or spark in the coupling.

Quine keeps the pace and suspense at a decent pitch within the limited space of the apartment building but Sheridan's bungling towards the climax becomes far fetched as the film collapses under the weight of a mawkish poorly composed final scene.

This is a fairly tight little thriller, a good but not quite good enough film noir to be counted among the classics. While it owes a lot to "Double Indemnity" and foreshadows "Rear Window," it just doesn't rise to their memorable level. Fred MacMurray offers an eerily familiar, though less inspired, repeat of his performance in the Wilder classic; Kim Novak (in her first film) is no match for Stanwyck, nor did she ever become one; Richard Quine simply was not as fine a director as Hitchcock or Wilder. And yet, it's a pretty good bit of entertainment, recommended to those who appreciate the genre as a whole rather than merely a short list of classics.

I am so used to seeing Fred MacMurray play a good guy that watching him play Paul Sheridan, a police officer with questionable morals, really added interest to this noir film. He gets seduced, although I think "Pushover" is too strong of a word, by Kim Novak's character Lona, who did not have to work very hard. A violent bank robber is on the run and the police have his latest mol Lona's place under surveillance.

Meanwhile, Paul makes contact with Lona to get information out of her...but the tables get turned as she slowly convinces him to try to get the money for then to be together...a simple plan involving killing her boyfriend. Paul's partner does a little voyeuristic watching of Lona's next door neighbor who is a nurse played by Dorothy Malone named Ann Stewart. And it's a good thing he did...because these two are the key to solving this crime!

"I don't think you're getting any spark"-Paul

I liked seeing this more manly side of Fred MacMurray, who really took Kim Novak into his arms forcefully for their first kiss. I also really enjoyed the straight cop played by Philip Carey. He and Dorothy Malone really were the saving graces of this film.

Novak is lovely in her bullet bra sex kitten kind of way and MacMurray tougher than I have ever seen him. This should be a must see for noir fans and I think Novak and MacMurray fans as well. This is a recommendation from me.

Things looked slicker and brighter in the Fifties Film-Noir's for better or worse, mostly worse. This is a Mid-Fifties entry that is relentlessly suspenseful with edge of your seat anticipation. Almost all Scenes are at night and the rain is constant making this forever trying to break out of that Eisenhower shine and it manages quite well.

Kim Novak debuting see-through and bra-less (at least in the first few scenes) is a honey of a trap and good but tainted (his parents did nothing but fight) Cop, Fred MacMurray is just too old and weary to resist such a young, beautiful Babe that also manages to be in proximity of a quarter Million unmarked.

This is not great Noir but a fine Character Study and while the Dialog is not as sharp as it could be, it nevertheless is engaging and just Hard-Boiled enough to pass. There is a bit of off-beat Voyeurism tamed by that Fifties (here we go again) softening of a "Girl next door" blossoming Romance, started by a perversion but redeemed and on its way to the White Picket Fence.

A bank robbery ends with the killing of a security guard. Sexy Lona McLane (Kim Novak) in a crippled car is saved by Paul Sheridan (Fred MacMurray) and they have a fling. He's a cop assigned to stakeout a known robber's girlfriend who turns out to be Lona. She sets out to corrupt the pushover cop in her own scheme. Police Lieutenant Karl Eckstrom (E.G. Marshall) is his boss.

Fred MacMurray continues his noir leading man and Kim Novak is the breakout star. She definitely has all the star qualities. She is sexy, alluring, superior, innocent, and devious. It's an all-around performance. MacMurray is doing compelling work. It does need more tension especially in the first half. Maybe make Paul the lead investigator in the case and start with him at the bank investigating. There is too much waiting for the situation to develop although I'm not sure how to speed it up.

I enjoyed the good performances from all the cast, though no surprises here from Fred MacMurray, in this late noir however the actors were all severely let down by the very flat direction of Richard Quine in what could have been a taut thriller instead of what we have here, than is a Double Indemnity wannabe. The film's atmosphere though is greatly helped with a redeeming feature - the weather and in particular the rain, the wet streets.

I wonder if Hitchcock had seen this movie before casting Kim Novak in Vertigo? She moves through the movie like a somnambulist. It's worth pointing out the sweater she wears in early scenes which looks forward to the sweater girls that followed.