When an employee at an illegal gambling den dies suspiciously, her sister, Nancy, looks into the situation and falls for Johnny O'Clock, a suave partner in the underground casino. Selfish and non-committal by nature, Johnny slowly begins to return Nancy's affection and decides to run away with her, but conflict within his business threatens their plans. As Johnny tries to distance himself from the casino, his shady past comes back to haunt him.
Dick Powell
Johnny O'Clock
Evelyn Keyes
Nancy Hobson
Lee J. Cobb
Inspector Koch
Ellen Drew
Nelle Marchettis
Nina Foch
Harriet Hobson
Thomas Gomez
Pete Marchettis
John Kellogg
Charlie
Jim Bannon
Chuck Blayden
Mabel Paige
Slatternly Woman Tenant
Phil Brown
Phil, Hotel Clerk
Fred Aldrich
Hotel Doorman
George Alesko
Practical Dealer
John P. Barrett
Floorman
Fred Beecher
Practical Dealer
Brooks Benedict
Card Player
John Berkes
Waiter
Jeff Chandler
Turk
Gene Delmont
Dealer
Johnny Duncan
Newsboy
Matty Fain
Fleming
Virginia Farmer
Mrs. Wilson
Victoria Faust
Marion
Adolph Faylauer
Hotel Guest
Jerry Frank
Man
Ralph Freedman
Practical Dealer
Raoul Freeman
Detective
Dick Gordon
Card Player
Jesse Graves
Redcap
Kit Guard
Punchy
Robert Haines
Gambler
Joe Helper
Practical Dealer
Al Hill
Fisherman
Kenner G. Kemp
Hotel Desk Man
Pat Lane
Onlooker
George Lloyd
Fisherman
Cy Malis
Dealer
Edward Margolis
Practical Dealer
Charles Marsh
Businessman
Allen Mathews
Bodyguard
Thomas H. O'Neil
Practical Dealer
Bob Perry
Dealer
Charles Perry
Dealer
Robin Raymond
Hatcheck Girl
Shimen Ruskin
Dry Cleaner Guy
Carl Saxe
Detective
Jeffrey Sayre
Card Player
Cy Schindell
Dealer
Sammy Shack
Dealer
Jack C. Smith
Practical Dealer
Charles St. George
Dealer
Bert Stevens
Passerby
Bill Stubbs
Practical Dealer
Brick Sullivan
Policeman
Ralph Volkie
Dealer
Charles Wexler
Bartender
George Zouzaniles
Practical Dealer
Charles Mueller
Bodyguard
Kenneth MacDonald
Cop
Director, Screenplay
Robert Rossen
Original Story
Milton Holmes
February 20, 2017
7
You play very cute, and nasty!
Johnny O'Clock has everything under control. He has a partnership in a thriving casino and all his little peccadilloes are at ease in his world. Then things start to go awry, his partnership with Marchettis comes under severe pressure on account of Mrs Marchettis' dalliances, and worst of all, the hat check girl he had a soft spot for has turned up dead. Johnny is feeling the heat, from every corner of his world it seems.
At the time of writing this, Johnny O' Clock has under ten reviews written on IMDb and barely 200 votes cast, one can only assume that Johnny is badly under seen! Without knowing the issues of accessibility on TV and DVD, it may just be that this little noir treasure has slipped through the net of many a genre observer. Without pushing the boundaries of noir and its devilish off shoots, it's a film with all the necessary noir components in place, a tightly accomplished film that definitely deserves a bigger audience.
The plot, though very basic in the context of the genre/style it sits in (thus making it easy enough for the casual viewer to enjoy), is a series of double (triple) crosses smothered in a delicate hint of aromatic femme fatale. Throw in crooked and grizzly bear like coppers, get Robert Rossen to make it his directorial debut, and ask Burnett Guffey to photograph it, and you got a lovely helping of noirish stew. All you then ask for is your cast to come up trumps, and thankfully they do.
Dick Powell plays Johnny O'Clock with the right blend of dapper charm and cool calm toughness, Lee J Cobb (grizzly bear copper), Thomas Gomez (Pete Marchettis) and John Kellogg (the muscle) all play it tough without over egging the pudding. The girls are nicely played by Evelyn Keyes ("99 River Street" & "The Seven Year Itch"), Ellen Drew ("The Man from Colorado") and the delicious Nina Foch ("The Ten Commandments") - with Drew showing definite shades of Hayworth at times - though only shades mind!
It's not a dark picture and those hoping for a head scratcher will be sorely disappointed, and I would be a liar if I said that I didn't think the ending needed a more dramatic punch. But I'll be damned if this wasn't a most enjoyable experience, twisty and turny without making the head spin for sake's sake, "Johnny O'clock" is well worth your time. Time! Get it? Groan. 7/10
Status:
Released
Original Language:
English
Budget:
$0.00
Revenue:
$1,750,000.00