Eddie Miller struggles with his hatred of women, he's especially bothered by seeing women with their lovers. He starts a killing spree as a sniper by shooting women from far distances. In an attempt to get caught, he writes an anonymous letter to the police begging them to stop him.
Arthur Franz
Eddie Miller
Adolphe Menjou
Frank Kafka
Gerald Mohr
Joe Ferris
Marie Windsor
Jean Darr
Frank Faylen
Anderson
Richard Kiley
James G. Kent
Mabel Paige
Landlady
Marlo Dwyer
May Nelson
Geraldine Carr
Checker
Carl Benton Reid
Liddell
Harry Cheshire
Mayor
Charles Lane
Loud Drunk at Club
Byron Foulger
Peter Eureka
Danny Mummert
Young Man with Gun
Sidney Miller
Hospital Intern
John Eldredge
Stonecroft
Robert Foulk
Officer Rivers
Charles Watts
Detective
Victor Sen Yung
Tom
Jean Willes
Woman Exiting Bar
Jay Novello
Pete
Grandon Rhodes
Warren Fitzpatrick
Lilian Bond
Mrs. Fitzpatrick
Marlene Lyden
Woman (uncredited)
Paul Kruger
Detective at Lineup (uncredited)
Danni Sue Nolan
Sandy (uncredited)
Kathleen O'Malley
Woman (uncredited)
Sarah Selby
TV Interviewer (uncredited)
Karen Sharpe
Millie (uncredited)
Blackie Whiteford
Man at Darr Murder Scene (uncredited)
Isabel Withers
Desk Nurse (uncredited)
Director
Edward Dmytryk
Screenplay
Harry Brown
Story
Edward Anhalt
Story
Edna Anhalt
April 24, 2014
8
You must stop me before I do it again.
"High among police problems is that of the sex criminal, responsible last year alone for offences which victimised 31,175 women. Adequate and understanding laws do not exist. Law enforcement is helpless. Here in terms of one case, is the story of a man whose enemy was womankind"
Produced by Stanley Kramer, directed by Edward Dmytryk and photographed by Burnett Guffey. Those three things were enough to make me positively desperate to see this film at the earliest opportunity, what I hadn't counted on, and what a true surprise it was too, was just what a taut and tightly scripted picture it is. Written by Edward and Edna Anhalt, who were academy award nominated for their efforts, The Sniper has an edgy griminess to it that itches away at the skin. It's not that the violence is particularly harsh, because it isn't and it's simply executed, it's that our protagonist Edward 'Eddie' Miller is on the surface a normal every day Joe, someone who may be living in our respective neighbourhoods.
This is one of those films that, and I disagree with some of my fellow reviewers on the net, is as relevant today as it was back in 1952. Problems of not recognising psychotic tendencies do still way lay our respective societies, the police and medical staff do still have problems nipping in the bud potential street walking maniacs from being in our midst. Here we get Arthur Franz ("Sands of Iwo Jima" & "The Caine Mutiny") as Miller brilliantly essaying a mind fragmenting by the day, his hatred of women born from some dark place long back in his childhood. Even little girls on the street bring him out in a sweat, as a mother slaps her child, Miller feels the burn on his very own face as well. Some scenes linger once the film has long since finished, a chimney stack shooting or a fair ground sequence as Miller's built up frenzy rises to the surface, all brilliantly put together by Dmytryk and Guffey, with the latter's work in and around San Francisco very impressive. Fleshing out the cast with impacting results is Adolphe Menjou, Gerald Mohr, Marie Windsor, Frank Faylen & Richard Kiley.
It's a fabulous character study that also excellently brings notice to the plight of police procedural matters on a case such as this. No this film isn't some sex maniac shocker that defined a genre, it is however an important film in many ways. The themes that it highlights are not to be ignored, and for 1952 this film to me has to be seen as a landmark of sorts, certainly its influence can be found in many a similar films that followed further on down the line. Finally, because it's largely unseen, it's now available on DVD (excellent print), so hopefully more people can get to see this highly recommended film. A film that may be beautiful to look at, but most assuredly is very very dark in thematics. 8/10
Status:
Released
Original Language:
English
Budget:
$0.00
Revenue:
$0.00