Suddenly

Released Sep 17, 1954

1h 15m

Mystery & Thriller

List

100%

Tomatometer

10 Reviews

63%

Audience Score

1,000+ Ratings

In advance of a presidential visit to the small town of Suddenly, California, a trio of FBI agents enters the Benson family's home to assess potential security risks. Once inside, leader John Baron (Frank Sinatra) reveals himself as a psychopathic assassin, and he kidnaps the family in order to use their house as his vantage point in his plot to kill the president. Sheriff Tod Shaw (Sterling Hayden) matches wits with the assassin and his gang in an attempt to save the day.

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V.A. Musetto

New York Post

Rated: 3/4

Mar 27, 2004

Full Review

Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

Suddenly is a tough, unsparing film that is worth a revival today; as a historical document, is captures a sense of pessimism and entropy that wasn’t given free rein until the rampant downbeat paranoia of the 70’s….

Rated: 3/5

Dec 4, 2022

Full Review

Clyde Gilmour

Maclean's Magazine

Some of the characters are rather thinly imagined but Frank Sinatra as the chief killer proves again (as he did last year in From Here to Eternity) that he doesn't need to sing to keep his name in lights.

Dec 10, 2019

Full Review

David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

...a decent (and appreciatively brisk) little B movie.

Rated: 2.5/4

Aug 8, 2018

Full Review

James Plath

Family Home Theater

If you remove the hokum--the overly obvious and period-wholesome nonsense that frames the main narrative--Suddenly is a taut thriller in the Key Largo mold.

Rated: B

Jan 16, 2018

Full Review

Christopher Null

Filmcritic.com

Rated: 3.5/5

Nov 11, 2006

Full Review

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Ashley H

Suddenly is an okay film. It is about three gangsters who have the intention of killing the president of the USA. Frank Sinatra and Sterling Hayden give decent performances. The screenplay is a little slow in places. Lewis Allen did an alright job directing this movie. I liked this motion picture because of the drama.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/16/24

Full Review

Steve D

A cynical dark and unsatisfying film.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/23/24

Full Review

CKB

This entertaining film doesn't really hold together except as a vehicle for Frank Sinatra to show off his newly-honed acting chops, and as an early example of Cold War propaganda. The plot is not so much about a presidential assassination attempt but instead centers on the transformation of a war widow, desperate to insulate herself and her young son from war and killing, into someone who takes action to defend herself and all she loves. She serves as a metaphor for war-weary Americans who were reluctant to buy into their political leaders' newly-minted Cold War in the early 50s. This woman's sleepy little town is quietly infiltrated by evil assassins hired to kill the POTUS, showing that this could happen anywhere, and we should all be very afraid. This is paralleled by a very public invasion by the Secret Service and State Troopers who take over the town in police state fashion without telling its residents why. Both sets of invaders belong to the emergent Cold War narrative. The plot depends on Secret Service agents largely ignoring this woman's house, which affords the best view of the train station where the president will arrive, but in reality they would immediately commandeer such a location to monitor the situation. In a telling irony, one of the assassins is played by Paul Frees, who would soon become the voice of Boris Badenov, the cartoon Cold War spy whose mission to ‘keel Moose and Squirrel' constantly fails. Frank Sinatra has top billing and clearly intends to own this movie, stealing every scene with charisma and a supportive cameraman. His assassin character is a narcissistic loser who discovered the joy of killing as a soldier in WWII (before getting a Section 8 discharge) and has found post-war empowerment as a hit man. Such an uncharacteristic bad guy role suits Sinatra fine, however, since he can give full rein to his personal narcissism to play this part to the hilt.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/29/23

Full Review

Shioka O

A little crime drama. Sinatra did a job. This is almost a decade before the assassination of JF Kennedy, might influenced the hitman.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/02/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Very taut little movie. Everyone does does a good job, but this is Frank's movie. Like Marilyn Monroe, I think a lot of people today forget that Frank Sinatra was a talented actor. It's a shame this movie doesn't have more name recognition.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/16/23

Full Review

Liam D

Frank Sinatra (On the Town, The Oscar) and Sterling Hayden (The Last Command, Variety Girl) keep the tension up in this nerve shattering Noir Thriller

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/14/21

Full Review

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Lewis Allen

Director

Frank Sinatra

John Baron

Sterling Hayden

Sheriff Tod Shaw

James Gleason

Pop Benson

Nancy Gates

Ellen Benson

Willis Bouchey

Dan Carney

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Synopsis

In advance of a presidential visit to the small town of Suddenly, California, a trio of FBI agents enters the Benson family's home to assess potential security risks. Once inside, leader John Baron (Frank Sinatra) reveals himself as a psychopathic assassin, and he kidnaps the family in order to use their house as his vantage point in his plot to kill the president. Sheriff Tod Shaw (Sterling Hayden) matches wits with the assassin and his gang in an attempt to save the day.

Director: Lewis Allen
Screenwriter: Richard Sale
Production Co: Libra Productions Inc.
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 17, 1954, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 1, 2012
Runtime: 1h 15m

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