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Act of Violence

Play trailer Poster for Act of Violence Released Dec 21, 1948 1h 22m Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
94% Tomatometer 16 Reviews 77% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
A former prisoner of war, Frank Enley (Van Heflin) is hailed as a hero in his California town. However, Frank actually aided his Nazi captors, and he closely guards this secret. Frank's shameful past comes back to visit him when fellow survivor Joe Parkson (Robert Ryan) emerges, intent on making the turncoat pay for his betrayal. As Joe closes in on Frank, the traitor goes into hiding, abandoning his wife, Edith (Janet Leigh), who has no clue about her husband's wartime transgressions.

Critics Reviews

View All (16) Critics Reviews
Variety Staff Variety It is strong meat for the heavy drama addicts, tellingly produced and played to develop tight excitement. Nov 1, 2007 Full Review Bosley Crowther New York Times Technically Act of Violence touches all the bases in its circuit chase. But it is as though it were doing it on the strength of a long, foul ball. Rated: 3/5 Mar 25, 2006 Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy The film is strengthened by its messy morality. Rated: 3/4 Jun 30, 2024 Full Review Nick Rogers Midwest Film Journal A chilling consideration of the darker side of American dreams, a concise but complex tale about the corrosion of vengeance, and an often agonizing depiction of post-traumatic stress behavior. Rated: 3.5/5 Jun 26, 2024 Full Review Pat Padua Washington City Paper Director Fred Zinnemann is best known for his 1952 masterpiece High Noon, but this 1948 noir feels like a dry run, embodying themes of courage and cowardice in a distinctly postwar tale. Oct 18, 2023 Full Review David Nusair Reel Film Reviews ...striking, gripping... Rated: 3/4 Aug 16, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (58) audience reviews
acsdoug D Th ending was a little disappointing, it was a little too neat. Up until that point, however, it's a pretty good noir. The mystery is emboldened by moral dilemmas that you usually don't see in these kind of movies. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 08/07/24 Full Review Steve D The characters are too thin for it to be fully engaging. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 06/05/23 Full Review Audience Member LOL, so funny!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Ed M Entertaining, creepy little movie about World War 2 Vets. Not bad. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 04/06/21 Full Review Ken R Act Of Violence – A Class Act This suspenseful 1949 masterwork is top of its class. A great cast takes us on a spine tingling journey of introspection and soul searching. From the best of friends to the worst of enemies this thoughtful, superbly performed noir classic, reminds us what made these early movies so convincingly perfect. Respected director Fred Zinnemann combines with master director of photography Robert Surtees (Ben Hur'59) to create some remarkable shadowy scenes of movie perfection and taut storytelling. While the theme may be grim for some, it takes us into a situation that would try the best of us – testing all our strengths and weaknesses. If not yet seen, don't read any synopses, just see it to be thoroughly entertained. Van Heflin and Robert Ryan are perfect as the two men out to right a past wrong, each dealing with a deep-seated memory that pushes them into a deadly collision course - with no visible means of discourse. Even the resolution is starkly realistic with no escape. Bronislau Kaper provides the tense music score, while all the MGM production specialists provide all the stylish fine touches. Not to be missed by lovers of deeply felt, first-class moviemaking. The WB Archive DVD offers high a quality transfer and good value as a Double Feature with the terrific "Mystery Street" Rated 4 out of 5 stars 09/12/20 Full Review Audience Member Nearly perfect film noir, with a thick, shadowy atmosphere and a taut story. Excellent cast and direction. My only complaint is the finale seemed forced by comparison to the rest of the film. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Act of Violence

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Act of Violence

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Movie Info

Synopsis A former prisoner of war, Frank Enley (Van Heflin) is hailed as a hero in his California town. However, Frank actually aided his Nazi captors, and he closely guards this secret. Frank's shameful past comes back to visit him when fellow survivor Joe Parkson (Robert Ryan) emerges, intent on making the turncoat pay for his betrayal. As Joe closes in on Frank, the traitor goes into hiding, abandoning his wife, Edith (Janet Leigh), who has no clue about her husband's wartime transgressions.
Director
Fred Zinnemann
Producer
William H. Wright
Screenwriter
Collier Young, Robert L. Richards
Distributor
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Distributing Corp.
Production Co
Metro Goldwyn Mayer
Genre
Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 21, 1948, Wide
Release Date (DVD)
Jul 31, 2007
Runtime
1h 22m
Sound Mix
Mono