Pushover

Released Jul 30, 1954

1h 28m

Crime

Drama

List

86%

Tomatometer

7 Reviews

48%

Audience Score

250+ Ratings

In the wake of a bank heist, Paul Sheridan (Fred MacMurray) is part of a team of cops assigned to recover the stolen $200,000. They stake out the apartment of Lona McLane (Kim Novak), the girlfriend of the one of the robbers, and before long Paul and Lona begin a steamy affair. Lona persuades Paul to kill her boyfriend so that the two of them can escape with the money, but, in order to pull it off, Paul first has to trick his boss and fellow detectives.

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Richard Brody

New Yorker

Novak's gestures, glances, and inflections expand passing moments to symphonic proportions, and MacMurray's studied neutrality exudes existential weariness.

Mar 16, 2020

Full Review

Howard Thompson

New York Times

Viewed strictly on its own, as it should be, this modest Columbia melodrama is a creditable job for about half the time.

Rated: 2.5/5

Aug 8, 2006

Full Review

Nick Schager

Lessons of Darkness

Marked by a visual claustrophobia that nicely matches MacMurray's increasingly hemmed-in situation.

Rated: B

Jun 6, 2006

Full Review

Clyde Gilmour

Maclean's Magazine

It's the sort of thing that has often been done before, but usually with less competence than in this hard-boiled little suspense yarn.

Nov 5, 2019

Full Review

TV Guide

A compelling story of a man whose morals become twisted by a dangerous and somewhat naive femme fatale.

Rated: 3.5/4

Nov 28, 2012

Full Review

Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

Novak does a fine job in her first starring role as a heartless femme fatale who does have a heart after all.

Rated: B-

Jan 28, 2003

Full Review

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Blobbo X

Seem like precursor to - maybe inspiration for - Rear Window.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

07/22/23

Full Review

John K

Great story and great acting , enjoyable from start to finish

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/24/23

Full Review

John T

A great movie with good twist or two , the acting and continuity were perfect , overall its a hit 👍👍

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

04/21/23

Full Review

Jack S

An above standard noir with a good cast that gets the job done well enough, but the film is really only notable as Novak's debut (and she's lovely here). However, MacMurry is just too old and staid to be seriously acceptable as young Novak's onscreen love interest.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

04/11/23

Full Review

Daniel E

Surprisingly fast paced, the clever plot turns keep this hard boiled cooker feeling overdone. Enjoyable example of the genre.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

Full Review

paul d

Richard Quine's Pushover is a fine suspense thriller made with some film noir touches in style and cinematography, and is a must-see for Kim Novak's sizzling debut starring role. Fred MacMurray is excellent, partially reprising his famous role from ten years earlier in Double Indemnity, one of the great movies of its era. I say "partially" because in that great film Barbara Stanwyck was the femme fatale but also the plotter, and a devious one. In this film, Kim Novak is also a femme fatale but all she has to do is make a single suggestIon and MacMurray starts to do all the plotting and scheming for the couple. The difference is important, because as good as MacMurray is here, I find his switch to a life of crime to be a bit too quick and superficial. Only the speed of it, mind you, because it is entirely believable that he did fall hard for Kim Novak. The director, writers and Novak did a great job in making her character irresistibly beautiful, sultry and mysterious. She also exuded intelligence, which is why it's a shame that her character wasn't written to give her a more active role in the plotting and scheming. The supporting cast is excellent. Question for amateur movie historians: how is it possible that 1954 produced two films, Pushover and Rear Window, that so prominently featured the peeping tom technique and the claustrophobia of a modern apartment building ? Just a coincidence ?

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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Richard Quine

Director

Fred MacMurray

Paul Sheridan

Kim Novak

Lona McLane

Philip Carey

Rick McAllister

Bill S. Ballinger

Writer

Thomas Fitzroy

Writer

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Synopsis

In the wake of a bank heist, Paul Sheridan (Fred MacMurray) is part of a team of cops assigned to recover the stolen $200,000. They stake out the apartment of Lona McLane (Kim Novak), the girlfriend of the one of the robbers, and before long Paul and Lona begin a steamy affair. Lona persuades Paul to kill her boyfriend so that the two of them can escape with the money, but, in order to pull it off, Paul first has to trick his boss and fellow detectives.

Director: Richard Quine
Screenwriter: Bill S. Ballinger, Thomas Fitzroy, Thomas Walsh
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Production Co: Columbia Pictures Corporation
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 30, 1954, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 14, 2018
Runtime: 1h 28m
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.37:1)