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Sudden Fear

Play trailer Poster for Sudden Fear 1952 1h 50m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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92% Tomatometer 12 Reviews 84% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Following a whirlwind courtship, acclaimed playwright Myra Hudson (Joan Crawford) marries Lester Blaine (Jack Palance), a slick actor she has just fired from her latest play. Shortly after the honeymoon, Myra overhears Lester and his lover, Irene (Gloria Grahame), plotting to murder the wealthy writer for her inheritance. Shattered by the revelation, Myra pulls herself together and hatches a revenge scheme. But can she go through with her violent plans?
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Sudden Fear

Critics Reviews

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Melissa Anderson Village Voice 08/10/2016
Like many underrecognized treasures, David Miller's Sudden Fear fits into and defies different genres, its convention-scrambling partly the result of the fact that the film looks both forward and back. Go to Full Review
Francois Truffaut Cahiers du Cinéma 05/10/2022
Outside of two very short but fairly unpleasing sequences, there is not a shot in this film that isn’t necessary to its dramatic progression. Not a shot, either, that isn’t fascinating and doesn’t make us think it is a masterpiece of filmmaking. Go to Full Review
Josh Larsen LarsenOnFilm 08/18/2021
3/4
...one of Crawford's first forays into camp. Go to Full Review
Christopher Lloyd The Film Yap 01/25/2021
3/5
This forgotten woman-in-distress film noir stars Joan Crawford as a rich playwright and Jack Palance as the younger actor looking to marry and off her. Nice-looking but poorly plotted. Go to Full Review
Matt Brunson Film Frenzy 01/24/2021
3/4
A sharp thriller with film noir undercurrents. Go to Full Review
Frank J. Avella Edge Media Network 01/23/2021
A
the draw here is Crawford, and she delivers magnificently. If you can toss away any hints of "Mommie Dearest" (and I realize that is difficult), you might truly appreciate an actress who knows when to hold back and when to let loose. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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John G Sep 17 Joan Crawford is fantastic and Jack Palance is impressive in spinning a romance that develops from a high level of intensity to a tragic tale of deception. The suspense is naturally developed as the plot evolves. See more Bill B 10/10/2024 Slow start but finds itself a satisfying, if a bit predictable, finale. I was most impressed with Palance, who plays his dual role convincingly from both sides. More of a suspense drama than traditional film noir. See more Jeff M 01/17/2024 This is an absolute must for anyone who loves classic movies, particularly film noir of the 40s and 50s. It's an extraordinarily entertaining and surprisingly engrossing tale of love, betrayal and revenge. At its best moments, it feels like something Hitchcock would have been proud to make at the peak of his prowess. There's one moment in particular during the climax involving a wind-up toy that had my pulse racing. Crawford is stupendous here - it's a shame her reputation has been overshadowed by the MOMMIE DEAREST persona because one tends to forget she was one heck of a movie star. Palance had a face that was made for villainy and holds his own in one of his very first movie roles. Both were Oscar nominated and deservedly so. The last 20 minutes are a whirlwind, and while I had an idea where we'd end up, I had no idea how we were going to get there. In the end, it all falls upon padded shoulders of Crawford, and she is electrifying - equal here to her Oscar-winning turn in MILDRED PIERCE. See more shane c @schase 10/08/2022 Another wonderful Crawford film! See more Ken R 01/25/2021 Marvellous style, suspense (rivalling Hitchcock) and strong performances boost this David Miller directed film into very interesting heights. Master cinematographer Charles Lang (How the West was Won) adds handsomely to the locations and gripping situations, making this a better than average RKO top liner. Joan Crawford definitely deserved her Oscar nomination for a tour de force performance as the woman in love and peril. Almost a decade before, MGM had dumped Joan's contract, and following her success in RKO's ‘Sudden Fear' MGM wanted her back to make another film - they picked a poor subject (Torch Song) that failed rather dismally - making it a bad choice for everyone. The cast and crew for ‘Sudden Fear' all work hard to make this perhaps, sometimes over the top, suspensor, a winner all the way. Not to be missed by lovers of strong noir classics – with an early big score by Elmer Bernstein (Walk on the Wild Side). Recently re-mastered DVDs have been lovingly restored and are fine in every detail. See more william d @acsdoug 07/26/2020 Sudden fear starts out pretty slow. Then right around the 45 minute mark the plot twist kicks in and the movie really picks up the pace. This is a good and suspenseful thriller, despite an ending that wraps things up a little too conveniently. See more Read all reviews
Sudden Fear

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Movie Info

Synopsis Following a whirlwind courtship, acclaimed playwright Myra Hudson (Joan Crawford) marries Lester Blaine (Jack Palance), a slick actor she has just fired from her latest play. Shortly after the honeymoon, Myra overhears Lester and his lover, Irene (Gloria Grahame), plotting to murder the wealthy writer for her inheritance. Shattered by the revelation, Myra pulls herself together and hatches a revenge scheme. But can she go through with her violent plans?
Director
David Miller
Producer
Joe Kaufmann
Screenwriter
Robert Smith, Lenore J. Coffee
Production Co
Joseph Kaufmann Productions
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 6, 1952, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Dec 13, 2016
Runtime
1h 50m
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