Movie

Suddenly

1954 · 77 min

A taut, claustrophobic hostage thriller that slowly tightens the screws in a small-town living room.

Tagline: A cold-blooded thriller!
Overview: The tranquility of a small town is marred only by sheriff Tod Shaw's unsuccessful courtship of widow Ellen Benson, a pacifist who can't abide guns and those who use them. But violence descends on Ellen's household willy-nilly when the U.S. President passes through town... and slightly psycho hired assassin John Baron finds the Benson home ideal for an ambush.

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How it feels

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Tone: darkstrength 2 of 3
tensestrength 2 of 3
bleakstrength 1 of 3
earneststrength 1 of 3
Pacing: measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention: engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes: isolation
violence
grief
morality
survival
Places: small town
single country house
home
Era: contemporary
Audience: adult
Form: single location
Content intensity: Gore mild
Language mild
Violence strong
Sex none

All scales, 0 to 10

Scales, 0 to 10
Scale	Value	0 to 10
Action	5
Horror	3
Humour	2
Realism	6
Romance	2
Tension	8
Darkness	7
Complexity	4
Emotional weight	6

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Details

Genres: crime, thriller
Directed by: Lewis Allen
Written by: Richard Sale
Starring: Frank Sinatra, Sterling Hayden, James Gleason, Nancy Gates, Kim Charney, Willis Bouchey, Paul Frees, Christopher Dark
Music: David Raksin
Cinematography: Charles G. Clarke
Runtime: 77 min
Country: United States of America
Languages: English

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Suddenly

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