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Poster for Thunderbolt

Thunderbolt

1929 · 91 min

A brooding, claustrophobic pre-Code drama that simmers with jealousy and doomed longing, its prison walls amplifying every glance and threat.

Tagline
George Bancroft making Love With the Determination of a Bull Dog! Fay Wray His Foil and Richard Arlen His Enemy
Overview
A criminal known as Thunderbolt is imprisoned and facing execution. Into the next cell is placed Bob Moran, an innocent man who has been framed and who is in love with Thunderbolt's girl, without knowing of their relationship. Thunderbolt hopes to stave off the execution long enough to kill young Moran for romancing his girl.

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In the UKNo streaming, rental or purchase options known.
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • darkstrength 2 of 3
  • tensestrength 2 of 3
  • melancholicstrength 2 of 3
  • cynicalstrength 1 of 3
Pacing
measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • obsession
  • revenge
  • love
  • betrayal
  • redemption
Places
  • prison
  • big city
Era
period
Audience
adult
Form
  • single location
Content intensity
  • Gore none
  • Language none
  • Violence mild
  • Sex mild
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action3
Horror2
Humour2
Realism7
Romance4
Tension7
Darkness7
Complexity5
Emotional weight7

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Where to watch in the UK

No UK streaming, rental or purchase options are known.

Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

Details

Genres
crime, drama
Directed by
Josef von Sternberg
Written by
Herman J. Mankiewicz
Starring
George Bancroft, Fay Wray, Richard Arlen, Tully Marshall, Eugenie Besserer, James Spottswood, Fred Kohler, Robert Elliott
Cinematography
Henry W. Gerrard
Runtime
91 min
Country
United States of America
Languages
English

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