Vicki (film)
| Vicki | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Harry Horner |
| Produced by | Leonard Goldstein |
| Screenplay by |
Dwight Taylor Leo Townsend |
| Based on |
the novel I Wake Up Screaming by Steve Fisher |
| Starring |
Jeanne Crain Jean Peters Elliott Reid Richard Boone |
| Music by | Leigh Harline |
| Cinematography | Milton R. Krasner |
| Edited by | Dorothy Spencer |
| Distributed by | 20th Century-Fox |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 85 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $560,000[1] |
Vicki is a 1953 film noir directed by Harry Horner and based on the novel I Wake Up Screaming, written by Steve Fisher. The film features Jeanne Crain, Jean Peters, Elliott Reid and Richard Boone.[2]
Plot
Vicki Lynn (Jean Peters) is a waitress who is transformed into a fashion model by press agent Steve Christopher (Elliott Reid). When Vicki is murdered, detective Ed Cornell (Richard Boone) tries to blame the crime on Christopher.
In fact, the cop knows who the real killer is, but he is so hopelessly in love with the dead girl Vicki, who, herself, despised him that he intends to railroad an innocent man to the electric chair. With the help of Vicki's sister Jill (Jeanne Crain), Christopher tracks down the real killer, Harry Williams (Aaron Spelling) and exposes the crooked cop Cornell, who had manipulated Williams into murdering Vicki.
Cast
- Jeanne Crain as Jill Lynn
- Jean Peters as Vicki Lynn
- Elliott Reid as Steve Christopher
- Richard Boone as Lt. Ed Cornell
- Casey Adams as Larry Evans
- Carl Betz as Detective MacDonald
- Aaron Spelling as Harry Williams
- Alexander D'Arcy as Robin Ray
- John Dehner as Police Captain
Background
Vicki is a remake of the 1941 film I Wake Up Screaming starring Betty Grable, Victor Mature, and Carole Landis.[3]
Reception
Critical response
Film critic Bosley Crowther certainly did not like the screenplay, but seemed to appreciate the acting. He wrote, "Meanwhile, the rest of the performers—Jean Peters, as the girl who gets killed; Jeanne Crain, as her misgiving sister; Mr. Reid and several more—make the best of Harry Horner's brisk direction to make it look as though they're playing a tingling film. It might be, indeed, if the story were not so studiously contrived and farfetched, and if Mr. Boone did not wear a label that virtually says, 'I'm IT.'"[4]
References
- ↑ Solomon, Aubrey. Twentieth Century Fox: A Corporate and Financial History (The Scarecrow Filmmakers Series). Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 1989. ISBN 978-0-8108-4244-1. p248.
- ↑ Vicki at the American Film Institute Catalog.
- ↑ I Wake Up Screaming at the American Film Institute Catalog.
- ↑ Crowther, Bosley. The New York Times, film review, September 8, 1953. Accessed: August 14, 2013.
External links
- Vicki at the American Film Institute Catalog
- Vicki at the Internet Movie Database
- Vicki at AllMovie
- Vicki at the TCM Movie Database
- Vicki information site and DVD review at DVD Beaver (includes images)
- Vicki film clip of Jean Peters singing "I Know Why and So Do You" on YouTube