Brute Force (1947); Kiss the Blood Off My Hands (1948)

June 2, 2013 - 7:00 pm

In-person:

author Kate Buford, "Burt Lancaster: An American Life."

Brute Force (1947)

"Brute Force is a showmanly mixture of gangster melodramtics, sociological exposition, and sex." — Variety

Directed by Jules Dassin

Westgate Penitentiary is racked with tension as the warden sees his authority slipping into the hands of fascistic subordinates—especially sinister Hume Cronyn—and influential prisoner Charles Bickford. Burt Lancaster seethes as prisoner Joe Collins, who plots a dangerous escape that could lead to a bloody outcome. Violence, cruelty and betrayal combine in an explosive brew, leading to a confrontation between men and philosophies: whether to help, or crush the prison population.

Universal Pictures Company, Inc. Producer: Mark Hellinger. Screenwriter: Richard Brooks. Cinematographer: William Daniels. Editor: Edward Curtiss. Cast: Burt Lancaster, Hume Cronyn, Charles Bickford, Yvonne De Carlo, Ella Raines.

35mm, b/w, 98 min.

Watch the trailer below.

Kiss the Blood Off My Hands (1948)

"..this film is lifted out of the run-of-the-mill class through Norman Foster’s superior direction, first-rate thesping and well-integrated production mountings." — Variety

Directed by Norman Foster

A desperate chase opens this high-intensity noir, as troubled ex-soldier Bill Saunders (Lancaster) flees the scene of a London bar fight in which he's just killed a man. Attempting to put his violent ways behind him with the help of a good woman (Fontaine), Saunders finds himself ensnared by a blackmailing hoodlum (Newton) and the inexorable pull of his past.

Universal Pictures Company, Inc. Producer: Richard Vernon. Based on the novel by Gerald Butler. Screenwriter: Leonardo Bercovici. Cinematographer: Russell Metty. Editor: Milton Carruth. Cast: Joan Fontaine, Burt Lancaster, Robert Newton, Lewis L. Russell.

35mm, b/w, 79 min.

Watch the trailer below.

Part of:

Burt Lancaster: A Centennial Celebration

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