Synopsis
Tells the story of one day in the lives of the various people who populate a police detective squad. An embittered cop, Det. Jim McLeod, leads a precinct of characters in their grim daily battle with the city's lowlife. The characters who pass through the precinct over the course of the day include a young petty embezzler, a pair of burglars, and a naive shoplifter.
Votre Filmothèque
Cast
- Kirk DouglasDet. James McLeod
- Eleanor ParkerMary McLeod
- William BendixDet. Lou Brody
- Cathy O'DonnellSusan Carmichael
- George MacreadyKarl Schneider
- Horace McMahonLt. Monaghan
- Gladys GeorgeMiss Hatch
- Joseph WisemanCharley Gennini
- Lee GrantShoplifter
- Gerald MohrTami Giacoppetti
Recommandations
- 88
Chicago Tribune
The first-rate cast, Lee Garmes' camerawork and the tense, excellent script (by Phil Yordan and, uncredited, Dashiell Hammett), all help build toward an unsurprising but memorable climax. [16 Oct 1996, p.2] - 83
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Set in a precinct house, the film shows its theatrical origins. [25 Oct 2005] - 80
Variety
William Wyler has polished the legit hit by Pulitzer-prizewinner Sidney Kingsley into a cinematic gem. Scripters have stuck almost to the letter of the original play. Even the location seldom changes from Kingsley's single set, the realistic headquarters room of the detective squad. - 80
Los Angeles Times
William Wyler directed this hard-hitting, beautifully acted 1951 adaptation of Sidney Kingsley's Broadway hit. Kirk Douglas is remarkable as a tough-nosed, moralistic police detective who is accused of roughing up a shady doctor. [25 Oct 2005, p.E3] - 80
The New York Times
Detective Story is a hard-grained entertainment, not revealing but bruisingly real. - 75
TV Guide Magazine
Detective Story is methodical in its depiction of the sometimes traumatic events of one day in a precinct but the marvelous quirks and shadings of these characters create highly exciting drama. - 75
Chicago Reader
Sidney Kingsley's Broadway hit, modeled a little too clearly on Greek tragedy, becomes a solid film d'art under William Wyler's supple, impersonal direction. - 75
Portland Oregonian
Set entirely in a police station, the play shows both the drama and routine of police work. Kingsley made them all eloquent in a snappy-patter way. Kirk Douglas gives a powerhouse performance as the detective who is wound too tight for his own good. [26 Sep 1997, p.34]
