I, THE JURY (1953, USA, 87m, 12) **½
Crime, Drama, Film-Noir, Thriller
dist. United Artists; pr co. Parklane Pictures Inc.; d. Harry Essex; w. Harry Essex (based on the novel by Mickey Spillane); pr. Victor Saville; ph. John Alton (B&W | 1.37:1); m. Franz Waxman; ed. Fredrick Y. Smith; ad. Wiard Ihnen.
cast: Biff Elliot (Mike Hammer), Preston Foster (Police Captain Pat Chambers), Peggie Castle (Charlotte Manning), Margaret Sheridan (Velda), Alan Reed (George Kalecki), Mary Anderson (Eileen Vickers), Tom Powers (Milt Miller), Frances Osborne (Myrna Devlin), Bob Cunningham (Hal Kines), Tani Guthrie (Esther Bellamy (as Tani Seitz)), Dran Hamilton (Mary Bellamy (as Dran Seitz)), Joe Besser (Pete – Elevator Operator), Paul Dubov (Marty), John Qualen (Dr. R.H. Vickers), Nestor Paiva (Manuel), Robert Swanger (Jack Williams), Elisha Cook Jr. (Bobo (uncredited)), Roy Engel (Medical Examiner (uncredited)).
This skittish adaptation of Mickey Spillane’s first Mike Hammer novel sees the private eye’s wartime buddy murdered just before Christmas. Hammer (Elliot) sets out to find the killer and take revenge. Along the way, he meets a new love interest, a treacherous Santa, a gangster and two twin sisters. Elliot’s overly theatrical performance as Spillane’s two-fisted detective is the film’s main drawback. Elsewhere the acting is better with Castle making a sexy femme fatale. Technical attributes are strong from Alton’s shadowy photography to Waxman’s dramatic score. Essex handles the convoluted plot adequately and the pace is brisk, but it is hard to get past the lack of depth in Elliot’s interpretation, which Essex fails to coax out of his lead. Remade in 1982.
