WARNING SHOT (1967, USA, 100m, 15) ***½
Crime, Mystery
dist. Paramount Pictures; pr co. Bob Banner Associates; d. Buzz Kulik; w. Mann Rubin (based on the novel “711–Officer Needs Help” by Whit Masterson); pr. Buzz Kulik, Bob Banner (uncredited); ph. Joseph F. Biroc (Technicolor | 1.78:1); m. Jerry Goldsmith; ed. Archie Marshek; ad. Roland Anderson, Hal Pereira.
cast: David Janssen (Sgt. Tom Valens), Ed Begley (Capt. Roy Klodin), Keenan Wynn (Sgt. Ed Musso), Sam Wanamaker (Frank Sanderman), Lillian Gish (Alice Willows), Stefanie Powers (Liz Thayer), Eleanor Parker (Mrs. Doris Ruston), George Grizzard (Walt Cody), George Sanders (Calvin York), Steve Allen (Perry Knowland), Carroll O’Connor (Paul Jerez), Joan Collins (Joanie Valens), Walter Pidgeon (Orville Ames), Vito Scotti (Designer), David Garfield (Police Surgeon (as John Garfield Jr.)), R. Wayland Williams (Judge Gerald Lucas), Jerry Dunphy (TV Newscaster), Romo Vincent (Ira Garvin), Don Mitchell (Black Protester (uncredited)), John Mitchum (Reporter at Apartment (uncredited)).
A worthy and largely successful update of a well-worn film noir plot sees LAPD Sgt Tom Valens (Janssen) kill a man who pulls a gun on him during a stakeout. But when the dead man turns out to be a respected doctor with no criminal record and no gun is found, Valens is charged with manslaughter. Valens fights to clear his name, find the gun, and learn why the doctor was there. Janssen is excellent as the accused cop he is supported by a strong support cast, with Gish as an eccentric dog owner a standout. Kulik’s direction and shot set-up occasionally break free of his TV origins and Goldsmith’s brassy and percussive score helps heighten the drama. Initially developed as a TV movie, the film’s subject matter and approach were considered too violent and mature, so it was released as a theatrical feature.
