Fourteen Hours (1951)
The same year as the far more remembered The House on Telegraph Hill, Richard Basehart made another film: Fourteen Hours. In this tense drama, he plays a young man with deep sorrow and confusion. He’s shown in a hotel room, answering the door for room service, but when the waiter looks for a tip, he’s nowhere to be found. The curtain billows from an open window, and the waiter finds the guest outside balancing on the ledge.
Paul Douglas is a beat policeman who happens to see the small figure of a man about to jump from the fifteenth floor. He telephones his boss, Howard da Silva, then runs to Richard’s aide and tries to talk him down off the ledge. He takes off his jacket and borrows a tie to make it seem like he’s just an ordinary guy rather than a cop, but just when he seems to be making headway, other policemen show up and ruin his progress. Pretty soon the media gets wind of the problem, and crowds of people gather below, watching, waiting, and placing bets on the outcome. Richard’s mother Agnes Moorehead, father Robert Keith, and ex-girlfriend Barbara Bel Geddes are also recruited to try and talk some sense into him.
Paul and Richard are a perfect pairing, since one is a veteran and a professional and the other is a young newcomer. We already know and love Paul, and we know from his movies (even though he’s only been in Hollywood for one year) that he has enough energy, good-natured-ness and warmth to make everything okay. We know nothing of Richard, only that he’s enormously troubled and lost. His emotions are raw and exposed with every breath; if you only associate him with Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, you’ll be shocked by his talent. Here at Hot Toasty Rag, we were proud to award him Best Supporting Actor, and he had very stiff competition! If you liked him in this, watch his second honored performance in 1957’s Time Limit.
Director Henry Hathaway took home his second Rag Award for his constant tension and excellent pace, as well as inventive depth to his framing in what otherwise could have been a simple story. When you see Richard standing on the ledge, you can also see people walking on the sidewalk below him and cars driving on the street. This is a fantastic movie, if you can take the tension. When you rent it, don’t even think about leaving the room for popcorn breaks.
Want to watch it? Click here to watch it on ok.ru. And thanks "Classic Movies Kristine Rose" for posting!
More Richard Basehart movies here!
More Jeff Corey movies here!
More Paul Douglas movies here!
More Grace Kelly movies here!
Paul Douglas is a beat policeman who happens to see the small figure of a man about to jump from the fifteenth floor. He telephones his boss, Howard da Silva, then runs to Richard’s aide and tries to talk him down off the ledge. He takes off his jacket and borrows a tie to make it seem like he’s just an ordinary guy rather than a cop, but just when he seems to be making headway, other policemen show up and ruin his progress. Pretty soon the media gets wind of the problem, and crowds of people gather below, watching, waiting, and placing bets on the outcome. Richard’s mother Agnes Moorehead, father Robert Keith, and ex-girlfriend Barbara Bel Geddes are also recruited to try and talk some sense into him.
Paul and Richard are a perfect pairing, since one is a veteran and a professional and the other is a young newcomer. We already know and love Paul, and we know from his movies (even though he’s only been in Hollywood for one year) that he has enough energy, good-natured-ness and warmth to make everything okay. We know nothing of Richard, only that he’s enormously troubled and lost. His emotions are raw and exposed with every breath; if you only associate him with Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, you’ll be shocked by his talent. Here at Hot Toasty Rag, we were proud to award him Best Supporting Actor, and he had very stiff competition! If you liked him in this, watch his second honored performance in 1957’s Time Limit.
Director Henry Hathaway took home his second Rag Award for his constant tension and excellent pace, as well as inventive depth to his framing in what otherwise could have been a simple story. When you see Richard standing on the ledge, you can also see people walking on the sidewalk below him and cars driving on the street. This is a fantastic movie, if you can take the tension. When you rent it, don’t even think about leaving the room for popcorn breaks.
Want to watch it? Click here to watch it on ok.ru. And thanks "Classic Movies Kristine Rose" for posting!
More Richard Basehart movies here!
More Jeff Corey movies here!
More Paul Douglas movies here!
More Grace Kelly movies here!
Hot Toasty Rag Awards:
Best Director of 1951: Henry Hathaway
Best Supporting Actor: Richard Basehart
Hot Toasty Rag Nominations:
Best Musical Score: Alfred Newman