Suddenly (1954)
Directed by Lewis Allen

Film Review

Frank Sinatra followed up his Oscar-winning turn in From Here to Eternity (1953) with what his arguably his most compelling performance in this almost unbearably taut and claustrophobic thriller, in which he gets to play the principal villain.  Perhaps too conscious of his public persona, Sinatra would shy away from this kind of role later in his career but, as the soulless mercenary who has a total moral deficit and abject disregard for human life, he has rarely appeared more imposing on the big screen.  Suddenly may be one of the less showy films in Sinatra's career (it was made not by one of the big studios but by an independent film company, Libra Productions Inc.) but it is assuredly one in which his skill as an actor is most apparent - viscerally so.

A classic hostage drama, similar to The Desperate Hours which featured Humphrey Bogart and was released the following year, Suddenly lives up its name with a dramatic denouement which never fails to take its spectator by surprise.  Before this there is a slow build-up which introduces the characters and wrong-foots us into thinking this is a pro-gun ownership propaganda piece.  Suddenly proves to be a far more subtle and ingenious film than it first appears, and some thorny moral issues are mulled over as the drama builds towards its terrifying climax.  In the preamble, much is made of the value of a man's sacrifice in the heat of war, a hero laying down his own life for the greater good.  But when it comes to trading off the life of an American President against the life of a small boy not one of the victims can act to make the move that is clearly in the best interests of the nation as a whole.  It is not fear that makes the characters become docile hostages but their inability to resolve the moral dilemma that confronts them, and this is what makes the film so gripping and memorable.

Director Lewis Allen helmed a fair number of stylish film noir thrillers in the late 1940s, early 1950s  - So Evil My Love (1948), Chicago Deadline (1949) and Appointment with Danger (1951) - but Suddenly is in a league of its own, not only superbly directed but also scripted with the mix of panache and human insight that make for a truly great film noir.  Sinatra's stand-out turn is all the more effective because of the sweaty realism that co-stars Sterling Hayden, James Gleason and Nancy Gates bring to their performances.  All of the characters are convincingly drawn but it is Sinatra's that cuts most deeply into our consciousness - not a stock villain but the most chilling depiction of a man who has totally sold out to evil.  The film enjoys a certain unwished-for notoriety owing to the fact that Lee Harvey Oswald admits to have watched it just a few days before he assassinated John F. Kennedy in November 1963.  If you hadn't known this you would swear there is something grimly prescient about this film...

Film Synopsis

Suddenly is a small American town which was once a hive of activity but has become a place where nothing ever happens.  It looks as if it may again live up to its name when the President of the United States is scheduled to pass through the town.  To safeguard against an assassination attempt secret service agent Dan Carney liases with the town's sheriff, Tod Shaw, to ensure that there are no snipers lurking in the buildings around the train station where the President is due to arrive.  War widow Ellen Benson lives in one such building, with her young son Pidge and father-in-law Pop Benson.  When Tod shows up at the Bensons' hilltop homestead the family has already been taken hostage by hired mercenary John Baron, who plans to shoot the President as soon as he embarks from the train...