Act of Violence (1948)

Directed by Fred Zinnemann; produced by William H Wright

Frank Enley (Van Heflin) has a fine life in a small southern California town, where he lives with his wife, Edith (Janet Leigh) and baby son. But he’s disturbed by the arrival of Joe Parkson (Robert Ryan), a man from his past with an intense grievance, and an equally intense desire for vengeance. What Enley will do to erase his past, and what Parkson will do to settle it, depends on what each man has become because of that past.

A suspenseful film noir, Act of Violence takes a good story, puts it together with excellent direction and acting, to make a highly commendable movie. The story is not complex, but it deals with complex issues, especially what can cause good men to do bad things: deprivation, desperation, obsession are the catalysts for actions that, under normal circumstances, no one would undertake. Enley’s increasing frantic attempts to escape what might happen may seem far-fetched in the last third of the movie. But people have done strange things to avoid consequences, and the dark world in which he finds himself is as much symbolic of his frame of mind as a real expression of criminality.

The characters are realistic. The motives of Enley and Parkson are obvious; those of Pat (Mary Astor) are less clear. Probably a prostitute, she appoints herself at one point Enley’s protector, of sorts. The reasons for her assistance seem at first no more than boredom, or perhaps the possibility of a little money. But her status as a mere hanger-on changes as she comes to see Enley as someone she might genuinely help.

Both Heflin and Ryan are first-rate. Ryan’s tall, harder impression lends itself to the brooding menace he needs to exude, yet both actors have portrayed good and bad characters. This ability to be both hero and villain fits perfectly with the story-line. It is easily understood that at one time, both Enley and Parkson were ordinary, easy-going men, much more good than evil; it is as easily understood how both could arrive at the point we meet them.

Leigh does well as the young wife almost overwhelmed by events, but determined to help her husband. Phyllis Thaxter provides a tougher, though corresponding version of Leigh’s character, as Parkson’s girlfriend. She’s a little older than Edith, has seen more of life and, further, has had to deal with Parkson’s obsession.

While Act of Violence was filmed only seven years after The Maltese Falcon, Astor looks to have aged double that number of years, though I would not be surprised if that was due to make-up and lighting (the latter especially is effective); she was, after all, only 43 in 1949. As with the other actors and their performances, Astor’s look, the look of someone whom life had treated unkindly, is perfect for the part.

The direction is spot-on, though otherwise would have been surprising from Zinnemann, who went on to direct High Noon, From Here to Eternity, Oklahoma!, A Man For All Seasons, The Day of the Jackal. It is particularly felt during Enley’s late night flight through a nearly deserted Los Angeles, highlighting both the sinister environment, and the man’s solitude in it. Though he is running to escape his past, he is, at that moment, alone, and therefore running from himself. The symbolism is indicative of Zinnemann’s European origins.

A taut film of both psychology and action, featuring two often overlooked dramatic actors, Act of Violence is worth both watching and remembering.