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Impact

"Wanted By Two Women! One For Love! One For Murder!"

After surviving a murder attempt, an auto magnate goes into hiding so his wife can pay for the crime.

Top Cast

  • Brian Donlevy

    Brian Donlevy

    Walter Williams

  • Ella Raines

    Ella Raines

    Marsha Peters

  • Charles Coburn

    Charles Coburn

    Lieutenant Quincy

  • Helen Walker

    Helen Walker

    Irene Williams

  • Anna May Wong

    Anna May Wong

    Su Lin

  • Robert Warwick

    Robert Warwick

    Captain Callahan

  • Clarence Kolb

    Clarence Kolb

    Darcy

  • Art Baker

    Art Baker

    Defense Attorney

  • William Wright

    William Wright

    Prosecutor

Overview

After surviving a murder attempt, an auto magnate goes into hiding so his wife can pay for the crime.

Rating

6.1 / 10
66 Reviews
1 Popular

2 Reviews

  • John Chard
    John Chard
    8 Aug 18, 2019

    Impact, when two things collide. San Francisco industrial supremo Walter Williams survives an attempt on his life by his two-timing wife's lover, whom ironically is badly burned and killed at the scene himself. As the police think that Williams is the badly burned corpse, his wife is arrested and accused of his murder, with Williams hiding out and plotting revenge in the sleepy back water town of Larkspur, Idaho. But even as Williams finds new hope and re-evaluation of his life, he knows he must go back and reveal all about what happened, which is something that may well prove to be his undoing! Impact is directed by Arthur Lubin and stars Brian Donlevy, Ella Raines, Charles Coburn and Helen Walker. The basic plot and story is certainly nothing new, and I will not list them, but other films such as "The Postman Always Rings Twice" spring to mind immediately upon finishing this smashing and enjoyable piece. However, what is definitely in pic's favour is that it's excellently acted (Donlevy and Raines a delight) and that it manages to bring about the main twist without any aura of inevitability hanging over it. Sitting nicely between film noir and drama, Impact is a film that possibly wouldn't stand up to repeat viewings, yet once viewed I personally feel that it leaves a mark that is most definitely favourable - and I'm not just biased because Ella Raines is stunningly gorgeous here!!! 8/10

  • CinemaSerf
    CinemaSerf
    6 Jul 9, 2022

    This could have been much better had Arthur Lubin not cast the rather wooden, Clark Gable-light Brian Donlevy in the lead role as "Walt Williams", a successful businessman who falls prey to a cunning plot by his scheming wife "Irene" (Helen Walker) and her lover "Jim" (Tony Barrett) to bump him off. When the wrong man comes a cropper, "Walt" keeps his head down in a small Idaho town where he takes up with the local garage owner who needs a decent mechanic. Meantime, able detective "Quincy" (Charles Coburn) has put a strong case together against the wife and as she is about to be put on trial, the new girlfriend "Marsha" (Ella Raines) prevails on "Walt" to return to civilisation and into a maelstrom of legal proceedings. It's just a touch too convoluted, but the last fifteen minutes are quite gripping if a little far fetched. Worth a watch, though, if only for some very classy automobiles.

Trailers & Clips

Recommendations

The Deadly Affair

Charles Dobbs is a British secret agent investigating the apparent suicide of Foreign Office official Samuel Fennan. Dobbs suspects that Fennan's wife, Elsa, a survivor of a Nazi Germany extermination camp, might have some clues, but other officials want Dobbs to drop the case. So Dobbs hires a retiring inspector, Mendel, to quietly make inquiries. Dobbs isn't at all sure as there are a number of anomalies that simply can't be explained away. Dobbs is also having trouble at home with his errant wife, whom he very much loves, having frequent affairs. He's also pleased to see an old friend, Dieter Frey, who he recruited after the war. With the assistance of a colleague and a retired policeman, Dobbs tries to piece together just who is the spy and who in fact assassinated Fennan.

The Deadly Affair

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