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Suddenly [DVD] [1954] [NTSC]

Frank Sinatra (Actor), Sterling Hayden (Actor), Lewis Allen (Director) | Rated: Parental Guidance | Format: DVD
3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Actors: Frank Sinatra, Sterling Hayden, James Gleason, Nancy Gates, Kim Charney
  • Directors: Lewis Allen
  • Writers: Richard Sale
  • Producers: Robert Bassler
  • Format: NTSC
  • Region: All Regions
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9 - 1.78:1
  • Number of discs: 1
  • Classification: PG
  • Studio: Sanctuary Records
  • DVD Release Date: 15 Oct 2001
  • Run Time: 76 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B00005NW5W
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 137,913 in Film & TV (See Top 100 in Film & TV)

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Reviews

Product Description

Nothing ever happens in Suddenly. It's just a small town with small concerns.
That is until the President decides to show up.
Thus, amid fears of an assassination attempt, the F.B.I. arrive and occupy a local family's home from where they can monitor the arrival of the President's entourage. As the clock ticks down towards the commander in chief's arrival however, we discover that the men from the F.B.I. aren't quite who they say they are.

In this intelligent 1954 film noir thriller, Frank Sinatra's electrifying lead performance as psychotic under-cover assassin John Baron demonstrates why he'd just garnered an Oscar for his supporting role in From Here To Eternity. Ably assisted by Sterling Hayden, Nancy Gates, and James Gleason; Sinatra's menacing interpretation of his character and Lewis Allen's accomplished direction squeeze every last bit of tension from Richard Sale's taut screenplay.

Alleged to have been viewed by Lee Harvey Oswald in 1963, only days prior to the shooting of President Kennedy, Suddenly was subsequently withdrawn from circulation by United Artists at Sinatra's personal request. In the substantial aftermath of JFK's assassination the American public would not see the film again for many years. Chillingly prophetic in it's subject matter, and presented here in a widescreen aspect ratio for the very first time on home video, Suddenly is an apt addition to any American noir collection.

DVD Special Features:

Audio commentary by Laureate's Ken Barnes (with English subtitles option).
Commentary includes recordings of Sinatra and Bing Crosby from around the 1954 Academy Awards.
Cast and Crew Profiles
Production Background
Three featurettes offering a personal appraisal of Frank Sinatra by fellow performer and friend, Rich Little
The Sinatra Man
Sinatra the Actor
Sinatra The Singer
Widescreen Aspect Ratio - 16:9 (Letterboxed.)
Black and White
Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Language: English
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish, German

Review

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Sinatra, Underrated Actor 16 Feb 2006
By Paul D
Format:DVD
Suddenly is a small town in America, a small town in which nothing much happens. Until today. The President is due to make an unscheduled stop in Suddenly, and the townsfolk are joined by Secret Service agents there to ensure the President’s safety. They, however, are not the only newcomers in town: a gang, led by Frank Sinatra, are there on an entirely different mission: to kill the President. He and his two accomplices take over the house of a young widow, whose husband died in the war. Also there are her son, her father in law, the local sheriff, who is in love with her, and a visiting repairman.

This film is a revelation. In other circumstances, Sinatra could have become a top actor rather than a singer. The performance he gives here is masterful, creepy and edgy; he insists that he is not a traitor: in the war, he won a Silver Star. Now he sells his loyalty for cash. His only motivation is the payment he will get from his actions, even though he realises that the President is no more than a figurehead: as soon as the President is killed, another man will take over. This knowledge is what turns this film from a run-of-the-mill thriller into something special.

There are some old-fashioned homilies about loyalty and doing one’s duty, even if that means dying for one’s country, ideas which may not sit well in today’s world. The setting, mainly in one house, gives the film a claustrophobic feel, with characters getting on each other’s nerves.

Sinatra had this film withdrawn when it became known that JFK’s assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, had watched the film not long before carrying out his assassination. Whether this really had an effect on his actions will never be known, but the situation it presents, and the planning which went into it, certainly make it possible.

This is an underrated and highly watchable film.

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Suddenly - the movie 2 Jan 2010
By Dr. H. A. Jones TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:DVD
Suddenly - the movie

Three would-be presidential assassins, led by John Baron (Frank Sinatra), arrive in the small California town of Suddenly - so-called because `It's the way things used to happen around here'. As their vantage point, they take over a house owned by retired Secret Service agent Pop Benson (James Gleason), living with his widowed daughter-in-law Ellen (Nancy Gates) and her son (played by Kim Charney). But the assassins hadn't reckoned on interference from the town sheriff Tod Shaw (Sterling Hayden) and a troup of newly arrived Secret Service men.

This black-and-white movie released in 1954 was withdrawn for several years at Sinatra's request after the assassination of his friend John F. Kennedy. It is only 75 min long and the sound and picture quality are poor by present-day standards, but it is tense throughout that time and all the cast play their parts well. Some aspects of the Sinatra character, and even some of the dialogue he has, were reprised when he played arranger Barney Sloan in Young At Heart. The film score was composed by David Raksin, already known for his score of another thriller, Laura (1944). That theme became so popular that Johnny Mercer provided lyrics to the piece.

For what it is, this film is still thoroughly recommendable, despite its shortcomings.

Young At Heart [DVD]
The Man With the Golden Arm [DVD]
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Suddenly Sinatra 23 Sep 2003
By "peteofyork"
Format:DVD
This is an unknown gem. Think of Mr Sintra's films and you are drawn to his oscar winning performance in 'From Here To Eternity' or the Rat Pack fun of 'Ocean's Eleven', but here we find a darker Sinatra.
The President is going to make a quick stop in the small town of Suddenly, where nothing happens. He should just have to get out his car and get on a train, except there is an assassin plotting to take him out. Sinatra is that assassin, taking hostage a family until his deed is done.
Sinatra is superb, going through the whole range, cocksure hitman to mad lone gunman. Since getting hold of this DVD I have forced everybody I know to sit and appriciate Sinatra's unexpectedly excellent performance.
Sinatra himself pulled the film from any further release after the assassination of JFK, as that case of life imitating art cut a little to close for the President's former drinking buddy.
An extremely watchable movie, made unmissable for Sinatra's performance. Watch and see your opinion of Frank change forever!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars Deceptive Aspect Ratio.
This is NOT a review of this reasonably good thriller but I would love to know why the movie is advertised as Widescreen when it most certainly is NOT. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Old Buff Joe
4.0 out of 5 stars Sharp low-budget thriller
Intense, sometimes hokey thriller of small time hoods led by a surprisingly good Frank Sinatra, paid to assassinate the president when he stops in a small town. Read more
Published on 16 Jun 2010 by K. Gordon
2.0 out of 5 stars Good But Unrestored Film
Unfortunately, this version of this good classic old B-Movie film-noire is not restored and is not in great condition. Read more
Published on 25 April 2010 by Frank
4.0 out of 5 stars A different Sinatra
Whilst talking with friends about an old film called "Suddenly last summer" I remembered a "B" movie from way back called "Suddenly" with Frank Sinatra in a non-singing role and... Read more
Published on 13 Feb 2010 by Victor E. Davies
5.0 out of 5 stars Frank Sinatra
Very pleased with purchase. No complaints.

Many thanks.
Published on 8 Nov 2009 by Eleanor Gray
5.0 out of 5 stars Great drama
Suddenly is one of my all time favourite films, mainly due to Sinatra's excellent performance. Sterling Hayden is as always Sterling Hayden, not much of a surprise there. Read more
Published on 15 May 2008 by TKr
5.0 out of 5 stars Definitely worth seeing
This is a very strong movie. As a suspense thriller it is obviously not in the same league as, say, Rear Window, but it is a very entertaining 90mins and you can understand why... Read more
Published on 17 Aug 2005 by Maxim Candries
4.0 out of 5 stars Satisfactory drama, intriguing provenance
A film which explores the moral ambiguity of gun ownership without actually making its viewpoint specific, and a film made famous for its subsequent history rather than the quality... Read more
Published on 3 Aug 2005 by Budge Burgess
5.0 out of 5 stars "I'm not a traitor...I won a Silver Star !"
Frank Sinatra is riveting as a cold-hearted hit man obsessed with his spurious war record, who traps a family in their house, along with a few others that get caught in his net, as... Read more
Published on 28 Oct 2004 by Alejandra Vernon
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