Veteran star Fred MacMurray & starlet Kim Novak in 1954's film noir, "Pushover." |
The
tale of an authority figure going bad for big bucks and a beautiful broad is
nothing new. In its time, Pushover
was a B+ movie with a veteran star who was a leading man for two decades, cast
opposite a newcomer starlet with no acting experience. Luckily, Pushover had a strong story taken from
two novels, a snappy, adult script and direction, and those stars happened to
be Fred MacMurray and Kim Novak. MacMurray was in the process from going from
leading man to character roles to future family star via Disney and sitcom My Three Sons. Novak went from minor
model to major film star with the release of Pushover. A sleeper hit at the time, Pushover is considered by many a noir classic today.
Note how Kim Novak's outfit and makeup differ in this p.r. photo than the actual scene depicted at the top from 1954's "Pushover." |
Richard
Quine directed this crime noir tautly and stylishly. He went from acting to
directing about this time, and got praise for handling another B+ film noir
with a veteran star: Ride a Crooked Mile
with Mickey Rooney. After Pushover,
he surprisingly went on to direct mostly romantic comedies. Quine began a
professional and occasionally personal association with Kim, and handled her
quite well as an actress. Kim was a model with two film credits as an extra to her
resume. He worked with her strengths, which was her beauty, sensuality, and
vulnerability, which pretty much remained her calling card as an actress.
Kim Novak spends much screen time silently as Lona McLane in 1954's "Pushover." |
Kim
Novak, like the later Tippi Hedren, became a star before she developed skills
as an actress. Director Quine gave her as little dialogue as possible,
photographing her viewed by cops through binoculars, or silently driving in the
night, and gazing at herself in mirrors. From the get-go, Kim's first role as
Lona McLane was as an object of desire, which Hitchcock utilized best four
years in Vertigo. In less voyeuristic
ways, Kim was the pretty prize in her breakout star role in Picnic, Jeanne Eagels, Strangers When
We Meet, and even her final big movie, The
Legend of Lylah Clare. Novak was on the eve of turning 21 during filming of
Pushover. Kim is slim, yet curvy and
very pretty, though stuck with studio assembly line makeup and hair that make
her look a bit tarty—however, it fit the role. Soon after, she'd get the big
studio makeover. Despite her trance-like performance, Kim elicits empathy as
she goes from a kept woman who schemes to get her bank robber boyfriend’s loot,
to a woman who genuinely cares about a crooked cop, played by Fred MacMurray.
Fred MacMurray looked frankly midde-aged as dirty cop Paul Sheridan in 1954's "Pushover." |
Most
actors wouldn't want to be cast as middle-aged, even if they actually were. But
Fred MacMurray plays the role of Paul Sheridan with no script or visual
camouflage. His veteran cop is a bitter about his lot in life, compared to
his younger partner, played by Phil Carey. Paul wants to get his hands on the
bank robber’s cash stash. MacMurray is photographed jowls and all in his mid-40s,
compared to 25 years younger Novak, who get the lovely close-ups. Fred's dirty
cop first plays Kim's kept girl, only to fall in love with her. Later, you find
out the feeling is gradually mutual from Lona. MacMurray plays
basically an older version of his character from Double Indemnity, but more realistically than his previous cad. I
never found Fred the most exciting actor in the world, but always thought him
more interesting as the bad guy.
Before he was soap bad guy Asa Buchanan, Philip Carey was a good & good-looking cop partner in 1954's "Pushover." |
As
for Philip Carey as McAllister, I wonder why he didn't become a big, mid-century
movie star. He was talented, masculine, charismatic, and good-looking. I can
think of a number of young actors from the late '40s and early '50s who were
given the leading man treatment, but ended up character actors because audiences
weren't buying. Carey always worked, but often in westerns and TV guest shots. Much
later, Carey became a star, as daytime's version of J.R. Ewing, Asa Buchanan on
One Life to Live.
Before Dorothy Malone went platinum, she was the nice nurse next door to sex bomb Kim Novak in 1954's "Pushover." With nice cop Phil Carey! |
Dorothy
Malone, who had been kicking around Hollywood for a decade, as opposed to Kim's
instant rise, played the brunette neighbor nurse of Novak’s kept woman. A
decade older than Novak, Malone makes the most of her second female lead. It's
also amusing that Carey’s good cop is peeping on her Ann Stewart, while bad cop
MacMurray is peeping on Novak’s Lona. An easy way to change a golden era
actress' image was to dye her hair. Lana and Marilyn's careers took off once
they went platinum, and Joan Bennett got a new career by going brunette. This
was Malone's last role as with dark hair. She went platinum for 1955's Young at Heart. Her career took off, winning an Oscar for her bad girl in Written on the Wind.
Like Marilyn Monroe, Kim Novak didn't have much use for bras, either! With Fred MacMurray as the cop who falls for her, in 1954's "Pushover." |
One
thing that surprised me was how much got past the censors in Pushover. The production code was
starting to erode, but still very much in place. But some of the double
entendre dialogue, ala Double Indemnity,
is not very subtle. Plus, Kim is obviously bra-less in several outfits, on
which the camera lingers. Both Novak and Malone's characters get some fresh
attention directed at them, rather blatantly. Not that I'm complaining! I roll
my eyes at old movies where prostitutes had to be called hostesses or models, but
it’s just surprising here.
Who's playin' who? In film noir, it can be hard to tell! Fred MacMurray & Kim Novak in 1954's crime drama, "Pushover." |
The
bottom line with 1954’s Pushover is
that while it's nothing new, it was filmed and performed in fine noir
style. The story is told in a very adult way for its time, which is one of
the reasons it still holds up. Another reason Pushover still appeals is it’s the first time audiences got to see Kim
Novak on film.
Kim Novak's last close-up as the bad girl gone good, in 1954's "Pushover." |
Here’s
an excellent adult soap, starring Kim Novak and Kirk Douglas, directed by
Richard Quine: https://ricksrealreel.blogspot.com/2019/02/kim-kirk-team-for-suburban-soap-opera.html
Hi Rick, I had to smile at the second photo, what a "look Ma, I stuck my finger in a light socket" moment. I'm not familiar with this movie and didn't know it was Kim's first. I enjoyed your insight on it.
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