Veteran MacMurray & Newcomer Novak in ‘Pushover’ 1954

 

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