Not as a Stranger

Not as a Stranger is a 1955 American film noir drama film produced and directed by Stanley Kramer,[3] starring Olivia de Havilland, Robert Mitchum, and Frank Sinatra, and based on the 1954 novel of the same name by Morton Thompson.[4] The romantic melodrama novel was widely popular, topping that year's list of bestselling novels in the United States.

Not as a Stranger
Theatrical release poster
Directed byStanley Kramer
Produced byStanley Kramer
Screenplay byEdna Anhalt
Edward Anhalt
Based onnovel by
Morton Thompson
StarringOlivia de Havilland
Robert Mitchum
Frank Sinatra
Music byGeorge Antheil
CinematographyFranz Planer
Edited byFrederic Knudtson
Production
company
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release date
  • June 28, 1955 (1955-06-28)
Running time
135 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1.5 million[1]
Box office$6.2 million (US and Canada rentals)[2]

Plot

Lucas Marsh (Robert Mitchum) is a brilliant and dedicated medical student who has aspired to be a doctor since childhood. His mother is dead and he is estranged from his alcoholic father, who has squandered the family's money, leaving Lucas unable to pay for medical school. In order to get the needed tuition money, Lucas marries an older nurse, Kristina "Kris" Hedvigson (Olivia de Havilland), who has substantial savings. Although Kris loves Lucas and helps him in a variety of ways, he is indifferent towards her and considers her "stupid" though she is an excellent nurse. Lucas cares only about doing excellent medical work, and frequently clashes with other doctors who he considers incompetent, including his wealthy best friend Alfred Boone (Frank Sinatra). Kris, Alfred, and Lucas' mentor Dr. Aarons (Broderick Crawford) try to humanize him and teach him that all doctors sometimes make mistakes.

Lucas looks down on doctors who focus on making money, and after completing his internship, he accepts a position working with Dr. Dave Runkleman (Charles Bickford) in his busy practice in rural Greenville, where many patients lack the money to pay. Runkleman has a life-threatening heart condition, so he hired Lucas to help with the workload and perhaps take over the practice. Overworked and frustrated with the incompetent head of the local hospital, Lucas has an affair with rich widow Harriet Lang (Gloria Grahame), causing Kris, who is secretly pregnant, to finally leave him. When Runkleman's heart condition flares up, Lucas performs heart surgery to save his life, but makes a mistake during the surgery and Runkleman dies. Struggling to cope with his failure, Lucas begs Kris to help him, and the two reconcile.

Cast

Production

Development

The film was Kramer's directorial debut and featured Olivia de Havilland and Robert Mitchum in the lead roles, backed by a stellar supporting cast including Frank Sinatra, Gloria Grahame, Broderick Crawford, Charles Bickford, Lon Chaney Jr., Harry Morgan, and Lee Marvin. The film was released by United Artists.[5][6]

Sinatra had catapulted back into the limelight as the result of a supporting role for a film from a similarly popular novel, From Here to Eternity, two years earlier. Initially a minor box office success, Not as a Stranger is seldom seen today, never receiving widespread distribution on home video. The picture was first released on video in 1992.[7]

Reception

Box office

The film earned a worldwide distribution gross of over $8 million, and a profit of $1.8 million.[1] It was United Artists biggest grossing film at the time.[8]

Awards

The motion picture was nominated for an Oscar for Best Sound Recording (Watson Jones).[9] Frank Sinatra was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Actor, and Charles Bickford won that year's National Board of Review award for Best Supporting Actor.

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See also

References
  1. Tino Balio, United Artists: The Company That Changed the Film Industry, University of Wisconsin Press, 1987 p. 101
  2. Cohn, Lawrence (October 15, 1990). "All-Time Film Rental Champs". Variety. p. M176.
  3. "Not as a Stranger". Turner Classic Movies. Atlanta: Turner Broadcasting System (Time Warner). Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  4. Thompson, Morton (1976). Not As a Stranger (1954 Reissue ed.). Cutchogue, New York: Buccaneer Books Inc. ISBN 978-1568491189.
  5. Variety film review; June 15, 1955, page 6.
  6. Harrison's Reports film review; June 18, 1955, page 100.
  7. Not as a Stranger - Rotten Tomatoes
  8. Arneel, Gene (January 25, 1956). "America's 107 Million-$ Films". Variety. p. 1. Retrieved July 20, 2019 – via Archive.org.
  9. "The 28th Academy Awards (1956) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 2011-08-21.
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