- The Verdict (1946 film)
Infobox Film
name = The Verdict
image_size =
caption = Theatrical poster
director =Don Siegel
producer = William Jacobs
writer =Israel Zangwill (novel "The Big Bow Mystery")Peter Milne
narrator =
starring =Sydney Greenstreet Peter Lorre
music =Frederick Hollander
cinematography = Ernest Haller
editing = Thomas Reilly
distributor = Warner Bros. Pictures
released =23 November 1946
runtime = 86 minutes
country = USA
language = English
budget =
gross =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
website =
amg_id =
imdb_id = 0039080"The Verdict" is a 1946
film-noir drama directed byDon Siegel and written byIsrael Zangwill andPeter Milne , based on Zangwill's novel "The Big Bow Mystery". The film starsSydney Greenstreet andPeter Lorre in one of their nine film pairings, as well asJoan Lorring andGeorge Coulouris .Ian Wolfe has a bit part as the jury foreman. "The Verdict" was Siegel's first full-length feature film.Sidney Lumet 's 1982 film by the same name is not related to this film.Plot
Greenstreet portrays George Edward Grodman, a respected superintendent at
Scotland Yard who makes a mistake in an investigation that causes theexecution of an innocent man. He takes the blame for his error and is dismissed from his position as superintendent and replaced by the obnoxious and gloating John Buckley (George Coulouris ). Soured by the turn of events, Grodman sets out to make Buckley look too inept to perform his new job. He enlists the aid of his macabre artist friend, Victor Emmric, played by Peter Lorre, and when a mysterious murder occurs, they realize their chance to ruin Buckley may have arrived.The film is based on the short novel "The Big Bow Mystery" by
Israel Zangwill , which is a classic "locked room" mystery story. The ending has been somewhat changed from Zangwill's, and in some ways it is the most moving conclusion of any of the films that Greenstreet and Lorre appeared in together (the conclusion of "The Mask of Demetrios" is a close second).
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