The Midnight Story
| The Midnight Story | |
|---|---|
 1957 theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | Joseph Pevney |
| Produced by | Robert Arthur |
| Written by |
Edwin Blum (story and screenplay) John Robinson (screenplay) |
| Starring |
Tony Curtis Marisa Pavan Gilbert Roland |
| Cinematography | Russell Metty |
| Distributed by | Universal-International |
Release dates |
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Running time | 89 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Midnight Story (also known as Appointment with a Shadow in the UK and The Eyes of Father Tomasino in Australia) is a 1957 film noir starring Tony Curtis about a traffic cop who becomes obsessed with finding the murderer of a beloved priest. He becomes friendly with the family of his main suspect, resulting in emotional complications.
Plot
Father Tomasino is stabbed to death. San Francisco traffic cop Joe Martini felt the priest was like an actual father to him. He asks to assist homicide Lieutenant Kilrain in his investigation, but after being rejected, Joe quits the force.
He has a hunch restaurant owner Sylvio Malatesta could be involved. Joe is warmly welcomed by Sylvio's family, however, and falls in love with a cousin, Anna. He hides his past identity as a cop from her.
Something is troubling Sylvio, but the family believes he still misses a sweetheart killed in Italy during the war. Sylvio also has an alibi for the night of the priest's murder, but Sergeant Gillen gets word to Joe that the alibi is a fake.
In a ploy to encourage Sylvio to confide in him, Joe pretends to be a murder suspect himself. Sylvio breaks down and admits to having killed his own sweetheart, then the priest as well after confiding to him about the murder in confession. Sylvio runs into the street and is struck by a moving vehicle. Dying, he begs for Joe's forgiveness.
Cast
- Tony Curtis as Joe Martini
- Marisa Pavan as Anna Malatesta
- Gilbert Roland as Sylvio Malatesta
- Jay C. Flippen as Sergeant Jack Gillen
- Argentina Brunetti as Mama Malatesta
- Ted de Corsia as Lieutenant Kilrain
- Richard Monda as "Peanuts" Malatesta
- Kathleen Freeman as Rosa Cuneo
- Herb Vigran as Charlie Cuneo
- Peggy Maley as Veda Pinelli
- John Cliff as Father Giuseppe
External links
- The Midnight Story at the TCM Movie Database
- The Midnight Story at the Internet Movie Database
- The Midnight Story at AllMovie
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