Union Station (film)
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| Union Station | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Directed by | Rudolph Maté |
| Produced by | Jules Schermer |
| Written by | Thomas Walsh (novel) Sydney Boehm |
| Starring | William Holden Nancy Olson Barry Fitzgerald |
| Music by | Heinz Roemheld |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | October 4, 1950 (New York City) |
| Running time | 80 min |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Union Station is a 1950 film, considered film noir, starring William Holden and Nancy Olson who also appeared in Sunset Boulevard that same year.
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[edit] Plot
In this police thriller that takes place in Union Station (Chicago), a railway policeman, William Calhoun, is approached at work by an apprehensive passenger named Joyce Willecombe (Nancy Olson) who believes that two travellers aboard her train may have been up to no good. It transpires that Joyce is the secretary to a rich man called Henry Murchison (Herbert Hayes), whose blind daughter, Lorna, has been kidnapped and held for ransom. The railway station where Calhoun works has been chosen as the location for the pay-off of the ransom. Calhoun and fellow cop Inspector Donnelly race against time to find the kidnappers and bring them to justice.
[edit] Reaction
Channel 4's film review notes "Despite the barely believable plot, the film has a real edge. Made in 1950, it obviously can't push to the extremes of Dirty Harry but it shares the same mean spirit. [1]
[edit] Trivia
The film was based on Nightmare in Manhattan, an Edgar-winning novel by Thomas Walsh. Sidney Boehm's script for the film version was nominated for an Edgar in the screenplay category. Aside from changing the setting from New York City's Grand Central Station to Chicago's Union Station, and changing the kidnap victim from a little boy to a blind, teen-aged girl, the script was quite faithful to its source material.
[edit] Featured cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| William Holden | Det. Lt. William Calhoun |
| Nancy Olson | Joyce Willecombe |
| Barry Fitzgerald | Inspector Donnelly |
| Lyle Bettger | Joe Beacom |
| Jan Sterling | Marge Wrighter |
| Allene Roberts | Lorna Murchison |
