User Reviews

One night in San Francisco's seedy North Beach neighborhood, a beloved priest is attacked in an alley and stabbed to death. A traffic cop (Tony Curtis), who grew up in the orphanage the priest ran, takes the murder particularly hard but sees it as his chance to advance to the homicide squad. At the funeral, he spots a man (Gilbert Roland) so shaken that his rosary has cut into his hand, drawing blood. Curtis follows his hunch that this man knows something about the murder.

Posing as a young fisherman fallen on hard times, he gets a job in Roland's crab shack on Fisherman's Wharf. Next, he's invited to live in the home Roland shares with his mother and his cousin (Marisa Pavan – Pier Angeli's twin sister). And for about half the movie, the noirish plot about the murder gets shoved onto the back burner like a kettle of red sauce in favor of an Italian-ethnic family drama (Curtis falls for Pavan, who plays hard to get, and so forth).

Though it seems as if director Joseph Pevney has lost track of the suspense story, he hasn't – he interweaves it into the family dynamics. When Curtis finds out information that he thinks exonerates Roland, he's so relieved he asks Pavan to marry him. But at the engagement party, he discovers that Roland's alibi is full of holes....

Falling late in the noir cycle, The Midnight Story recalls in its theme of a priest's killing (and in its San Francisco setting) the haunting little noir Red Light, of 1949. Red Light was pretty hard-core, while The Midnight Story is watered down with heart-warming vignettes. Still, it's more than an honorable try.

Curtis doesn't make the role as unforgettable as Sidney Falco in Sweet Smell of Success the same year, but he doesn't embarrass himself, either. Roland comes close to overdoing the lusty fisherman, but instinctively pulls short. Pavan, however, looks and acts like Natalie Wood as Maria in West Side Story. Special mention, however, ought to go to Jay C. Flippen, as Curtis' `rabbi' in the police department; one of the unsung stalwarts of the noir cycle, he brightens the screen whenever he turns up because he's sure to polish up a little gem of a performance.

This is really a great early role for Tony Curtis. Curtis plays Joe Martini, a San Francisco cop who got his job on the force through the recommendation of Father Thomasino, and who was in an orphanage from age six after the death of his parents, with Thomasino taking him under his wing and being a father figure to him. So naturally Joe takes it personally when Thomasino is murdered in an alley by an unknown assailant. The priest is beloved in the neighborhood, had no enemies, so the police are stumped. However, they get tired of rookie Joe butting in during the investigation and he turns in his badge so he can investigate on his own.

He has one hunch. He was a pallbearer at Thomasino's funeral, and on the way out of the church he sees a man in great distress, his hands clutching a rosary so tightly his fists are bleeding. The man is Sylvio Malatesta (Gilbert Roland), who owns a local fish market. So Joe goes undercover, posing as a guy looking for a job saying that Father Thomasino was going to recommend him to Malatesta, but that he died before he could. Well, it works. Not only does Malatesta give him a job, he invites him to bunk with his family for awhile. So Joe quickly becomes friends with Sylvio, he actually likes him, and in the Malatestas he finds the family he never had.

There are a few weird things about Malatesta. Apparently he has walked the floor of his bedroom for years - he still does. And he was once engaged to a girl in Italy during WWII, but then she died and he has shown no real interest in marriage since. So Malatesta is indeed a troubled soul, but his troubles predate Thomasino's death by years, and he has an apparent alibi for the night of Thomasino's murder. Can Joe punch holes in that alibi? Does he even want to now that Sylvio's family has become like his family? Watch and find out.

Roland and Curtis are great in this. They have a real brotherly chemistry that makes this film worth watching every bit as much as the murder mystery itself. The only bad thing I can say about the film are the Italian stereotypes. Marisa Pavan plays Sylvio's cousin Anna who plays it over the top with her Italian shrew routine who is either bubbling with anger that comes out of nowhere, slamming doors and throwing things, and then suddenly she is all sweet and doe eyed. It did get tiresome. Then there is Mama Malatesta who acts like a calmed down version of Anna. But besides that, I'd highly recommend this one.

When young, I saw this movie three or four times, and from then I have not seen more: not TV exhibits, not video edition (at least in my country) and no DVD edition (as I know). Instead, I keep a formidable memory of it: a crime story where the humanity of the characters reveals to be the most important thing: Tony Curtis searches a murderer, and takes friendship with Gilbert Roland, and fall in love with Roland's sister, Marisa Pavan. But Roland is the murderer that he has searched, and when he discovers that, explodes the human conflict --the friendship, the treason, the love-- and that gives the force of the film. Perhaps it is the masterpiece of Pevney, a modest director with some interesting movies, today forgotten in favour of others directors and movies not always betters than theirs. I wished that more people could see this film, and appreciate its valors and quality. A modest story of friendship and crime.

The Midnight Story (AKA: Appointment With A Shadow) is directed by Joseph Pevney and written by Edwin Blum and John Robinson. It stars Tony Curtis, Marisa Pavan, Gilbert Roland and Jay C. Flippen. Music is by Joseph Gershenson and CinemaScope cinematography is by Russell Metty.

When a San Francisco priest is murdered, friend of the priest, Joe Martini (Curtis), a traffic cop, gets a hunch and ingratiates himself into the family of the man he thinks is responsible.

Somehow it has become one of those 1950s black and white crime movies entered into film noir publications. It doesn't belong in that particular filmic chest, but it does ask to be sought out by fans of such 1950s fare. In actuality it's a whodunit? Thrusting a handsome and restrained Curtis into a murder mystery while his emotions get whacked from all sides. Filmed (joyously so) and set in Frisco, the makers never once play their hand to reveal what the finale will bring.

The everyday life of a working and loving Italian-American family is vividly brought to life, luring us in to their world as intrigued but concerned observers - the North Beach District a sweaty backdrop just waiting to spill its secrets. Pevney keeps things brisk, never letting things sag, even as the inevitable romantic thread dangles (it's 1950s Tony Curtis after all), there's always an air of suspicion and mystery pulsing away in the narrative.

Curtis fronts up for dressage, but delivers promise on an interesting role, but it's Roland's movie all the way. A damn fine turn that only comes to being in the final quarter. In support there is the sturdy presence of Flippen and Ted de Corsia, both of whom leave a telling mark. Each and all building to a finale, which may not contain the wallop one had hoped, but strikes a positive note and rounds it out as a film to seek out. 7/10

A beloved parish priest is knifed in an alley in San Francisco. Motorcycle cop Tony Curtis asked to be transferred so he can investigate; the priest had been a tremendous influence on him at the orphanage. He's turned down. At the funeral he spots Gilbert Roland - harboring the unfortunate name of 'Malatesta' - and has a hunch. His superiors put him on leave, and he gets on Roland's good side, moves into his home, and falls in love with with Roland's cousin, Marisa Pavan, while trying to find some reason to confirm his suspicion.

It's clearly a Tony Curtis vehicle, but as soon as Roland steps onto the screen, he pushes The star off. In fact, the only way for anyone else to get their time on. Screen is to have Roland someplace else. He's big, he's boisterous, he's good-hearted, and loves everyone, particularly the dead parish priest. What a mistake for any actor to agree to be in a movie with him!

Besides Gilbert Roland, this movie features some nice location shooting in San Francisco, which is completely recognizable, despite never showing the Golden Gate Bridge, cablecars, Union Square or the Transamericabuilding (that last had not been built yet).

The Midnight Story has Tony Curtis starring as a young motorcycle cop who was raised in an orphanage and the priest who ran it is knifed to death at the midnight hour. As this priest was the single most important figure in his life Curtis wants to get reassigned to homicide to help catch the killer. But he doesn't get reassigned so Curtis quits the San Francisco PD and goes to work on his own. Someone in that Fisherman's Wharf community did the deed and he'll find who it is.

His suspicions fall on Gilbert Roland playing his usual happy go lucky self as one of the fisherman, but Roland is a man who is hiding something obviously.

Curtis's efforts to ingratiate himself with Roland work only too well. He gets a job with him and even boards with his family. He grows to like him and even more important he falls for Marisa Pavan who is Roland's cousin who also boards with him.

Coming right before Tony's breakthrough role in Sweet Smell Of Success, The Midnight Story is a small indication of what Curtis was capable of. He turns in a fine job as the troubled and conflicted cop who wants more than anything to believe Roland is not capable of killing a priest. The real star of the film though is Roland. This part is one of the best he ever did on film.

Some other outstanding performances are Argentina Brunetti as Roland's sister, Ted DeCorsia and Jay C. Flippen as Curtis's police superiors and one that is brief but memorable is Peggy Maley as a potential witness who could finger someone else for the murder. Her scene with Curtis, DeCorsia, Flippen, and Russ Conway as the cops questioning here is quite memorable.

In his memoir Tony Curtis said he liked this film very much. So will you if you see it.

Just saw this in a double bill with Six Bridges To Cross (another Tony Curtis noir from the same era, also directed by Joseph Pevney) as part of the American Cinematheque Film Noir Festival. What a buried treasure! Pevney was wonderful at rich characterization and the portrayal of the Italian family in this story is nothing less than one of the most heartwarming and charming in cinematic history! Argentina is priceless as the matriarch, outdoing Olympia Dukakis' similar role in Moonstruck. Well-defined roles, clever psychological dynamics and a downright pithy script lift this far above the average crime melodrama, which you might otherwise suspect this would be based on its seemingly standard "cop goes against system to avenge death of his friend" plotline. However, there is a lot more going on in this picture and the performances are uniformly excellent. More importantly, while there is mucho complexity inviting lots of analytical "academic flapdoodle," this is at the heart a highly entertaining piece which lays out a challenging conflict and finds a way to nimbly avoid the cliches and build to an ultimately satisfying solution. If you are a fan of noir or the versatile Tony Curtis, don't miss the chance to see Curtis shine in the straight man cop role for once... If you just like a good crime drama, you'll also want to check this neglected diamond in the rough!

Tony Curtis stars in "The Midnight Story" from 1957. The film also featured Gilbert Roland, Marisa Pavan, Argentina Brunetti, J. C. Flippen, and Herb Vigran.

When a beloved priest is killed in San Francisco, Joe Martini (Curtis) takes it very hard, as the priest was in charge of an orphanage where Martini once lived. At the funeral, he spots a man, Sylvio (Roland) who seems extremely agitated over the priest's death. He decides to investigate.

When he can't get permission from his superiors, Joe resigns and infiltrates himself into Sylvio's life, even to the point of staying at his house. He falls in love with Anna (Pavan) who is Sylvio's cousin and lives in the house.

However, in trying to check Sylvio's alibi for the night the priest was killed, he's not able to verify it. When he finally is, he proposes to Anna. At their engagement party, his old boss has some bad news for him.

I wasn't as enthusiastic about this film as others on IMDb. I found it very overwrought, even taking into account that the acting style back then was more overt.

Curtis, however, was wonderful as a determined young man, one of warmth and charm, as his emotions get in the way while attempting to learn the truth about his newfound friend.

Curtis was one of four hot Hollywood hunks in the '50s along with fellow Universal star Rock Hudson, 20th Century Fox's Robert Wagner, and Warner's Tab Hunter. Of the four, I feel Tony was the best actor - certainly the only one with stage experience - and exhibited more range than the others.

This is a pretty good movie that will keep you interested.

In an unusually deep performance, Curtis plays a cop who goes undercover to try to find a priest's murderer. At times, the story seems to teeter on the precipice of turgid melodrama, but Curtis and Roland are always there to right the course. Roland is magnificent as the Italian patriarch whose family Curtis invades. The painstaking attention that the film gives the Italian neighborhood and its collective perspectives pays handsome dividends. Worth a look.

I'm only going to comment on Peggy Maley. This actress appears only twice in the film but her "Veda Pinelli" really stands out. She is enthralling as she possesses an odd sort of tough, working-class glamor. Peggy Maley looks luscious and delightfully feminine in her silky housecoat and later in an average dress set off by clattering bracelets. She even assumes a kind of movie star glamour when she dons sunglasses to cover the black eye she gets from her husband (never seen in the film) for "stepping out." I watched this movie a second time only to see Peggy Maley as the enticing and vulnerable Veda Pinelli.

Peggy Maley may be best known for delivering the feeder line, "Whaddya rebelling against, Johnny?" to Marlon Brando in "The Wild One" but "The Midnight Story" may be her best and most vibrant work.

Here's to you, Peggy Maley!

Tony Curtis is a keen San Francisco cop ("Joe") who is convinced that the killer of a local priest is none other than local crab fisherman "Malatesta" (Gilbert Roland). There's no evidence, though, and that man has a fairly cast iron alibi. His boss "KIlrain" (Ted de Corsia) tells him to forget it but he can't, so he quits and with a bit of off-the-books help from his sergeant "Gillen" (Jay C. Flippen) he sets out to ingratiate himself with his suspect. Against all the odds, they actually start to bond, and after a short while the older man suggests that "Joe" moves into the family home where he fits in well with "Mama" (Argentina Brunetti) and takes a bit of a shine to the tempestuous daughter "Anna" (Marisa Pavan). The longer he associates with this family, the more convinced he becomes that his hunch was wrong. Then, out of the blue, his old boss gets in touch with some startling information... Curtis is quite engaging here, as are the enthusiastic Pavan and Roland and as the story moves along we are all drawn into the seemingly delightful family scenario. There's a twist waiting for us. It's not one that's entirely unexpected but it quickly hurls us towards an ending that I found just a little rushed and disappointing. This is a solid story that just about manages to keep the romance at bay while the noir-elements prevail, and is still worth a gander.

With a good cast led by Tony Curtis and the underrated Gilbert Roland, we find an interesting mystery about the killing of a local priest who was very popular with everyone in the neighborhood; even, most likely, by the person who murdered him. But what could possibly be the motive to kill this beloved priest? All will be revealed with an ending with a twist.

While "The Midnight Story" is not among Tony Curtis' more famous films, it is among his better films. The fact that it's a story told without spectacle (such as in "The Vikings") might just account for it being lesser-known...but it deserves to be seen and appreciated.

Joe Martini (Curtis) is a cop who is incredibly upset following the brutal murder of a local priest. This kindly man had helped Joe when he lost his family and Joe is determined to investigate the murder on his own when the detectives can find no leads. So he takes a leave of absence and follows up his one very tenuous lead...a man he saw at the funeral who seemed more affected by the priest's death than anyone else. So, Joe befriends Sylvio (Gilbert Roland) and tries to slowly and casually investigate Sylvio's actions the night of the murder. However, something unexpected happens...Sylvio is so taken with his new 'friend' that he invites Joe to live with him and his family. Now, Joe's in a bind...as he's practically family with the man who MIGHT have killed the priest!

The acting is very good in this one and Gilbert Roland and Tony Curtis put in really nice performances. Additionally, the story is well written--with a dandy finale. Well worth your time.

Several viewings of this film have lead me to the following conclusion - that it is a 1950's gem ! I cannot speak more highly of it. Plot and acting are very impressive and although it is unfortunately filmed in Black and White, this does serve to increase the 1950's atmosphere. The world of Italian Americans is portrayed marvellously and I wonder today whether it is the same ! Unfortunately I do not know any Italian Americans. In general I like films where priests play a rôle although it must be said that that is not the main element here - it's just that the initial murder is that of a priest ! What really interested me was the relationship between Tony Curtis and the Malatesta family - there's also romance too to add to the suspense of "who did the murder". Although I have an excellent VHS recording of this, I would have liked to own it on DVD but it would appear to be one of those films that has fallen into oblivion;

Saw 'The Midnight Story' as part of my Tony Curtis completest quest after being recommended many of his films here in the recommended for you section. It was not something that was intended initially but actually it has proven to be a generally worthwhile experience, even with a couple of missteps.

While there were and are better actors about and he didn't always look comfortable in his early films, Curtis was always immensely likeable and had a charming charisma with many good and more performances under his belt. The cover was also appetising and the story, while unoriginal, seemed really interesting. 'The Midnight Story' turned out to be a very good film, a good representation of Curtis in one of his better early roles and films, certainly the case for both from the 50s.

Not really all that much wrong here actually. The weak link is Marisa Pavan, whose performance for my tastes was on the overdone side.

Her chemistry with Curtis didn't quite convince as much as it could have done, a bit bland compared to everything else being so compelling.

Curtis however is excellent in a departure role at that point of his career and even better is the quite magnificent Gilbert Roland walking away with the film. Their chemistry is psychologically clever, tense and at times touching. On top of that their characters are surprisingly well-defined, the script is tautly written and the story is from start to finish compelling and suspenseful with an ending that's both tense and affecting.

Visually, 'The Midnight Story' is atmospheric and stylish and the direction ensures that the pace of the story never gets dull while allowing some breathing space. Any melodramatic never goes over-the-top. It never tries to be more than it is and knows what it wants to be, never trying too hard while also never descending into laziness which is always appreciated.

In summary, very good and should be known more. 8/10 Bethany Cox

This is vintage Tony Curtis when he acted in notable films like "Sweet Smell of Success" with Burt Lancaster and "The Defiant Ones" with Sidney Poitier, and this is perhaps the best of them. It all happens in San Francisco, when a Catholic priest is brutally murdered by getting knifed in the back, and immediately the mystery arises: whoever would want to do so such a thing to a priest who was beloved by all? And there are no clues to the mystery whatsoever.

Tony Curtis is a cop and has been raised as a an orphan by the murdered priest, he carries the coffin at the farewell service and there meets a fellow Italian who appears to be burning in hell. Curtis immediately gets a hunch, the faintest of leads by a mere feeling, and lays down his badge to start a private investigation of his own.

What follows is a Dostoievskian psychological drama. Gabriel Roland plays the Italian father who welcomes Curtis as one of the family, and he finds happiness and even a perfect fiancée in the family (Marisa Pavan, like another Natalie Wood as the West Side Story Maria). The character and development of this film is very much like Edward Dmytryk's "Give Us This Day" about Italian immigrants in Brooklyn 1929, but this is more interesting psychologically. The crisis is inevitable, which breaks out into a total tragedy - which proves to have been the only happy solution.

It's a tremendous film, and it will remain actual forever and of as lasting an interest as any Dostoievsky novel.

Noir films don't come much better than this modest little 'B' thriller from 1957. Every department is in top form - casting, direction, acting, locations, photography - even the music. A youthful-looking Tony Curtis plays an (ex-)cop on the trail of the killer of his boyhood-idol priest, with Gilbert Roland (outwardly, a calm, assured typical San Franciscan Italian family member) his chief suspect. Curtis moves in with the family, then spends almost the entire film veering wildly between believing Roland totally innocent or guilty, producing all sorts of wild mood swings & unstable behaviour in him (Curtis). The final dramatic scene in Roland's store-hut will have you riveted to your seat! Like other reviewers, I recommend this movie wholeheartedly, although currently (January, 2015), it is not officially available on DVD.

This dramatic film noir from 1957 is a fun watch. The plot is pretty layered, allowing for a few nice twists along the way. The story centers around a San Francisco traffic cop intent on solving the murder of a priest who was a father figure to him. He goes undercover, falls in love with a female cousin of the suspect, and comes up with a strategy to get a confession. Thanks to the screenwriters (John Robinson and Edwin Blum), the film is more character-driven, rather than relying on action. The character development is rich here, demonstrated in the writers choice to give the cast of characters complicated lives, including those of the police officers involved in the murder case. The acting is top-notch, including one of Tony Curtis' best performances. Marisa Pavan and Gilbert Roland also shine in their roles, each bringing an intensity and beautiful desperation to the screen. Filmed on location in San Francisco, director Joseph Pevney keeps the story moving forward at a great pace. Also of particular note is the fantastic score composed by Hans J. Salter and Henry Vars.

That's what amazed the most in this movie, Ted de Corsia playing a cop. I could not believe it; I did not imagine Ted De Corsia being someone else than a gangster.... I am not sure that he played another policeman character, very improbable !!! That said, this Jo Pevney's film is more drama and character study than a crime film, as SIX BRIDGES TO CROSS - also starring Tony Curtis - was. Yes, this is a cute little drama which French translation for the title was " Rendez-Vous Avec Une Ombre", which means "Appointment With a Shadow" which is precisely the American title of another Universal Studios thriller released the same year, and directed by Richard Carlson. I guess the French distribution bureau in chage to spread the feature in movie theaters made a confusion between the two films, one goon made a mistake. I am not surprised from French; I am French myself and that's the typical trademark of the strikes, complain and Eiffel Tower country. So, to summarize, that's not the best Joseph Pevney's feature ever, but worth watching.