Product Description

Oscar winner Frank Sinatra is riveting as a cold-hearted assassin in this taut thriller. When the President of the United States makes a train stop in a sleepy California town, the town sheriff (played brilliantly by Sterling Hayden) is notified by a team of Secret Service men who arrive to make sure the town is secure. But three assassins get there first and take over the house overlooking the train station, holding the family hostage while waiting for the President to arrive. Frank Sinatra s portrayal of a cold-blooded killer is flawless turning this film into a compelling drama, now in color for the first time.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #57966 in DVD
• Brand: LEGEND FILMS
• Released on: 2009-06-16
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 76 minutes

Features

• SUDDENLY (DVD MOVIE)

Customer Reviews

The black and white version looks great!
Legend Films has done an absolutely outstanding job restoring "Suddenly." I didn't watch the colorized version but they very smartly included the original black and white. While there are still some scratches and lines through the screen, the print itself is amazingly crisp and looks much better than the Hal Roach Studios version I had before. I am so happy I took a chance and bought this! But I didn't take a big chance because Legend Films also did an excellent job releasing the Martin & Lewis classic "Money From Home." I hope they continue to restore and release these old movies I love. How about "Sudden Fear" next, to replace that deplorable Kino version?

Excellent Sinatra performance
I've only seen the b/w version and it's an excellent film. Sinatra is chilling as a heartless assassin -- it's hard to remember he's really a beloved crooner. He's a very good actor and it's surprising that this film isn't better known. Moreover, the movie raises issues that are still relevant: mysterious forces behind presidential assassinations, what can ordinary citizens do in the face of evil? what should mothers do when their kids want to play with guns? It's also a reminder of a day when most American men had served in the military or were familiar with guns. It's a snapshot of a small town America that existed 50 years ago but is now vanishing.

their biggest problem was a broken television . . . until
With some remarkable similarities to the Kennedy assassination, Suddenly (1954) is a tense, gripping drama, where an ordinary family becomes involved in a plot to assassinate the President of the United States. Frank Sinatra is John Baron, the leader of a group criminals, that have invaded the Benson residence, because it has an ideal view of the train station, from where Baron plans to shoot the President, when his train stops in the small town of Suddenly.

It was an ordinary Saturday in the Benson household. Peter 'Pop' Benson (James Gleason) and his noisy grandson 'Pidge' (Kim Charney) were trying to repair a broken television, then three men arrive posing as secret service agents. When genuine law enforcement drops by the house, one man is killed and local sheriff Tod Shaw (Sterling Hayden)is wounded. Pidge's mother Ellen (Nancy Gates) is distraught, as the assassins set up a tripod mounted rifle on a table, aimed out a window at the train station, and Baron details just how he plans to kill the President.

Sinatra is quite riveting as an arrogant, egomaniacal, ex-military type with a chip on his shoulder. There's plenty of emotion and drama as an overconfident Baron, expounds about what he is going to do and why. It's a pretty good plan, that just isn't executed very well. Baron is ruthless, repeatedly threatening to shoot the child, but fortunately he is not very competent. A real pro, would not have so many people running loose in the house. The situation is out of control, and not at all realistic, but it makes for a fiery and entertaining time, with different characters taking turns pushing Baron's emotional and psychological buttons. The performances by Hayden, Gates, and Gleason, are edgy, and spot on for their roles. For what it is, there are few wasted moments in this taut 76 minute thriller, that is highly recommended to Sinatra fans.