''Time to Kill'' is an American mystery film directed by

Herbert I. Leeds Herbert I. Leeds (September 13, 1900 – May 15, 1954) was an American film director. Biography Herbert Irving Levy was born on September 13, 1900, to Abraham T. Levy and had a sister, Marjorie Levy Rudman. He married Evelyn C. and had Lydia as t ...

. It is the first screen adaptation of

Raymond Chandler Raymond Thornton Chandler (July 23, 1888 – March 26, 1959) was an American-British novelist and screenwriter. In 1932, at the age of forty-four, Chandler became a detective fiction writer after losing his job as an oil company executive durin ...

's novel '' The High Window'', which was

remade Bas-Lag is the fictional world in which several of English author China Miéville's novels are set. Bas-Lag is a world where both magic (referred to as "thaumaturgy") and steampunk technology exist, and is home to many intelligent races. It is inf ...

five years later as '' The Brasher Doubloon''. The detective was changed from Philip Marlowe to

Michael Shayne Michael "Mike" Shayne is a fictional private detective character created during the late 1930s by writer Brett Halliday, a pseudonym of Davis Dresser. The character appeared in a series of seven films starring Lloyd Nolan for Twentieth Century Fo ...

for this version, with

Lloyd Nolan Lloyd Benedict Nolan (August 11, 1902 – September 27, 1985) was an American film and television actor. Among his many roles, Nolan is remembered for originating the role of private investigator Michael Shayne in a series of 1940s B movies. Bi ...

playing the part and Heather Angel in a rare turn as leading lady. It is also the final Michael Shayne film starring Lloyd Nolan made at Fox, who closed down their popular B movie unit which included Mr. Moto, Charlie Chan, and the Cisco Kid. In 1946 the series would be reborn at

Producers Releasing Corporation Producers Releasing Corporation was the smallest and least prestigious of the Hollywood film studios of the 1940s. It was considered a prime example of what was called "Poverty Row": a low-rent stretch of Gower Street in Hollywood where shoest ...

with Hugh Beaumont taking over the role.

Cast

In order of billing: *

* Heather Angel as Myrle Davis * Doris Merrick as Linda Conquest Murdock * Ralph Byrd as Lou Venter, bodyguard * Richard Lane as Lt. Breeze * Sheila Bromley as Lois Morny * Morris Ankrum as Alexander Morny * Ethel Griffies as Mrs. Murdock * James Seay as Leslie Murdock *Ted Hecht as George Anson Phillips *William Pawley as Mr. Hensch * Syd Saylor as The Mailman *Lester Sharpe as Elisha Washburn *Charles Williams as The Dentist * LeRoy Mason as Rudolph, the headwaiter * George Melford as Minor Role (uncredited)

Production

Rights

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

bought

's novel '' The High Window'' for $3,500.

RKO Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orphe ...

purchased the rights to Chandler's 1940 novel ''

Farewell, My Lovely ''Farewell, My Lovely'' is a novel by Raymond Chandler, published in 1940, the second novel he wrote featuring the Los Angeles private eye Philip Marlowe. It was adapted for the screen three times and was also adapted for the stage and rad ...

'' and made 1944's '' Murder, My Sweet'' which would have the character of Philip Marlowe.

Score

David Raksin was uncredited for his work on ''Time to Kill'' although the book ''Film Composers in America : A Filmography, 1911-1970'' credits him.

Emil Newman Emil Newman (January 20, 1911 – August 30, 1984) was an American music director and conductor who worked on more than 200 films and TV series. He was nominated for an Oscar for his musical direction on the classic '' Sun Valley Serenade'' (1941) ...

is credited with the film score of ''Superior "Michael Shayne" thrillers: Murders surround theft of valuable coin''.

Screenplay

''Time to Kill'' was written by Clarence Upson Young, based on

's novel '' The High Window''.

Brett Halliday Brett Halliday (July 31, 1904 – February 4, 1977) is the primary pen name of Davis Dresser, an American mystery and western writer. Halliday is best known for the long-lived series of Michael Shayne mysteries he wrote, and later commissioned ...

wrote a series of books with

as the lead character whereas Chandler's was Philip Marlowe.

was looking for detective film series after the success of ''Charlie Chan and Mr. Moto'' film series in 1940.

Cinematography

''Time to Kill''s cinematographer was Charles Clarke.

Reception

Critical response

In 1978's ''The Detective in Hollywood'' by Jon Tuska claimed it "is in every way superior to the later remake, '' The Brasher Doubloon''".

References

Citations

Sources

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External links

* *
Review of film
at ''Variety'' 1942 films 1940s mystery drama films 20th Century Fox films American detective films American mystery drama films Films based on American novels American black-and-white films Films based on works by Raymond Chandler Films directed by Herbert I. Leeds Films scored by David Raksin Films scored by Emil Newman 1942 drama films 1940s American films {{mystery-film-stub