''Step Down to Terror'' (also known as ''The Silent Stranger'') is a 1958 American

film noir Film noir (; ) is a style of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas that emphasizes cynicism (contemporary), cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of Ameri ...

crime film Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as Drama (film and television), dr ...

directed by

Harry Keller Harry Keller (February 22, 1913 – January 19, 1987) was an American film editor, producer and director, who made a number of Western (genre), westerns and worked for many years at Republic Pictures and Universal Pictures. In 1958, Keller was ta ...

and starring Colleen Miller, Charles Drake and

Rod Taylor Rodney Sturt Taylor (11 January 1930 – 7 January 2015) was an Australian actor. He appeared in more than 50 feature films, including '' Young Cassidy'' (1965), '' Nobody Runs Forever'' (1968), '' The Train Robbers'' (1973), and '' A Matt ...

. It is a remake of the 1943

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

film ''

Shadow of a Doubt ''Shadow of a Doubt'' is a 1943 American psychological thriller film noir directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and starring Teresa Wright and Joseph Cotten. Written by Thornton Wilder, Sally Benson, and Alma Reville, the film was nominated for an A ...

''.

Plot

Johnny Williams (Drake) is a psychotic serial killer who returns to his hometown to visit his mother (Hutchinson) and widowed sister-in-law Helen (Miller), both of whom are ignorant of his criminal past. Johnny hopes to settle down and start life anew, but Helen, her suspicions aroused by visiting detective Mike Randall (Taylor), discovers the truth about her beloved brother-in-law. Failing to talk Helen out of turning him in, Johnny methodically plots her murder. When all his plans fail he drags Helen into his car and drives off with her. Knowing Johnny is going to kill her, Helen grabs the keys, and he is forced to swerve to avoid hitting a boy riding a bike, and is killed in the resulting accident. At the memorial service, as Johnny is lauded as a model citizen, only Helen and Mike know the truth.

Cast

* Colleen Miller as Helen Walters * Charles Drake as Johnny Williams Walters *

as Mike Randall *

Josephine Hutchinson Josephine Hutchinson (October 12, 1903 – June 4, 1998) was an American actress. She acted in dozens of theater plays and dozens of films, including ''Son of Frankenstein'' and ''North by Northwest'', as well as numerous television appearances ...

as Mrs. Sarah Walters *

Jocelyn Brando Jocelyn Brando (November 18, 1919November 27, 2005) was an American actress, best known for her role as Katie Bannion in the film noir '' The Big Heat'' (1953). She was the sister of Marlon Brando. Early life Brando was born in San Francisco ...

as Lily Kirby * Alan Dexter as Roy the photographer *

Ricky Kelman Rickey William Kelman (born July 6, 1949) is a former actor. He had supporting roles in two single-season sitcoms, ''The Dennis O'Keefe Show'' (1959-1960) on CBS and '' Our Man Higgins'' (1962-1963) on ABC. Major roles On ''The Dennis O'Keef ...

as Doug Walters

Production

At one stage

Ross Hunter Ross Hunter (born Martin Terry Fuss; May 6, 1920 – March 10, 1996) was an American film and television producer and actor. He is best known for producing light comedies such as '' Pillow Talk'' (1959), and the glamorous melodramas '' Magnifi ...

was going to produce and

Donna Reed Donna Reed (born Donna Belle Mullenger; January 27, 1921 – January 14, 1986) was an American actress. Her career spanned more than 40 years, with performances in more than 40 films. She is well known for her portrayal of Mary Hatch Bailey in ...

was going to star.

References

External links

* * * 1958 films Film noir 1958 crime drama films American black-and-white films Universal Pictures films American crime drama films Films directed by Harry Keller 1950s English-language films 1950s American films English-language crime drama films {{1950s-US-drama-film-stub

Plot

Cast

Production

See also

References

External links