Main Cast: James Cagney, Barbara Payton, Helena Carter, Ward Bond, Luther Adler
Release Year: 1950
Country: US
Run Time: 102 minutes
Plot
Based on a novel by Horace McCoy (They Shoot Horses, Don't They), Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye offers James Cagney at his nastiest. The star plays career criminal Ralph Cotter, who gets things started by violently busting out of jail, then murdering his partner in crime. Seeking out female companionship, he "courts" his ex-partner's sister Holiday (Barbara Payton) by beating her black and blue. After committing a robbery, he is approached by two crooked cops who want a piece of the action. Blackmailing the cops, Cotter gains control of the situation. Is there any way to stop this fascinating creep? Filmgoers in Ohio never found out, because Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye was banned in that state as "a sordid, sadistic presentation of brutality and an extreme presentation of crime with explicit steps in commission." Supporting Cagney are Luther Adler as his equally crooked lawyer, Ward Bond and Barton MacLane as the dishonest cops, and Cagney's brother William (who produced the film) as Ralph Cotter's brother. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Wiard Ihnen - Art Director, Adele Parmenter - Costume Designer, William Kissell - First Assistant Director, Gordon M. Douglas - Director, Walter A. Hannemann - Editor, Truman K. Wood - Editor, Carmen Dragon - Composer (Music Score), Otis Malcolm - Makeup, J. Peverell Marley - Cinematographer, William Cagney - Producer, Joe Kish - Set Designer, Paul Eagler - Special Effects, Harry Brown - Screenwriter, Horace McCoy - Book Author
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (1950) is a film noir directed by Gordon Douglas based on the novel by Horace McCoy. The film was banned in Ohio as "a sordid, sadistic presentation of brutality and an extreme presentation of crime with explicit steps in commission."
Supporting Cagney are Luther Adler as a crooked lawyer, Ward Bond and Barton MacLane as two crooked cops, and Cagney's brother William (who produced the film) as Ralph Cotter's brother.
James Cagney plays Ralph Cotter, a career criminal who escapes from prison, then murders his partner in crime. Along the way he attempts to woo his ex partner's sister (Barbara Payton) by threatening to expose her role in his escape. Cotter quickly gets back into the crime business only to be shaken down by corrupt local cops.
Critical reaction
The film, often compared unfavorably to White Heat, receives mixed reviews. The Chicago Reader calls the film mis-directed writing: "the film reads a bit like an orchestra playing without a conductor."Time Out Film Guide gives the film only praise calling it, "the best of the post-war gangster movies."
