Rent Odds Against Tomorrow (1959)
3.8 of 5 from 93 ratings
1h 32min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- Embittered ex-cop Dave Burke (Ed Begley) enlists ruthless killer Earle Slater (Robert Ryan, The Dirty Dozen) and gambling musician Johnny Ingram (Harry Belafonte) to rob an upstate New York bank. Trouble unfolds however when, fuelled by racist hatred, Earle clashes with Johnny and the planned heist spirals into chaos, leading to a violent climactic confrontation With its exceptional jazz score, acerbic social commentary and atmospheric visual style, 'Odds Against Tomorrow' is a high point in the film noir canon, and one of the most important films of its era to address racism.
- Actors:
- Harry Belafonte, Robert Ryan, Gloria Grahame, Shelley Winters, Ed Begley, Will Kuluva, Kim Hamilton, Mae Barnes, Richard Bright, Carmen De Lavallade, Lew Gallo, Lois Thorne, wayne Rogers, Zohra Lampert, Allen Nourse, William Adams, Chris Barbery, Ron Becks, Mary Boylan, Eric Burroughs
- Directors:
- Robert Wise
- Producers:
- Robert Wise
- Writers:
- William P. McGivern, Abraham Polonsky, Nelson Gidding, John O. Killens
- Studio:
- Optimum
- Genres:
- Classics, Drama, Thrillers
- Collections:
- 100 Years of German Expressionism, A Brief History of Singer Biopics, Cinema Paradiso's 2024 Centenary Club: Part 3, Film History, Heist Movies: A 20-Year Stretch, inema Paradiso's 2023 Centenary Club: Part 2, Remembering James Earl Jones, A Brief History of Film..., Top 10 Films By Year, Top 10 Films of 1959
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 24/10/2016
- Run Time:
- 96 minutes
- Languages:
- English LPCM Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.37:1
- Colour:
- B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Original Theatrical Trailer
- Odds Against Tomorrow post-screening Q&A with Harry Belafonte (2009, 50 mins): an in-depth interview filmed at the Noir City: Chicago film festival
- Adrian Wootton on Odds Against Tomorrow (2016, 30 mins): a newly filmed appreciation
- The Guardian Interview: Robert Wise at the National Film Theatre (1995, 74 mins): a career-spanning onstage interview
- The John Player Lecture: Robert Ryan at the National Film Theatre (1969, 63 mins, audio only): the actor talks at length about his craft
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Reviews (3) of Odds Against Tomorrow
Wise Does it Again - Odds Against Tomorrow review by CP Customer
Robert Wise proves he is a master of the crime genre with this entry. Far from his best work (The Haunting) its still a thrilling and captivating experience.
2 out of 3 members found this review helpful.
bad - Odds Against Tomorrow review by CP Customer
lost sound after 20 mins or so into this DVD. Wish you would check quality before dispatch. Very unsatisfactory experience as this promised to be an excellent film with a great cast.
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.
Heist Noir (spoiler). - Odds Against Tomorrow review by Steve
This follows the classic three act structure of the heist film: preparation-execution-disintegration. It is focused on the contrasting/conflicting personalities of three men who bust into a small bank in Albany, New York. Ed Begley is an ex-cop looking for a big payoff to set him straight after a stretch inside. He recruits an unlucky gambler in hock to the mob (Harry Belafonte) and a volatile redneck no-mark (Robert Ryan).
See the problem! The theme is the ongoing racial war which dooms the caper. There is plenty of raw, unsubtle symbolism. The pair face off on adjacent petrol tanks and literally blow each other up leaving behind corpses which, with the skin burned off, can't be distinguished. Though this sounds simplistic, the situations are complex and interesting.
It's an ensemble film. Ryan is especially strong as another of his combustable, stubborn bigots. Gloria Grahame is memorable in a cameo as a dumb, overripe tease. Harry Belafonte produced and he gives himself an elegant blues song. Its unique atmosphere is also down to a fantastic cool-jazz soundtrack by the Modern Jazz Quartet.
What most elevates Odds Against Tomorrow is its phenomenal photography. This is visual art and one of the great picture books of New York City. It has an expressionist look, not because of the lighting, but the distorting effect of the lens. It's one many classic genre films Robert Wise directed before he made blockbusters, but, beyond its film noir fatalism, this is arthouse.
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.