Gun Crazy starts with young Bart Tare (Russ Tamlin) sneaking through a dark rainy night to smash a pawn shop window and steal a hand gun, whereupon he is caught by the sheriff and taken to court. The judge asks for character witnesses to speak out during which time Barts young friends speak out about the inability of Bart to shoot a Mountain Lion even though he is a crack shot. Barts sister Ruby (Anabel Shaw) speaks up to tell the judge that she is planning to get married and wants to keep Bart close to raise with a family. But the judge sends Bart to reform school. When we move forward in time we view Barts return. He has served his time in reform school and a stint in the army when he comes back to see sister Ruby who is run off her feet taking care of her house full of children. Bart and his buddies Clyde (Harry Lewis) and Dave (Ned Young) attend a Carnival to see the shooting performance by Annie Laurie Starr (Peggy Cummins) and Bart is immediately attracted to her because of her beauty and the fact that she is a crack shot. When Bart competes against Laurie in a shooting match and wins he decides to take a job with the Carnival mainly to be with Laurie, but Carnival Manager and Lauries former lover Packett (Berry Kroeger) fires them both when Bart steals Lauries love. Bart and Laurie get married and quickly discover that without jobs or legal tender they cant survive. Laurie talks Bart into robbing gas stations and the two quickly move up to banks with Bart suffering angst for every job, and Laurie cold-bloodedly urging him on. The two decide to separate after one more big job but when the time comes, they stay together and decide to flee to Mexico to start a new life. When the Police discover their location and close in, Bart and Laurie hop a train and go back to Rubys house to hide out but are discovered by Barts childhood friends Clyde and Dave. Bart and Laurie run again to a marsh with the Police closing in and must decide their fate with guns primed to cut them down. —IMDb
American low-budget filmmaker Joseph H. Lewis began his long screen career editing such Republic serials as The Miracle Rider (1935) and The Undersea Kingdom (1936). Lewis was elevated to director with Courage of the West, a 1937 Universal oater that also marked the debut of crooner Bob Baker. As a director, Lewis would remain in the Western field well into the television era, earning the nickname of “Wagon Wheel Joe” because of a penchant for framing shots through the spokes of a wagon wheel. The moniker was bestowed upon him by fellow B-Western expert Oliver Drake, but unlike Drake, Lewis’ oeuvre managed to stand out in a crowded field, mainly due to careful lighting and other atmospheric touches not often considered sine qua non in low-budget filmmaking. Turning increasingly to thrillers, Lewis later directed Bela Lugosi in one of the veteran screen ghoul’s better later vehicles, Monogram’s The Invisible Ghost (1941), and even more importantly… read more
Peggy Cummins is simply fabulous as the gun toting Annie Laurie Starr and John Dall her perfect laconic foil as Bart. While the script isn't great, Lewis' direction is first class.
hard not to understate how influential this movie has been, and it remains a masterclass in how to pull off an ambitious film on a low budget. Lewis shows his genius here.
Quite a beautiful film. The cinematography is wonderful for such a low budget B movie.
THE CAMERA NEVER FLIES A squat black ruin lours from a massy clifftop. Ridiculously fake wind effects whoop and whoosh beneath the throbbing
(Originally written July 15, 2006)
Gun Crazy is about a man (John Dall) who has been obsessed with guns ever since he was born. The audience sees how this man’s obsession turns into something… read review
Gun Crazy completely took me by surprise. Little did I know that this small B-movie would turn out to be one of the best fims I have ever seen. It is a frantic display of sexual passion gone horribly… read review