All the King's Men (1949 film)
| All the King's Men | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Robert Rossen |
| Produced by | Robert Rossen |
| Screenplay by | Robert Rossen |
| Based on |
All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren |
| Starring |
Broderick Crawford John Ireland Mercedes McCambridge Joanne Dru John Derek |
| Music by | Louis Gruenberg |
| Cinematography | Burnett Guffey |
| Edited by | Al Clark Robert Parrish(sup) |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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109 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $2.4 million (US rentals) |
All the King's Men is a 1949 American film noir drama film set in a political setting directed by Robert Rossen and based on the Robert Penn Warren novel of the same name. The triple Oscar-winning production features Broderick Crawford in the role of the ambitious and sometimes ruthless politician, Willie Stark.
The story of the rise of politician Willie Stark from a rural county seat to the governor's mansion is depicted in the film. He goes into politics, railing against the corruptly run county government, but loses his race for county treasurer, in the face of unfair obstacles placed by the local machine. Stark teaches himself law, and as a lawyer, continues to fight the local establishment, championing the local people and gaining popularity. He eventually rises to become a candidate for governor, narrowly losing his first race, then winning on his second attempt. Along the way he loses his innocence and becomes as corrupt as the politicians he once fought against. When his son becomes paralyzed following a drunk driving accident that kills a female passenger, Stark's world starts to unravel and he discovers that not everyone can be bought off.
The story has a complex series of relationships. All is seen through the eyes of the journalist, Jack Burden, who admires Stark and even when disillusioned still sticks by him. Stark's campaign assistant, Sadie is clearly in love with Stark and wants him to leave his wife, Lucy. Meanwhile, Stark philanders and gets involved with many women, taking Jack's own girlfriend, Anne Stanton, as his mistress. When Stark's reputation is brought into disrepute by Judge Stanton (Anne's uncle), he seeks to blacken the judge's name. When Jack finds evidence of the judge's possible wrongdoing, a quarter century earlier, he hides it from Stark. Anne gives the evidence to Stark, who uses it against her uncle, who immediately commits suicide. Anne seems to forgive Stark, but her brother, the surgeon who helped save Stark's son's life after the car crash, cannot. The doctor eventually assassinates Stark after Stark wins an impeachment investigation. The doctor in turn is shot down by Sugar Boy, Stark's fawning assistant.
The main plot is a thinly disguised version of the rise of real-life 1930s Louisiana Governor, Huey Long, Long's efforts to blacken the name of Judge Benjamin Pavy, and Long's assassination by the Judge's son-in-law (compared to nephew, as in the film), Dr. Carl Weiss.
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Wikipedia