Don't Bother to Knock
| Don't Bother to Knock | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Roy Ward Baker |
| Produced by | Julian Blaustein |
| Screenplay by | Daniel Taradash |
| Based on |
Mischief 1951 novel by Charlotte Armstrong |
| Starring |
Richard Widmark Marilyn Monroe |
| Music by | Lionel Newman |
| Cinematography | Lucien Ballard |
| Edited by | George A. Gittens |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
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Release date
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Running time
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76 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $1.5 million (US rentals) |
Don't Bother to Knock is a 1952 American film noir thriller starring Richard Widmark and Marilyn Monroe and directed by Roy Ward Baker.
The screenplay was written by Daniel Taradash, based on the novel Mischief by Charlotte Armstrong, published in 1951.
Monroe is featured as a disturbed babysitter watching a child at the same New York hotel where a pilot, played by Widmark, is staying. Her strange behavior makes him increasingly aware that she is the last person with whom the parents should have entrusted their daughter.
Lyn Lesley (Anne Bancroft), the bar singer at New York's McKinley Hotel, wonders if airline pilot Jed Towers (Richard Widmark) will show up. She had ended their six-month relationship with a letter. When Jed does register at the hotel, she explains that she sees no future with him because he lacks an understanding heart.
Meanwhile, elevator operator Eddie (Elisha Cook Jr.) introduces his shy niece, Nell Forbes (Marilyn Monroe), to guests Peter and Ruth Jones (Jim Backus and Lurene Tuttle) as a babysitter for their daughter Bunny (Donna Corcoran). The Joneses go down to a function being held in the hotel's banquet hall. After the child is put to bed, Nell tries on Ruth's lacy negligee, jewelry, perfume and lipstick. Seeing Nell from his room directly opposite, Jed calls her on the telephone, but she is not interested. When Eddie checks up on Nell, he is appalled to find her wearing Ruth's property and orders her to take them off. Eddie tells her she can obtain such luxuries for herself by finding another boyfriend to replace the one who was killed. After Eddie leaves, Nell invites Jed over.
Nell lies to keep Jed believing that she herself is a guest. She is startled when Jed reveals that he is a pilot. She confides that her boyfriend Philip died while flying an airplane to Hawaii. Bunny comes out and unmasks Nell's charade. Furious, Nell shakes the child and orders her back to bed. Jed comforts the crying Bunny and lets her stay up. When Bunny looks out the open window, however, it appears that Nell is considering pushing her out. Though Jed snatches the girl away, the incident is witnessed by long-term hotel resident Emma Ballew (Verna Felton).
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Wikipedia