Assassin for Hire | |
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Directed by | Michael McCarthy |
Produced by | Julian Wintle |
Written by | Rex Rienits |
Based on | TV play by Rex Rienits |
Starring |
Sydney Tafler Ronald Howard Katharine Blake John Hewer |
Music by | Ronnie Emanuel |
Cinematography | Robert LaPresle |
Edited by | Eric Hodges |
Production
company |
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Distributed by |
Anglo-Amalgamated Film Distributors (UK) William H. Horne & David Dietz (US) |
Release date
|
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Running time
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67 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Assassin for Hire is a 1951 British crime film directed by Michael McCarthy and starring Sydney Tafler, Ronald Howard and Katharine Blake. Its plot follows a contract killer who becomes stricken with remorse when he is led to believe he has murdered his brother.
Antonio Riccardi, a young British criminal of Italian heritage, works as a professional contract killer in order to pay for his gifted younger brother's violin lessons so that he can escape from a life of poverty and crime. A series of mistakes lead him to wrongly believe he has killed his brother, and he confesses his crimes to the police.
It was the first feature film made by Anglo-Amalgamated. It was made at Merton Park Studios from a screenplay by Rex Rienits.
Rienits based on the script on a television film Assassin for Hire which was screened by the BBC in September 1950. This in turn was based on a radio play. Rienits later turned the story into a novel.
It was intended as a supporting feature, although it may have been shown as a headline feature in some cinemas.