The Devil at 4 O'Clock
| The Devil at 4 O'Clock | |
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Theatrical poster by Howard Terpning
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| Directed by | Mervyn LeRoy |
| Produced by | Fred Kohlmar |
| Screenplay by | Liam O'Brien |
| Based on |
The Devil at 4 O'Clock 1958 novel by Max Catto |
| Starring |
Spencer Tracy Frank Sinatra |
| Music by | George Duning |
| Cinematography | Joseph F. Biroc |
| Edited by | Charles Nelson |
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Production
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| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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126 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $5,721,786 |
| Box office | $4,550,000 |
The Devil at 4 O'Clock is a 1961 American Eastman Color disaster film, starring Spencer Tracy and Frank Sinatra and directed by Mervyn LeRoy. Based on a 1959 novel with the same title by British writer Max Catto, the film was a precursor to the disaster films of the 1970s, such as The Poseidon Adventure, Earthquake, and The Towering Inferno.
On the fictional Pacific island of Talua in French Polynesia, some 500 miles from Tahiti, Father Doonan has been relieved of his duties by Father Perreau. Father Doonan has fallen out of favor with the island's residents. This is partly because he is an alcoholic, and also because he stumbled on the island's carefully hidden secret: Hansen's Disease (leprosy) among the children of the islands. He built a hospital for the children by the island's volcano. Doonan regularly goes from door to door on the island, trying to persuade the islanders to donate money or goods to the leper colony. However, the inhabitants have grown tired of Doonan's demands for donations and view him as an irritation.
Meanwhile, three convicts – Harry, Charlie, and Marcel – en route for Tahiti, make an unexpected stop on the island, and they are put to work at the leper hospital. All is seemingly normal until the island's volcano begins to erupt and the governor orders an evacuation. The governor cannot reach the freighter that has just left and plans to evacuate the island with one seaplane and a schooner.
The children are still on the slope of the volcano in the hospital and Father Doonan is desperate to rescue them. When the freighter suddenly appears back at the island, Father Doonan convinces the governor to drop some men to rescue the children. The schooner will wait until 4:00 pm the next day for them before it has to leave because of the tides.
In the hope of getting their sentences commuted, the convicts agree to parachute to the hospital with Father Doonan to rescue the children and staff. They face fire, lava, and earthquakes as time runs out.
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