The best James Nolan’s thriller movies

James Nolan

James Nolan

29/11/1915- 29/07/1985
If you love cinema, you will share this ranking of the best James Nolan’s movies, although you may have ordered them differently. In any case, we hope you love it and with a little luck discovering a movie that you still don’t know about James Nolan.
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Dirty Harry

Dirty Harry
7.7/10
When a madman dubbed 'Scorpio' terrorizes San Francisco, hard-nosed cop, Harry Callahan – famous for his take-no-prisoners approach to law enforcement – is tasked with hunting down the psychopath. Harry eventually collars Scorpio in the process of rescuing a kidnap victim, only to see him walk on technicalities. Now, the maverick detective is determined to nail the maniac himself.

Charley Varrick

Charley Varrick
7.5/10
Charley Varrick robs a bank in a small town with his friends, but instead of obtaining a small amount of money, they discover they stole a very large amount of money belonging to the mob. Charley must now come up with a plan to not only evade the police but the mob as well.

Lady in the Lake

Lady in the Lake
6.5/10
Private detective Philip Marlowe is asked by a publishing executive, Adrienne Fromsett, to locate the wife of her boss, publisher Derace Kingsby. Earlier she had sent her husband a telegram saying she was heading to Mexico to marry Chris Lavery. However Kingsby had recently seen Lavery in the neighbouring Bay City. Marlowe pursues his investigation at the Kingsby's lakeside cottage.

The Window

The Window
7.4/10
  • Genre: CrimeDramaThriller
  • Release: 10/05/1949
  • Character: Stranger on Street (uncredited)
An imaginative boy who frequently makes things up witnesses a murder, but can't get his parents or the police to believe him. The only people taking him seriously are the killers - who live upstairs, know that he saw what they did, and are out to permanently silence him.

Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome

Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome
6.1/10
A gang of criminals, which includes a piano player and an imposing former convict known as 'Gruesome', has found out about a scientist's secret formula for a gas that temporarily paralyzes anyone who breathes it. When Gruesome accidentally inhales some of the gas and passes out, the police think he is dead and take him to the morgue, where he later revives and escapes. This puzzling incident attracts the interest of Dick Tracy, and when the criminals later use the gas to rob a bank, Tracy realizes that he must devote his entire attention to stopping them.

Strange Bargain

Strange Bargain
6.7/10
Bookkeeper Sam Wilson learns from his boss, Malcolm Jarvis, that he is losing his job because the company is closing down. Jarvis then makes a strange proposition, saying he intends to commit suicide, but wants Sam to make it look like a murder, in order for his wife and son to inherit Jarvis's life insurance. Sam declines, but when he goes to see Jarvis and finds his dead body, he reluctantly goes along with the scheme.

An American Dream

An American Dream
4.8/10
  • Genre: DramaThriller
  • Release: 31/08/1966
  • Character: Monsignor Jim
Stephen Rojack is a decorated war vet who has now found success as an outspoken television personality. During a vicious argument with his wife, Deborah, Stephen snaps and pushes her from his high-rise apartment to her death. He manages to convince the authorities that she killed herself, then reignites an old affair with singer Cherry McMahon -- which doesn't sit well with her jealous mobster boyfriend, Nicky.

Illegal Entry

Illegal Entry
6.5/10
Long before he became producer/director of The Tonight Show, Fred DeCordova helmed the Universal meller Illegal Entry. Howard Duff, who later worked with DeCordova on the TV series Mr. Adams and Eve, stars as Bert Powers, an undercover agent for the U.S. Department of Immigration. While attempting to bring a vicious gang of alien smugglers to justice, Powers falls in love with Anna Duvak (Marta Toren), a gang member who is Not What She Seems.

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