AN ACT OF MURDER (1948) and related films.

[earlytalkiebuffRob]

Reading David Stewart Hull on ICH KLAGE AN / I ACCUSE (1941), there is mention of several films on the subject of 'mercy-killing', which is still a contentious subject. Of particular interest would be AN ACT OF MURDER, which appears to be rarely shown, and a look on Google reveals several much later and less well-known films and 'TV movies'. Has anyone seen ACT, and what did you think of it?

[R Michael Pyle]

"An Act of Murder" was re-done in 1955 as an hour long segment of "Lux Theater" with Thomas Mitchell and Ann Harding. I'd bet that was equally interesting.

[Richard P. May]

I remember AN ACT OF MURDER, both from its original release and at least once on TV. I don't know what TV service had it, though.
It stars Fredric March as (I think) a judge. Florence Eldridge (his real, as well as screen, wife) has some incurable disease. There is the decision to either let it run its course or speed up her demise. After her death, he is tried for "mercy killing". I don't remember any further details.
It was a well done picture, probably from Universal. Its downbeat subject probably doomed it to poor boxoffice.

[earlytalkiebuffRob]

Yes, that's what I read. March is a very severe judge who is tried for murder. His wife has a brain tumour which becomes inoperable, so he does what he feels to be the best action and ends up in trouble. And of course there are a good many of us out there who have had loved ones suffer and would do the same if we had the courage.

As the Thomas Mitchell version would have been live, one would need to find out if there was any recording. I've found one of the 1955 HOLIDAY AFFAIR, although the image quality looks poor...

[FilmGauge]

I saw this feature many years ago. The print screened was a 16mm printdown under its copyrighted title "LIVE TODAY FOR TOMORROW". The theme makes you really think, concerning mercy killing. Heavy stuff even in 1948.

[Dave Pitts]

Act of Murder (aka Live Today for Tomorrow) was commonly shown on channel 61's 1 p.m. matinee movie on Cleveland TV back in the 60s, which was when I became a movie maniac. I probably saw it 4 or 5 times, during as many summer vacations. The movie guide I used back then, Scheuer's Movies on TV, gave it three and a half stars and commented, 'Grim and unrelenting, but finely done drama deserves praise.' I haven't seen it for many years, and suspect I would find it wordy today. Also, as I remember it, the writers chicken out and devise a way to make the wife's death not a result of euthanasia after all. Fredric March elevates the material (and today I would pay more attention to Florence Eldridge than I did back then -- I'm guessing that she underplays quite a bit and lets March have the high notes.) Even as a ten- eleven- twelve-year-old, I knew that March was a commanding actor who could dig deep into the script and bring out all its nuances. He seemed more adult than most other leading men.