Tony Curtis stars in "The Midnight Story" from 1957. The film also featured Gilbert Roland, Marisa Pavan, Argentina Brunetti, J. C. Flippen, and Herb Vigran.
When a beloved priest is killed in San Francisco, Joe Martini (Curtis) takes it very hard, as the priest was in charge of an orphanage where Martini once lived. At the funeral, he spots a man, Sylvio (Roland) who seems extremely agitated over the priest's death. He decides to investigate.
When he can't get permission from his superiors, Joe resigns and infiltrates himself into Sylvio's life, even to the point of staying at his house. He falls in love with Anna (Pavan) who is Sylvio's cousin and lives in the house.
However, in trying to check Sylvio's alibi for the night the priest was killed, he's not able to verify it. When he finally is, he proposes to Anna. At their engagement party, his old boss has some bad news for him.
I wasn't as enthusiastic about this film as others on IMDb. I found it very overwrought, even taking into account that the acting style back then was more overt.
Curtis, however, was wonderful as a determined young man, one of warmth and charm, as his emotions get in the way while attempting to learn the truth about his newfound friend.
Curtis was one of four hot Hollywood hunks in the '50s along with fellow Universal star Rock Hudson, 20th Century Fox's Robert Wagner, and Warner's Tab Hunter. Of the four, I feel Tony was the best actor - certainly the only one with stage experience - and exhibited more range than the others.
This is a pretty good movie that will keep you interested.
