When a young boy's family is killed by the mob, their tough neighbor Gloria becomes his reluctant guardian. In possession of a book that the gangsters want, the pair go on the run in New York.
Acting
Rowlands' volcanic restraint — every glance is a threat.
Direction
Cassavetes' handheld panic in fluorescent diners.
Writing
Dialogue that sounds stolen from real screaming matches.
Director
John Cassavetes
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Columbia Pictures hated Cassavetes' edit and released their own cut; he publicly disowned it until the 2010s restoration.
Sharon Stone remade this in 1999 and it flopped spectacularly — proof that Rowlands' specific chaos cannot be replicated.
US
