The Hairy Ape

"EUGENE O'NEILL'S BEST!"

Jul 2 1944 Approved 1h 32m
Drama, Film-Noir

Aboard ship, a spoiled woman (Susan Hayward) insults the brutish stoker (William Bendix) while watching him work.

Plot

Hank Smith, a brutish stoker on board a freighter, is appalled when Mildred Douglas, a society girl forced by circumstance to travel as a passenger, visits the stokehold and recoils at the filthy, sweating Hank. A powerhouse of a man with a primitive confidence, Hank has never been looked down on before nor suffered the insult "hairy ape" flung at him by the rich girl. At first he seeks vengeance for the insult, but broods over it until more than anything, he desires to understand it. When the ship reaches port, he seeks her out in her upper class surroundings, determined to grasp the meaning of the encounter.

Written by

Eugene O'Neill, Robert Hardy Andrews, Decla Dunning

Directed by

Alfred Santell

Production Countries

United States of America

Production Companies

Mayfair Productions Inc.

Languages

English

Awards

Nominated for 1 Oscar. 1 nomination total

Scores
# of Votes
505
Average Rating
6.1 out of 10
Metascore
NA
Popularity
NA