Guilty by Suspicion (1991)

65% of critics liked it
(17 reviews)
50% of users liked it
(3,268 ratings)

The directorial debut of producer Irwin Winkler, Guilty by Suspicion is a sobering account of one movie executive's woes in dealing with the political fallout from the McCarthy Era Hollywood blacklist. Robert De Niro stars as David Merrill, a film director in the 1950s whose obsession with his… More The directorial debut of producer Irwin Winkler, Guilty by Suspicion is a sobering account of one movie executive's woes in dealing with the political fallout from the McCarthy Era Hollywood blacklist. Robert De Niro stars as David Merrill, a film director in the 1950s whose obsession with his burgeoning career has estranged him from his wife Ruth (Annette Bening) and their son. When he returns from a trip to Paris, Merrill is surprised when told by his boss, Darryl F. Zanuck (Ben Piazza) that he's been summoned to appear before the House Un-American Activities Committee, which is investigating Communist ties to Hollywood. Although Merrill once attended a meeting years before, he's not a Communist, and he refuses to help the committee wreck the career of his friend Bunny Baxter (George Wendt). Merrill becomes blacklisted, unable to find work even in menial positions or under assumed names as the editor of a B-movie or the director of a low-budget Western. Reconciled with his family, Merrill caves in and agrees to testify, but as he prepares to "name names," his conscience plagues him. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 44 min.
Directed By: Irwin Winkler
Genres: Drama

In Theaters: Mar 15, 1991 Wide
On DVD: Jun 1, 2004
Studio: Warner Home Video

Critic Reviews

Willie Waffle, WaffleMovies.com
Irwin Winkler brilliantly captures the madness that overtook Hollywood in the early 1950's
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena
Mesmo se tornando ocasionalmente maniqueísta em seu nobre propósito de denunciar os absurdos do McCarthismo, o filme cumpre seu objetivo de maneira eficaz e traz, como protagonista, um herói involuntário e falho - mas ainda assim herói.
Scott Weinberg, eFilmCritic.com
Surprisingly thoughtful account of the Red Scare. De Niro does some great work here.

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Featured Audience Ratings

jay n

Interesting drama of a dark, shameful period of America's history, the McCarthy blacklist, and the toll it took on decent people. Uniformally excellent performances. It would be nice to think the venality of the committee members was a dramatic exaggeration but sadly it was all… More
Interesting drama of a dark, shameful period of America's history, the McCarthy blacklist, and the toll it took on decent people. Uniformally excellent performances. It would be nice to think the venality of the committee members was a dramatic exaggeration but sadly it was all to real.
Luke B

De Niro gives his best if most underrated performance. The film however never quite reaches the true levels of paranoia you would expect. It does however show these events happening to very real characters. It's certainly an emotional journey as we see their lives fall apart.… More
De Niro gives his best if most underrated performance. The film however never quite reaches the true levels of paranoia you would expect. It does however show these events happening to very real characters. It's certainly an emotional journey as we see their lives fall apart. Unfortunately it is slightly over melodramatic in its presentation.
Lady D

I got lost and distracted many times during this film, but the last half an hour, seemed to hold my attention. I wasn't aware of the 'Blacklist era' or the story behind it, but I'm sure both Robert De Niro and Annette Benning's performances will have… More
I got lost and distracted many times during this film, but the last half an hour, seemed to hold my attention. I wasn't aware of the 'Blacklist era' or the story behind it, but I'm sure both Robert De Niro and Annette Benning's performances will have served the story well
Mike T

Amateurish direction and shabby art direction are the drawbacks in this surprisingly mediocre drama. Robert De Niro is excellent, of course, but overall the film falters.
Anthony V

Should have been better.

Cast

            Robert De Niro as David Merrill

            Annette Bening as Ruth Merrill

            George Wendt as Bunny Baxter

            Patricia Wettig as Dorothy Nolan

            Sam Wanamaker as Felix Graff

            Luke Edwards as Paulie Merrill

            Martin Scorsese as Joe Lesser

            Chris Cooper as Larry Nolan

            Ben Piazza as Darryl Zanuck

            Barry Primus as Bert Alan

            Gailard Sartain as Chairman Wood

            Robin Gammell as Sen. Tavenner

            Brad Sullivan as Congressman Velde

            Tom Sizemore as Ray Karlin

            Roxann Biggs as Felicia Barron

            Stuart Margolin as Abe Barron

            Barry Tubb as Jerry Cooper

            Gene Kirkwood as Gene Woods

            Margo Winkler as Leta Rosen

            Allan Rich as Leonard Marks

            Illeana Douglas as Nan

            Jonathan Ames as Cabbie

            Martin Arsenault as Waiter

            Bill Bailey as Fox Guard

            Adam Baldwin as FBI Man

            Joe Bennett as Choreographer

            Russell Bobbitt as Propmaster

            Cecile Callan as Wife Shopper

            Cindy Carey as Party Guest

            Monica Carrico as Nelly Lesser

            Robert Chimento as A.D.

            Nicholas Cilic as Matt Nolan

            Paul Collins as Bernard

            Ivor Leslie Dilley as 1st A.D.

            Ben Dinsdale as Maurice

            John Horn as Mike Rainey

            Maurice Marciano as Costume Designer

            F.J. O'Neil as Ad Agency Executive

            Kevin Page as 2nd FBI Man

            Claude Rauvier as Claude Rowan

            Dianne Reeves as Singer

            Stephen Root as RKO Guard

            Tom Rosqui as Norman

            Al Ruscio as Ben Saltman

            Joan Scott as Teacher

            Craig Smith as D.P.

            Jon Tenney as Man Shopper

            Brant Van Hoffman as Stanley

            Natalie Zimmerman as Woman on Buckboard

            James Mathers as Director

            Marion Dougherty
            
See full cast