Independent Films, Film Profiles

I Wake Up Screaming

I Wake Up Screaming (1941) is a black-and-white suspense film starring Betty Grable, Victor Mature, and Carole Landis. The film is an early example of the film noir style. It is based on the novel with the same title by Steve Fisher, with a screenplay by Fisher and Dwight Taylor. It was one of the few times Betty Grable had a straight dramatic role in a picture.A young promoter (Mature) is accused of the murder of Vicky Lynn (Landis), a young actress he "discovered" as a waitress while out with ex-actor Robin Ray and gossip columnist Larry Evans. He hides out with Vicky's sister Jill (Grable), whom he is falling in love with, but is eventually captured. An obsessive police officer knows the man is innocent but because the evidence is completely incriminating, he pursues him anyway. Promoter Frankie escapes and tries to find the murderer himself.