Five Minutes to Live (1961)
1961 · Feature film · 74 min · dir. Bill Karn
How could she extend the moments he had given her?
- Crime
- Thriller
Synopsis
Five Minutes to Live is a 1961 American neo-noir crime film directed by Bill Karn. It was retitled Door-to-Door Maniac for an American International Pictures rerelease in 1966. The film stars Johnny Cash, in his first theatrical film role, Donald Woods, Vic Tayback, and Cay Forrester, who wrote the screenplay and whose husband, Ludlow Flower, produced. Cash performed the film's title song, with a guitar solo by Merle Travis, who also appears in the film as Max.
Synopsis from Wikipedia
Details
- Director
- Bill Karn
- Writer
- Cay Forester
- Composer
- Gene Kauer
- Cinematography
- Carl E. Guthrie
- Studio
- Somera Productions, Flower Film, American International Pictures
- Released
- 1961-12-07
- Running time
- 74 minutes
Cast & crew
- Bill Karn Director
Johnny Cash
Donald Woods
Cay Forester
Pamela Mason
Vic Tayback
Midge Ware
Ron Howard- Merle Travis
Reviews on the Internet Archive
★★★★ · I enjoyed it. · Moongleam · 2008-04-15
No, they don't knock on doors to kill people. Johnny Cash, posing as a guitar teacher, knocks on one door in order to take the bank manager's wife hostage while his cohort robs the bank. Merle Travis has a small role and you'll hear some of his guitar virtuosity. Ron Howard plays the woman's son.
★★★ · Break some more china ornaments · ohrabbits · 2010-08-13
Wonderful sleeze factor in this movie.
★★ · A good story, but....... · eggbone · 2016-03-09
About the only facets that have any merit are the story and some of the acting. Johnny Cash does poor ad-lib of the guitsr music. His acting is mediocher, at best. A surprise was Ron Howard, who out shined his on screen mother. Overall, not a must see.
★★ · Jim Thompson · underground culturevulture · 2018-11-26
I have researched this film for a long time and have three different versions. Most of them have stripped off the opening credits, changed names and also deleted the songs and guitar parts by Travis. It is obvious that "Palmer Thompson" is actually Jim Thompson. The title alone proves this to me but I have found no article or book that references it. It is not mentioned in "Savage Art". Would appreciate any info.
Alternate Title · Campfire · 2008-06-07
This is the title under which I saw the film back in the '60s, but there is also a copy of it here in the archive under an alternate title, Five Minutes to Live. I seem to remember thinking that Cash's appearance changed from scene to scene, as though the film was shot over a prolonged period of time.
