Arena (1953 film)

1953 film by Richard Fleischer

Arena

1953 theatrical poster

Directed by| Richard Fleischer
Written by| Arthur M. Loew Jr.
Screenplay by| Harold Jack Bloom
Produced by| Dore Schary
Starring| Gig Young
Jean Hagen
Polly Bergen
Harry Morgan
Barbara Lawrence
Robert Horton
Cinematography| Paul C. Vogel
Edited by| Cotton Warburton
Music by| Rudolph G. Kopp

Production
company

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Distributed by| Loew's, Inc

Release date

* June 24, 1953 (1953-06-24)

Running time

| 83 minutes
Country| United States
Language| English
Budget| $752,000[1]
Box office| $1,022,000[1]

Arena is a 1953 Ansco Color 3-D film directed by Richard Fleischer and starring Gig Young, Jean Hagen, and Polly Bergen. It was promoted as "the first 3-D Western" of the era.

## Plot

[edit]

A man named Hob Danvers comes to a Tucson, Arizona rodeo with Sylvia Lorgan in tow. Hob has been separated from wife Ruth for two years, and doesn't realize she intends to be at the rodeo.

He meets up with old friends Lew and Meg Hutchins and learns that Lew is here looking for work. He is shocked to find that Lew is now a clown, after many years as a rodeo rider.

Current rodeo star Jackie Roach turns up and makes a pass at Sylvia, who rejects him. Hob competes in bareback riding and so impresses Lew's young son that Lew bribes a cowboy to change places and let him ride a bucking bronco. Lew is thrown and badly injures his leg.

Ruth scolds the others for encouraging Lew, saying everyone should face the hard truth that his rodeo career is done. Lew, angry now, enters the Brahma bull competition over Meg's objections. Hob goes first and is thrown. Lew, attempting to distract the bull, cannot get away quickly enough due to his bad leg. He is fatally gored. Hob walks away, leaving Sylvia behind, but Ruth joins him on the way out.

## Cast

[edit]

* Gig Young as Hob Danvers
* Jean Hagen as Meg
* Polly Bergen as Ruth
* Harry Morgan as Lew Hutchins
* Barbara Lawrence as Sylvia
* Robert Horton as Jack Roach
* Wiley McCray as Lew Hutchins

## Reception

[edit]

According to MGM records the film earned $762,000 in the US and Canada and $260,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $444,000.[1]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.

## External links

[edit]

* Arena at IMDb
* Arena at the TCM Movie Database
* Arena at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films

* v
* t
* e

Films directed by Richard Fleischer

* Child of Divorce (1946)
* Banjo (1947)
* Design for Death (1947)
* So This Is New York (1948)
* Bodyguard (1948)
* The Clay Pigeon (1949)
* Follow Me Quietly (1949)
* Make Mine Laughs (1949)
* Trapped (1949)
* Armored Car Robbery (1950)
* The Narrow Margin (1952)
* The Happy Time (1952)
* Arena (1953)
* 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)
* Violent Saturday (1955)
* The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing (1955)
* Bandido (1956)
* Between Heaven and Hell (1956)
* The Vikings (1958)
* Compulsion (1959)
* These Thousand Hills (1959)
* Crack in the Mirror (1960)
* The Big Gamble (1961)
* Barabbas (1961)
* Fantastic Voyage (1966)
* Doctor Dolittle (1967)
* The Boston Strangler (1968)
* Che! (1969)
* Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)
* 10 Rillington Place (1971)
* The Last Run (1971)
* See No Evil (1971)
* The New Centurions (1972)
* Soylent Green (1973)
* The Don Is Dead (1973)
* The Spikes Gang (1974)
* Mr. Majestyk (1974)
* Mandingo (1975)
* The Incredible Sarah (1976)
* The Prince and the Pauper (1977)
* Ashanti (1979)
* The Jazz Singer (1980)
* Tough Enough (1983)
* Amityville 3-D (1983)
* Conan the Destroyer (1984)
* Red Sonja (1985)
* Million Dollar Mystery (1987)

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template