Movies starring Kirk Douglas

Out of the Past (1947)

97 mins Drama, Thriller

How do you define film-noir, does it start with the look, the smoky air, the dark nights lit by a city and the people lurking in the shadows. Maybe it then becomes the story often told via narration which is full of mystery, ...

My Dear Secretary (1948)

94 mins Comedy, Romance

Kirk Douglas has had a long and varied career spanning more decades than many of us have been alive, yet through out his long career it has been his roles in more dramatic movies which have been the best, the ones where often...

Champion (1949)

99 mins Drama, Sport

There have been many memorable boxing movies over the years, movies such as "Rocky" rank high amongst the most popular. But there are not so many which focus on the boxer himself rather than the sport of boxing. One of the ea...

Young Man with a Horn (1950)

112 mins Biography, Drama, Musical, Romance

Starring Kirk Douglas, Lauren Bacall and Doris Day "Young Man with a Horn" is the story of musician Rick Martin who gives 100% to everything leading to success but also his downfall....

Detective Story (1951)

103 mins Crime, Drama

When I saw "Detective Story" appear on the TV schedule I knew only one thing about it, that it starred Kirk Douglas and that was enough to make me want to watch. I am glad it was because "Detective Story" is a brilliantly, in...

The Big Trees (1952)

89 mins Action , Drama

Whilst generally I feel older movies are superior to modern movies when it comes to focus on story telling, there were still movies which had the feeling that they were made as almost stop gaps. Movies which had nothing major...

The Bad and the Beautiful (1952)

118 mins Drama

In 1950 Billy Wilder gave us "Sunset Boulevard" a now iconic movie which gave audiences a look behind the scenes at the movie industry, warts and all. Two years later and we got Vincente Minnelli going down the same road with...

The Big Sky (1952)

140 mins Adventure , Western

"The Big Sky" has a lot of big names attached to it, it is directed by Howard Hawks, it stars Kirk Douglas, Arthur Hunnicutt and Hank Worden and even the story is a big story a big adventure. But here is the thing Howard Hawk...

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)

127 mins Action , Adventure , Family, Fantasy

Up until recently I had never watched "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" all the way through, catching bits of it here and there when ever it got shown on TV. But finally I have watched this epic Disney production from beginning ...

Man Without a Star (1955)

89 mins Western

Movie review "Man Without a Star" � Kirk Douglas stars as banjo playing wanderer Dempsey Rae who along with Jeff Jimson (William Campbell) who he saves from a hanging find work as the ranch of Reed Bowman (Jeanne Crain). But ...

The Indian Fighter (1955)

88 mins Western

There is a scene in "The Indian Fighter" where having taken a shine to Onahti Johnny forces himself on her to steal a kiss. Now not only would that scene cause some unrest if it was put in a movie these days but I remember ot...

Lust for Life (1956)

122 mins Biography, Drama

As a child my movie experiences were dominated by whatever was being shown on TV and as such certain movies such as "Star Wars", "Superman", "The Sound of Music" and "The Great Escape" dominated them thanks to their frequent ...

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957)

122 mins Western

The story of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday and the gunfight at the O.K. Corral has featured in various movies over the years, but whilst most versions are entertaining only two really standout those of "Tombstone" starring Kurt Ru...

The Vikings (1958)

116 mins Action , Adventure , Drama

Before I watched "The Vikings" I had for some reason thought it was an epic, one of those movies which pass the 3 hour barrier. I don't know why, maybe because it has that look of one of those big historical epics, but at jus...

Spartacus (1960)

184 mins Action , Adventure , Drama

There is no denying that "Spartacus" is an impressive movie, epic in scale and full of drama and action but at the same time it is a movie which is flawed, flaws which stop it from being great. As such for everything which is...

The Last Sunset (1961)

112 mins Western

Theoretically "The Last Sunset" should be a very good movie, it stars Kirk Douglas, Rock Hudson and Dorothy Malone, it is directed by Robert Aldrich who would later on give us "The Dirty Dozen" and Dalton Trumbo whose writing...

Lonely Are the Brave (1962)

107 mins Drama, Western

There is part of me which feels like "Lonely Are the Brave" from 1962 is a wasted opportunity to deliver a movie of depth. It is most certainly entertaining and watching Kirk Douglas playing a loner cowboy in a modern world g...

The List of Adrian Messenger (1963)

98 mins Mystery

"The List of Adrian Messenger" is a mischievous movie thanks to the smart use of some big stars or at least that was when it came out. I say that because here is a movie with acting legends such as Tony Curtis, Burt Lancaster...

The Heroes of Telemark (1965)

131 mins Action , Drama, Thriller, War

Although "The Heroes of Telemark" starring Kirk Douglas and Richard Harris is based upon the true story of the Norwegian resistance who along with allied attacks thwarted the production and transportation of heavy water for t...

Cast a Giant Shadow (1966)

146 mins Adventure , Drama

Cast a Giant Shadow (1966) Kirk Douglas stars as Col. David 'Mickey' Marcus who became involved in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War...

* This is purely a list of reviews on The Movie Scene featuring the name Kirk Douglas as one of the principle cast members.