---
title: "Gun Crazy: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/gun-crazy/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/gun-crazy"
critics_score: 76
critics_reviews: 7
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Gun Crazy (1950): what the critics said

Critics' score 76 from 7 reviews: 6 positive, 0 mixed, 1 negative.

Most critics respond warmly to Gun Crazy, with praise concentrated on Joseph H. Lewis’s charged direction, the inventive camerawork and Peggy Cummins’s performance. The bank robbery filmed in a continuous take from inside the getaway car is a recurring example of the film’s confidence and resourcefulness. Cummins’s allure and volatility give the crime story much of its force. Several reviews also find emotional sensitivity and unexpected complexity beneath the lurid lovers-on-the-run premise.

The spread is wide, although the disagreement comes chiefly from one negative review rather than a broadly divided consensus. Variety enjoys the fast-moving chases and finds the latter half exciting, but regards the film as cold and emotionally shallow, blaming writing and direction that remain on the surface. That objection runs directly against the emotional depth other critics find in the central relationship; most see more here than stylish criminal adventure.

## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 27 February 2009. 

Bradshaw praises the film as an addictive, perfectly formed noir masterpiece. He particularly singles out the bold camerawork, including its continuous bank-robbery take.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/feb/26/gun-crazy-film-review)

## The New Yorker

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 

The review is highly enthusiastic about the film’s stylish take on lovers-on-the-run crime. It especially praises Joseph H. Lewis’s charged direction and the famous robbery filmed from inside the getaway car.

[Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/goings-on-about-town/movies/gun-crazy)

## IndieWire — Vikram Murthi

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 15 July 2015. 

Murthi finds the film a sensitive, compelling noir whose lurid surface gives way to a tragic love story. He especially praises the charged performances and the eerie, emotionally potent final scene.

[Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/news/general-news/criticwire-classic-of-the-week-joseph-h-lewis-gun-crazy-130694/)

## Time Out — Tom Huddleston

Rating 4/5. 24 February 2009. 

Huddleston gives the film a positive four-star review. He singles out Peggy Cummins’s manipulative allure as sharpshooter Laurie Starr.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/gun-crazy)

## Empire — Kim Newman

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 26 February 2009. 

The review finds the film darker and more subtly complex than expected for a 1950s crime caper. It praises that unexpected complexity.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/gun-crazy-review/)

## Variety — Variety Staff

Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 31 December 1949. 

The review finds the film exciting in its latter half but ultimately cold and emotionally shallow. It praises the fast-moving chase sequences while faulting the writing and direction for staying on the surface.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/1949/film/reviews/gun-crazy-1200416665/)

## Collider — Rebecca Schriesheim

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 22 January 2025. 

Schriesheim presents the film as a lasting, thrilling noir classic. She particularly praises Peggy Cummins’s volatile, commanding performance and the inventive one-take bank robbery sequence.

[Read the review](https://collider.com/gun-crazy-movie-noir/)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/gun-crazy.md