Best Action Movies of 1947

Two ex-soldiers return from overseas--one of them having smuggled into the country a French orphan girl he has become attached to. They wind up running into their old sergeant--who hates them--and getting involved with a race-car builder who's trying to find backers for a new midget racer he's building.

Notorious shootist and womanizer Quirt Evans' horse collapses as he passes a Quaker family's home. Quirt has been wounded, and the kindly family takes him in to nurse him back to health against the advice of others. The handsome Evans quickly attracts the affections of their beautiful daughter, Penelope. He develops an affection for the family and their faith, but his troubled past follows him.

A gang of criminals, which includes a piano player and an imposing former convict known as 'Gruesome', has found out about a scientist's secret formula for a gas that temporarily paralyzes anyone who breathes it. When Gruesome accidentally inhales some of the gas and passes out, the police think he is dead and take him to the morgue, where he later revives and escapes. This puzzling incident attracts the interest of Dick Tracy, and when the criminals later use the gas to rob a bank, Tracy realizes that he must devote his entire attention to stopping them.

Engineer Johnny Munroe is enlisted to build a railroad tunnel through a mountain to reach mines. His task is complicated, and his ethics are compromised, when he falls in love with his boss's daughter

Columbia's 33rd serial (made between "Jack Armstrong" and "The Sea Hound") was based on the character that first appeared in "Action Comics" No. 42.

Bugs Bunny relates his early life in the Manhattan tenements and spotlights his encounter with a gang of canine toughs.

Bugs gets roped into delivering the Easter Rabbit's eggs for him.

Captain Hugh 'Bulldog' Drummond investigates the murder of the C.I.D. man who had been tracing validity of rival claims to a large estate.

A retired prizefighter becomes the unlikely guardian of a young orphan recently arrived in the United States. Director John Waters' 1946 period comedy, set in New York's Bowery, stars Wallace Beery, Dean Stockwell, Aline MacMahon, Edward Arnold, Cameron Mitchell, Dorothy Patrick, Aubrey Mather, Clinton Sundberg, Milton Parsons, Morris Ankrum and Oliver Blake.

In Australia, five children pursue horse thieves through the mountains.

Stevie Carson, a newspaper reporter, and Danny Butler, the "morgue" manager on the same newspaper, set out to track down the killer of a colleague, a book-reviewer who was involved with a group of rare book forgers and whose sister has been convinced her editor-fiance, Bill Monroe, killed him.

After his plane is downed in the South Pacific, a Navy flier recounts his life to a co-pilot while awaiting rescue.

A cowboy turns bounty hunter to pay off his debts.

In this aerial melodrama, four brothers working as stunt pilots for a flying circus leave their jobs to become mail pilots. Because their job requires that they constantly travel, they are advised to not settle down with wives and kids. Still, one pilot falls in love and marries. Unfortunately, the woman dislikes his brothers and constantly worries that he will be killed during a flight. Her fears are not unfounded and much tragedy ensues as the story unfolds.

Knowing the railroad is coming, Carter is after the rancher's land. Bob and Chito return just in time to save Banker Stockton and his money from Carter's men. When Stockton then lends the ranchers money, Carter has them burned out. Bob knows Carter is responsible and when Carter's henchman Saunders is recognized, Bob goes into action.

A medicine show pitchman investigates a small town murder in Arizona.

Susan Hart, assistant to private detective Russ Ashton, is given a camera concealed in a hat box and assigned to take a picture of a woman. A gun is accidentally hidden in the box and the woman is killed. Susan is charged with murder, but Russ and his less-than-useful associate, Harvard, get on the case and prove that the fatal shot was fired by the killer from across the street.

The Daily Clarion hires detective story writer Steve Colt to investigate the deaths of a group of scientists working on an atomic rocket development project. Behind the killings is fortune teller Sombra, a spy from an Asian country intent on world domination, who is determined to pilfer the atomic rocket by luring workers from the project to her parlor and killing them with black widow spider venom when they refuse to cooperate.

Dusty Bates observes some smuggled jewels hidden in a crate aboard a ship; he is pursued by low-lifes when the crate is put ashore.

Gridley is mining silver from an old Mexican mine and bringing it into the USA thru a passage into his worthless mine. Border guard Rogers suspects Gridley and finally finds the secret entrance to the Mexican mine. He sends Lee Madison for help only to have her captured by Gridley. Trigger brings help that takes care of Gridley's men and now Roy has to rescue Madison.

A private detective is offered a job protecting a rich business man from suspected blackmail. Before he can accept the case a murder is uncovered.

A former secret agent is sent to retrieve a priceless collection of stolen jewels from a Lisbon nightclub owner who worked both sides during World War II.

Ernie Reardon, the superintendent, and Bill O'Hara, the foreman, of a construction company crew working on a bridge to a remote valley, are constantly quarreling over small and minor matter, especially when it comes to Peg Mallory, whom both men are romancing and Peg enjoys the attention. Thed work is suspended when a worker is killed, but a flood is approaching and the valley citizens are in dire straits unless the bridge is completed - in a hurry.

Travelers find themselves marooned on an island with a maniacal self-made ruler.

In a gym, a girl is pulling some pulleys, to gain arm strength, while three men and three girls watch a judo demonstration in the middle of the room. A girl wearing a sweater and shorts applies a succession of holds to a young man in a sleeveless undershirt and a black trunks: over the shoulder projection, arm lock, over the hip projection, sideways headlock and knee to the face, sacrifice fall followed by school-girl pin, kidney punching followed by a groin kick, sideways kick to the knee and arm-lock, eye-gouge and kick to the ribs, attack to both legs with arms and legs, arm-lock and tripping followed by a leg blow to the throat, disarming a knife attack from above, and then an up-thrust with the knife, disarming a revolver menace from the back, usage of a leather belt to strangle and throw an attacker, usage of hair holds for control and throw of the opponent, and KO punching. The man simulates different forms of attack and stands gamely every time - except the last.

Jesse James wants to start a new life in a new location, but quickly finds himself wrapped-up in protecting townsfolk from the machinations of evil oilmen.

US cavalry officer James Laurence (Nelson Eddy) arrives at one of the Russian colonies to pave the way for the eventual American takeover of the territory. He faces resistance in the form of Prince Nikolai Balinin (Hugo Haas), who has no intention of weakening his despotic hold over the local peasants. The plot thickens when Laurence falls in love with Natalie Alanova (Ilona Massey), the wife of disgraced nobleman Count Igor Savin (Joseph Schildkraut).

Traveling north into Arizona, Cisco finds that someone committing robberies has been impersonating him and he is a wanted man. After retrieving some of the stolen loot, he is caught with it in his posession and put in the guard house. A friend whose life he recently saved beaks him out and Cisco heads out to find the impersonator and clear himself.

Marvin Hayden returns to find his ranch is about to be sold at auction and the Hayden Jorth feud still going strong. Carson wants the Hayden ranch and tries to kill Hayden. When he fails he kills Chick Jorth with a rock. As Hayden does not carry a gun and the two had argued earlier, Hayden is arrested for the murder. With Hayden in jail, his friends Chito, Ginger, and his Lawyer Gardner now go to work to find the murderer.

When Hadley finds gold on his land, Kirby kills him and then goes after Hadley's ranch. After Eddie Dean foils Kirby's robbery attempt, Kirby forces the assistant land agent Tuttle to sell the ranch to him. But Eddie learns of the forgery thru Tuttle's boss and goes after Kirby.

A former U.S. marshal rescues an instant heiress from an outlaw's gang.

Marshal Johnnie Taggart (Jon Hall) , posing as an outlaw named "Ace" Braddock, comes to Bannack, Montana to restore law and order. But he is recognized by Kitty, co-owner with Clay Curtwright of the infamous Bull Whip saloon. But "bad-girl" Kitty keeps her mouth shut. When Johnnie's pal Andy reports a stage holdup, Curtwright's henchman, Ben Borden, talks the sheriff and Judge Holden into suspecting Johnnie. Johnnie reveals himself to Judge Holden as a government marshal, and the judge voices his opinion that Curtwright is the leader of the road agents, but voices it in the presence of his granddaughter, Louise Holden. The Judge doesn't know that Louise is in love with Curtwright, and she tips him off as to Johnnie's real identity. Curtwright frames Johnnie for a murder and arranges for the crooked sheriff to promote a lynching and Andy and Kitty help Johnnie escape jail. Johnnie rounds up vigilantes and heads for a showdown at the Bull Whip saloon

A stagecoach owner goes to jail to catch a holdup gang.

While visiting France, a criminal psychologist tries to clear a disturbed young man of his father's murder.

The romantic, dangerous and fast-paced world of professional midget auto racing provides the backdrop for this dramatic tale of a young driver who decides to follow in his late father's footsteps and win the big race.

An expedition into the deep jungle discovers a native tribe led by a tall white blonde woman.

The Prairie is set at the time of the Louisiana Purchase. Hoping to find their destiny in the new territory, the Bush Family heads southward in a covered wagon. Sharing the family's numerous dangers and hardships are Ellen Wade (Lenore Aubert), sole survivor of an Indian attack, and army mapmaker Paul Hover (Alan Baxter). Cousins Abiram (Russ Vincent) and Asa (Jack Mitchum) duke it out over Ellen's affections