Vicious Circle story
Young gangster Manny Coe kills a man by order of his boss, Vince Williams. Williams promises to take Manny as his protege if he kills his girlfriend Betty; Manny is unable to do it, but Betty dies in an accident and Manny claims it as a hit. Some time later, Manny has become rich and successful, but he botches a robbery and is killed by Williams' next young protege. Directed by: Paul Henreid. Story by: Evan Hunter, Bernard C. Schoenfeld.
14 total · 1 choice · 12 major · 1 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| duty vs. love | choice | Manny was order to kill his beloved girlfriend, and he came to regret having tried. |
| betrayal | major | Manny betrayed his beloved girlfriend, then Mr. Williams betrayed Manny. |
| boyfriend and girlfriend | major | Manny baulked at shooting dead his own girlfriend by order of his boss. |
| hitman occupation | major | Manny was working as a hitman for Mr. Williams. |
| love vs. material gain | major | The young, up-and-coming gangster Manny agonized over whether or not to go through with a hit that his boss had ordered on Manny's own girlfriend. If he did it, then his star was assured to rise; otherwise his career in organized crime was going to be in serious jeopardy. |
| loyalty to a leader | major | The gangster Mr. Williams demanded complete loyalty from his underlings, Manny most notably. |
| money can't buy happiness | major | Towards the end, a point was made that Manny was not happy despite his financial success. |
| murder | major | Manny did a hit by order of his boss, Mr. Williams. He struggled with whether to carry out a second hit order, on his beloved girlfriend. |
| organized crime | major | Mr. Williams was running some kind of criminal enterprise. The killed man was described as a mobster. |
| remorse | major | Manny clearly lamented the loss of his ex, whom he sort of killed. |