Shake Hands with the Devil
“A story of love and hate...and the sudden sound of guns!”
In 1921 Dublin, the IRA battles the "Black & Tans," special British forces given to harsh measures. Irish-American medical student Kerry O'Shea hopes to stay aloof, but saving a wounded friend gets him outlawed, and inexorably drawn into the rebel organization by his former professor Sean Lenihan, who has "shaken hands with the devil" and begun to think of fighting as an end in itself. Complications arise when Kerry falls for a beautiful English hostage, and the British offer a peace treaty that is not enough to satisfy Lenihan.
Your rating
Your review
Cast
37 people
James Cagney
Sean Lenihan
Known for
White Heat
One, Two, Three
Don Murray
Kerry O'Shea
Known for
Conquest of the Planet of the Apes
Twin Peaks
Dana Wynter
Jennifer Curtis
Known for
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Airport
Glynis Johns
Kitty Brady
Known for
Mary Poppins
While You Were Sleeping
Michael Redgrave
The General
Known for
The Lady Vanishes
The Innocents
Sybil Thorndike
Lady Fitzhugh
Known for
The Prince and the Showgirl
Stage Fright
Cyril Cusack
Chris Noonan
Known for
Jesus of Nazareth
Nineteen Eighty-Four
Marianne Benet
Mary Madigan
Also in
Left-Handed Fate
The Boy Who Stole a Million
John Breslin
Timmy McGrath
Also in
Doctor Who
Greyfriars Bobby
Harry Brogan
Tom Cassidy
Known for
The Face of Fu Manchu
Richard Harris
Terence O'Brien
Known for
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Gladiator
William Hartnell
Sergeant Jenkins
Known for
Doctor Who
Carry On Sergeant
Michael Anderson Director · Ivan Goff Writer Ben Roberts Writer
United States release June 24, 1959 · Produced in Ireland, United States · Production Pennebaker Productions, United Artists Pictures
Production
Troy Films
Production
Pennebaker Productions
Production
United Artists Pictures
Studio
Ireland · United States
Produced in
Languages
Original language
English
Spoken on screen
English
Release dates
United States · June 24, 1959
Theatrical
More from Michael Anderson
Other films they directed, best known first.
Some details come from TheTVDB.