Guilty by Suspicion

Set in Hollywood in 1951, Guilty by Suspicion follows film director David Merrill, who returns from two years of working in Paris to find the industry consumed by anti-communist investigations. Called before a congressional committee, he is asked to name colleagues who attended communist meetings. His refusal turns into a losing battle: he lands on the blacklist, comes under FBI surveillance, and watches friends and their families come apart under the pressure. The film depicts the toll of the era on a man who will not inform on others, without following him to a resolution.

The film was the directing debut of Irwin Winkler, who also wrote the screenplay and went on to make Night and the City, The Net, At First Sight, Life as a House, De-Lovely and Home of the Brave. Robert De Niro leads as Merrill, with Annette Bening as his wife Ruth, George Wendt, Patricia Wettig, Sam Wanamaker and Luke Edwards among a credited cast of 34. Arnon Milchan produced for Warner Bros. Pictures and Regency Enterprises on a budget of 13 million dollars; the worldwide gross of about 9 million dollars left it short of that outlay.

On IMDb the film holds 6.6 out of 10 from roughly 10,000 votes, and on TMDB 6.5 out of 10 from around 200 votes, suggesting a modest but durable audience. A critics' rating of 6.1 out of 10 from 20 reviews places critical opinion close to those audience scores. Released on March 15, 1991, it runs 100 minutes.