American movie icon James Stewart portrays one of J. Edgar Hoover's finest and Vera Miles co-stars as his steadfast wife in this salute to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The colorful career of Agent Chip Hardesty (St... more »ewart) covers 1924 to the late '50s. Along the way he tangles with everything from the Ku Klux Klan to a bomber who commits mass murder for insurance money. His fiercest exploits come in the '30s when he stares down a gun barrel at Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd, Machine Gun Kelly, Ma Barker and John Dillinger. From two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Don Whitehead's bestseller and directed by veteran Hollywood hitmaker Mervyn LeRoy, The FBI Story is your rat-a-tat ticket to the inside story.« less
Kind of a neat movie that could have been great had they cut it down some. Use the 120X FF as needed. James Stewart and others shine in this. A must watch!
Shelly D. from YPSILANTI, MI Reviewed on 5/29/2019...
We have watched this movie on TV & just thought it was time to have our own copy. Love James Stewart & it shows an insight to the FBI.
3 of 3 member(s) found this review helpful.
Movie Reviews
The movie that made me a Stewart fan!
07/23/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I saw this movie when I was eight and into cop stories. This movie really got me interested into Jimmy Stewart and into a classic movie fan. (Stewart was born only 25 minutes from my home.) This is a great adventure flick with lots of action as well as some heart and humor to it. Vera Miles plays Stewart's often distraught wife about his job with the FBI. This film is a must for any Stewart/action movie fan!"
Fun Movie with Great Acting
Floyd Turbo | USA | 01/25/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Unlike the reviewer below who used this space to espouse his political views and whine about the FBI's behavior in real life, I'll talk about the actual movie. This is a good, fun movie that is very black and white in its storytelling. Much like Dragnet and shows of that ilk, the good guys are good and the bad guys are bad in this. The fact that the FBI isn't like that in real life doesn't make this a bad movie. It was designed as a puff piece on the FBI, so naturally it's biased towards them. However, using Hardesty's family to showcase the changing FBI is a great storytelling device and Jimmy Stewart really brings this to life. It takes what could be bland and makes it an interesting and fun vehicle. We all know things aren't as simple and easy as things are portrayed in this movie, but this is an enjoyable good guys versus bad guys escapist drama."
Great Movie
Joel A. Mann | 05/23/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is one of my favorite old movies that has not been released on DVD. This is a great story with great actors. It is hard to believe that with all the junk being released on DVD that a great movie like this is still not yet available. Come on guys wake up and release this movie on DVD. I will be first in line to buy it."
Edward Sullivan
Edward Sullivan | San Francisco, California | 01/05/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The FBI Story is a very entertaining film about the experience of one FBI agent (played by Jimmy Stewart) and his family from the birth of the agency, through the gangster years of the 30s, World War II and the early 1950s. Stewart along with Vera Miles and Murray Hamilton give fine performances in a film that is both serious & fun, well-paced, entertaining and in some moments, very moving. A fine film that I would recomend to anybody."
The Early Days Of The FBI
MLH - The Online Movie Critic | Somewhere in Maine | 08/06/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"1959 film which chronicles the early days of the Federal Bureau of Investigation through the eyes of one it's g-men, played by Jimmy Stewart. Film starts with the small scale cases that agents were assigned to, such as an investigation of financial thieves in the 1920's. Film continues from the 20's all the way into the 1950's, covering such topics as the famous era of gangsters in the 1930's, exposing German operatives in South America during WWII, and tracking down Russian Spies in America during the first full decade of the Cold War, the 1950's. The FBI Story covers the evolution of the agency and the emotions of a family towards their father's dangerous job in the FBI. Good movie, that does well at explaining the happenings in the film. Film gives good insight into how the FBI operated back then, using occasional narration alongside the story."