Sometimes murder is just a way to pass the time.
Two close friends' plan to execute a flawless crime is crushed when one of them inadvertently leaves his glasses at the crime scene.
Compulsion (1959) is a crime, drama, history and thriller film directed by Richard Fleischer, released on April 1, 1959 with a runtime of 1h 43m. It stars Dean Stockwell, Bradford Dillman, Orson Welles and E.G. Marshall. Viewers rate it 7.1 out of 10 across 175 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for Compulsion before you stream it.
Dean Stockwell
as Judd Steiner
Bradford Dillman
as Arthur A. Straus
Orson Welles
as Jonathan Wilk
E.G. Marshall
as District Attorney Harold Horn
Diane Varsi
as Ruth Evans
Martin Milner
as Sid Brooks
Richard Anderson
as Max Steiner
Robert F. Simon
as Police Lt. Johnson
Robert Burton
as Charles Straus
Wilton Graff
as Mr. Steiner
Louise Lorimer
as Mrs. Straus aka 'Mumsy'
Gavin MacLeod
as Padua - Horn's Assistant
Directed by Richard Fleischer, written by Richard Murphy and Meyer Levin, produced by Richard D. Zanuck.
Average viewer score of 7.1/10 from 175 ratings.
Lets go watch them slaughter the sheep! Compulsion is directed by Richard Fleischer and adapted to screenplay by Richard Murphy from the novel written by Meyer Levin. It stars Dean Stockwell, Bradford Dillman, Orson Welles and Diane Varsi. Music is by Lionel Newman and cinematography by William C. Mellor. Based upon the real life Leopold and Loeb murder trial of the 1920s, Compulsion finds Artie Strauss (Dillman)…
Reviewed on August 10, 2015
It's not quite clear whether "Artie" (Bradford Dillman) and "Judd" (Dean Stockwell) are actually friends or whether the latter is merely an acolyte for his colleague at a law school where accumulated wealth and privilege have left both with quite a superiority complex. "Artie" is bored and determined to make his presence felt by committing the ultimate crime, and so together with his obedient friend they set about…
Reviewed on September 15, 2026
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Compulsion (1959) is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Prime Video with Ads, and to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube and Fandango At Home. Streaming availability is checked against JustWatch data and can change by region.
The main cast of Compulsion (1959) includes Dean Stockwell, Bradford Dillman, Orson Welles, E.G. Marshall and Diane Varsi. The film was directed by Richard Fleischer. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
Compulsion was released on April 1, 1959 and runs for 1h 43m.
Compulsion (1959) holds an average rating of 7.1 out of 10 from 175 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy crime, drama and history films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official Compulsion trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
