In a housing project apartment in New York City, Johnny Pope lives with his pregnant wife Celia and his brother Polo. Johnny is a veteran who recently returned from the Korean War, in which he sustained an injury while surviving for days trapped in a cave. His survival made him a hero in the newspapers, but his ensuing recuperation in a military hospital left him secretly addicted to the painkiller morphine, with Polo his only family member aware of his condition.
Johnny and Polo's father John Sr. arrives in New York from his home in Florida to visit his sons and collect $2,500 that Polo had saved and promised to him whenever he wanted it. John Sr. has just fulfilled his dream of quitting his job and buying his own bar and needs the money to pay for repairs and remodeling. Polo tells his father that he spent the money but refuses to say what he purchased. John Sr. becomes angry and refuses to speak to Polo, continuing his usual pattern of praising Johnny and belittling Polo.
John Sr. expresses his pride in Johnny's war service and that he has married a fine wife, is starting a family and lives in a nice apartment, while Polo is renting a room from his brother, is unmarried and works in a bar that his father considers low-class. John Sr. and Celia do not know that Polo gave the money to Johnny, who spent it all on his $40-a-day drug habit. John Sr. is also unaware that Johnny has lost four jobs in a row because of his habit and that Johnny and Celia are on the verge of divorce because Johnny ignores her and often leaves for hours, sometimes for a full night. Celia thinks that he is seeing another woman, but he is actually seeking drugs, which are becoming harder to find as the police are arresting many dealers.
While John Sr. is visiting, Johnny's dealer "Mother" comes to the Popes' apartment with his henchmen Apples and Chuch, ready to beat Johnny badly because he owes Mother $500 and has no money to pay. Johnny begs for enough dope to last him until his father returns to Florida the next day, and Mother gives him one dose but warns him that he needs to pay at least $300 by the next day or they will put him in the hospital. Mother gives Johnny a gun and suggests that he commit robbery to acquire the money. After arguing with Celia, Johnny leaves and spends the night walking the streets. He tries to rob several people at gunpoint but is unable to commit the crime. At the apartment, a drunk Polo confesses his love for Celia, who in her loneliness and desperation is almost ready to return his love. Despite their mutual feelings, they fall asleep in separate rooms.
When Johnny returns in the morning, he is feeling withdrawal symptoms and needs to meet a dealer for a fix, but his father expects to spend the day with him. Johnny tries to convince his father to spend the day with Polo instead. but John Sr. does not want to talk to Polo, causing an emotional confrontation. John Sr. finally agrees to attend the football game with Polo. Johnny coerces Polo into driving him to meet the dealer by threatening to throw himself out of the car in traffic, but when Johnny arrives at the meeting place, the dealer is being arrested. Johnny goes into severe withdrawal and begins to hallucinate just as Mother and his gang arrive to collect Johnny's payment. Upon learning that Johnny does not have the money, they give him one dose in exchange for the $12 that Polo has in his wallet and tell Polo to sell his car to cover Johnny's $500 debt. Polo pleads with Johnny to tell Celia that he is a junkie.
The fix temporarily cures Johnny's withdrawal, and he tries to reconcile with Celia by preparing a romantic dinner. However, she tells Johnny that she no longer loves him and wants a divorce. When he confesses that he is a junkie and that his habit has caused his absence and inattention, she reacts supportively. John Sr. and Polo arrive for dinner and Johnny informs his father that he is a junkie and that Polo's $2,500 was spent on drugs for him. His father becomes angry, causing Johnny, who is going into withdrawal again, to flee the apartment. Celia then becomes ill and is rushed to the hospital to avoid losing the baby. When Johnny returns, he is menaced by Mother but is saved by Polo, who pays Mother $500 that he obtained by selling his car. Johnny announces his intention to overcome his habit, even throwing a package of dope back to Mother. John Sr. and Celia return, and Celia takes charge, reassures Johnny and calls the police to bring Johnny to the hospital.
In a contemporary review for The New York Times, critic Bosley Crowther called A Hatful of Rain "a striking, sobering film" and wrote: "The sum of it is a harrowing picture of what it means for a man to be a slave of the dope habit—what it costs in money, in anguish and in hurt to those he loves. ... [T]hey have contrived a tremendously taut and true description of human agony and shame, of solicitude and frustration and the piteousness of tangled love. And it is so directed by Mr. Zinnemann and acted by an excellent cast that every concept and nuance of the story is revealed."[6]
Critic Philip K. Scheuer of the Los Angeles Times wrote: "'A Hatful of Rain' takes a grip on the spectator that gradually grows viselike and never lets go till the fadeout—if then. ... Half reality, half nightmare, it is the best film I have seen about the insidious consequences of drug addiction. But now, Hollywood and heaven willing, I have had it."[7]
^Solomon, Aubrey. Twentieth Century Fox: A Corporate and Financial History (The Scarecrow Filmmakers Series). Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 1989. ISBN978-0-8108-4244-1. p250
^"Top Grosses of 1957", Variety, 8 January 1958: 30
^AJ Giannini (1982). Handbook of Overdose and Detoxification Emergencies. New Hyde Park, NY: Medical Examination Publishing Co., p.166. ISBN0-87488-182-X
