Skip to content
Tough Assignment poster
6.8 / 10(3 votes)IMDbNR19491h 4mUnited States of America

Tough Assignment

“An Action-Packed Expose of Cattle Rustling Today”

Synopsis

A meddlesome reporter sporting a young bride takes on a gang of modern day cattle rustlers. Donald "Red" Barry plays Dan Reilly, a newspaper reporter just returned to LA with his wife, photographer Margie (Marjorie Steele). Margie insists on taking pictures of everywhere they go, and so as she's walking into a butcher shop she poses for Dan - while at the same time three thugs make their way quickly out after beating up the proprietors. Soon Margie and Dan are involved in investigating an illegal meat operation that rustles cattle and forces butchers to buy it - or else. Dan gets beaten up a couple of times, but is undaunted in pursuing the great story - and hey, he's only got 64 minutes to do so, he'd best get cracking!

Release History & Theatrical Window

Theatrical Premiere

November 15, 1949

Wide Cinema Exhibition

Key Information & Fast Facts

Director
William Beaudine
Screenplay & Story
Milton Luban
Original Title
Tough Assignment
Country of Origin
United States of America
Spoken Languages
English
Runtime
1h 4m
Production Studios
Donald Barry Productions, Screen Guild Productions

Creative Leadership & Key Crew

Director

William Beaudine

Screenplay & Story

Milton Luban, Carl K. Hittleman

Department Leadership Roster

William Beaudine

William Beaudine

Director

Milton Luban

Screenplay

Age Classification & Content Advisories

Official viewer rating standards and content warnings across international classification boards.

Primary: NR

NR: Not Rated — Evaluated outside standard classification boards.

International Certification Matrix

United States (MPAA)NR

Not Rated — Evaluated outside standard classification boards.

Official cinematic photography and background stills for Tough Assignment.

Featured In Curated Collections

Editorial lists, community rankings, and cinematic collections featuring Tough Assignment.

B-Movies

Best of the Worst + MST3K + RiffTrax + TMDb b-movie keyword, filtered to low-budget, non-acclaimed features.

1345 titles

list2

23294 titles

Similar Titles to Tough Assignment

Movies sharing stylistic DNA, tone, and thematic storytelling

  • 8.1
  • 7.6
  • 7.2
  • 6.0
  • 6.1
  • 7.1
  • 6.1
  • 7.2
  • 6.7
  • 6.2
  • 6.2
  • 6.9
  • 7.1
  • 7.0
  • 6.6
  • 6.5
  • 6.9
  • 7.5

More Like Tough Assignment

Recommended titles matching themes, cast, and genres.

6.4
6.5
6.2
7.3
7.3
6.6
7.3
6.4
6.5
7.0
6.9
6.6

Frequently Asked Questions About Tough Assignment

Quick factual answers about cast, synopsis, director, box office, and release information.

What is Tough Assignment about?

A meddlesome reporter sporting a young bride takes on a gang of modern day cattle rustlers. Donald "Red" Barry plays Dan Reilly, a newspaper reporter just returned to LA with his wife, photographer Margie (Marjorie Steele). Margie insists on taking pictures of everywhere they go, and so as she's walking into a butcher shop she poses for Dan - while at the same time three thugs make their way quickly out after beating up the proprietors. Soon Margie and Dan are involved in investigating an illegal meat operation that rustles cattle and forces butchers to buy it - or else. Dan gets beaten up a couple of times, but is undaunted in pursuing the great story - and hey, he's only got 64 minutes to do so, he'd best get cracking!

Who directed Tough Assignment?

Tough Assignment was directed by William Beaudine.

Who stars in Tough Assignment?

The principal cast of Tough Assignment includes Don 'Red' Barry, Marjorie Steele, Steve Brodie, Marc Lawrence, Ben Welden.

When was Tough Assignment released and how long is it?

Tough Assignment was released in 1949 with a total runtime of 1h 4m.

What is the age rating and content advisory for Tough Assignment?

Tough Assignment holds official age classifications: US: NR (Not Rated — Evaluated outside standard classification boards.).