Love That Brute is a 1950 American comedy crime film directed by Alexander Hall and starring Paul Douglas and Jean Peters.

Mobster Big Ed (Paul Douglas) sends top henchman Bugsy Welch (Keenan Wynn) to place a white carnation—his trademark—on the corpses, to suggest that he is responsible.

He has been in the park, where Big Ed encounters Ruth Manning (Jean Peters), a country girl who came to Chicago to be a singer, but is now a children's governess.

Ruth grows close to Big Ed, but is offended when he gives her an expensive fur coat on Christmas Eve, thinking that he wants to "buy" her affection.

The next day, the mansion is surrounded by the men of Pretty Willie Wetzchahofsky (Cesar Romero), Big Ed's arch-rival.

After finding him, she learns through Bugsy that Big Ed has never hurt anyone in his life, and that all his alleged victims, including Mamie's husband, are living in his basement.

[1] Studio chief Darryl F. Zanuck initially suggested actor Richard Basehart for this villain role, before Romero took over.

The entertainment magazine Variety named Paul Douglas' character auditioning a son one of the film's "high spots" and in addition wrote that his "fine performance is matched by Peters, who registers impressively as a prim governess and a sultry nitery singer, scoring with Rodgers and Hart oldie, 'You Took Advantage of Me'.