Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Gripping story, good acting, solid film noir, September 12, 2004
The DVD version (Gemstone Entertainment 40315) I purchased of this film noir flick (which I've never seen before) caught my eye because it featured a large close-up of Lee Van Cleef's mug, giving the beady-eyed villian top-billing.
Well, it's a trick that generic companies use to lure customers -- it worked on me. Van Cleef actually has fifth billing, but nonetheless has a substantial supporting role as one of the heavies.
This movie actually stars John Payne, a B-actor of considerable talents, whom I've only seen in one other movie, "Miracle On 34th Street" (he played the lawyer defending Edmund Gwynn's Santa Claus).
Payne portrays Joe, an ex-con who inadvertently gets framed for a bank heist. The plot is more Hitchcock than film noir, as it revolves around Payne dashing off to Mexico to clear his name and nail the baddies.
The cast is very solid: Jack Elam plays Pete, the man Joe gets mistaken for. Yet, even though both men's destinies collide, Pete is the real patsy -- it is his weakness that leads to his death, while fall guy Joe plays it cool and ultimately triumphs.
Preston Foster, Van Cleef and Neville Brand round out the cast, and provide a good mix of personalities to play off Payne. The only bit of unfortunate casting (as well as scripting) is Coleen Gray as Payne's love interest, who tries to get him out of the jam. It's clear that her character was written purely as a foil, to move the plot along. This, too, is more Hitchcockian than film-noir, but I would have preferred a cool dame like Ruth Roman or Peggy Knudsen in that role.
I can't exactly say it's one of the movie's flaws, but there's no "femme fatale"; Payne draws nearer to his demise solely through the actions of evil men, not wicked temptresses.
For a B-movie, this flick has a lot of good production values: The cinematography, pacing, fight scenes and music are all excellent, though hardly quintessential of the genre. For the best examples of film noir, check out Jacques Tourneur's "Out of the Past," Billy Wilder's "Double Indemnity," Howard Hawks' "The Big Sleep," John Huston's "The Maltese Falcon," Orson Welles' "The Lady from Shanghai" and Raoul Walsh's "White Heat."
Nonetheless, this movie easily has earned its place alongside such noir classics as "Murder, My Sweet," "Johnny Stool Pidgeon," "Detour" and "One Lonely Night."
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4.0 out of 5 stars
1950 film noir, August 11, 2009
I was surprised at how good this film is. John Payne was one of the pretty boys from the FOX days of the 1940's.
He invariably appeared in musicals in technicolor primarily because of his voice and his looks. Surprisingly he stands out as an actor in this movie
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