Surprisingly crummy. With more than enough film noir elements in place (brutal cop chases cop-killing gangster down to crepuscular Mexico border town where he falls in with a sexy nightclub singer involved with the elsewise happily married hood), and tasty cast to pull it off (fast-with-the-fists detective Sterling Hayden; purring Gene Barry as a quick-to-boil mobster; seen-it-all club temptress Gloria Grahame), this one ought to be better. But so poorly developed, you’d think producer Ross Hunter & director Jerry Hopper are at Republic Pictures rather than Universal; all phony story setups and character shortcuts. A few good takeaways in the mix: Hayden waking up in pajamas after getting knocked-out in the street. Who changed the guy? Grahame is shown unbuttoning his shirt before a quick fade-out. Yikes! (Like James Stewart & Kim Novak in VERTIGO/’58, but with a gender reverse.) And there’s Grahame sashaying thru Border City’s main drag in her nightclub finery. (Seen from behind you can overlook her latest self-destructive cosmetic surgery. Something around the mouth this time; she can barely enunciate.*) Best of all, a chance to see young Billy Chapin, the memorable kid Robert Mitchum relentlessly follows in NIGHT OF THE HUNTER/’55, with a nice little part playing Hayden’s street-wise helper in Border City. Too bad these plums are served on the side of an undercooked main entrée.
ATTENTION MUST BE PAID: *Dubbed on her nightclub song, Gloria did her own vocals next year as Ado Annie in OKLAHOMA!/’55. ALSO: Gene Barry’s physical outbursts so violent & arbitrary, they suggest a brain tumor. Too bad they didn’t develop the script using that angle.
WATCH THIS, NOT THAT/LINK: For a vicious cop losing control, try ON DANGEROUS GROUND/’51 (Nicholas Ray directing Robert Ryan; with a blistering Bernard Herrmann score). https://maksquibs.blogspot.com/2013/05/on-dangerous-ground-1952.html
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