Whirlpool (1950)

If you ever find yourself in the world of film noir then you should be wary of doctors/therapists who take an interest in you while you are not an official patient on their books. You should also be wary of José Ferrer. I knew that Whirlpool would be a film in which Gene Tierney found herself in trouble when she ended up in conversation with a therapist played by José Ferrer.

Tierney plays Ann Sutton, a woman who is married to one Dr. William Sutton (Richard Conte). Although all appears well on the surface, Ann has at least one big problem. She’s a kleptomaniac, which viewers are shown in the very first scenes of the movie. While in trouble with store detectives and management, Ann ends up spared further embarrassment by David Korvo (Ferrer). Korvo recognises the ailment, and offers to help Ann with his hypnotherapy. Before you know it there’s a dead body, Ann as a main suspect, and Korvo evading suspicion with what seems to be a cast-iron alibi. 

Based on an original work by Guy Endore, Whirlpool is your typical bit of hokum that uses hypnosis as a central plot point for some twists and tension. The script, written by Ben Hecht (prolific and brilliant) and Andrew Solt (less prolific, but with a couple of greats in his catalogue of work), is easier to digest thanks to the perfectly-judged tone and the performances of the leads.

Director Otto Preminger may have a number of superior films to his credit (including at least one featuring one of the cast members featured here), but that doesn’t make this unworthy of your time. It’s wonderfully entertaining throughout, and some of the conversations are both beautifully written and impeccably delivered.

If I ever see Tierney give a performance that I don’t love them I advise people to check that I am still alive. She is one of my favourite stars of yesteryear, and this is another winning turn from her, moving between moments of confidence and moments of paralyzing neuroses and fear. Ferrer is an absolute charmer for most of the runtime, nice enough to make you think he is a villain while also nice enough to make you think he might just be nice. His line delivery, especially during his first extended conversation with Tierney, is like music to my ears, and I periodically chastise myself when I remember that I haven’t seen enough of his movie performances from this period. Conte plays his part as expected, Charles Bickford is perfectly fine as the sympathetic, slightly bemused, individual investigating the murder, and Barbara O’Neil does well enough as a woman who may be pivotal to revealing the murderous face being hidden behind a mask of civility.

It’s a bit silly, and maybe a bit too lightweight for those wanting their noir more gritty and dark, but Whirlpool is also just great entertainment. It’s a star vehicle, and anyone who appreciates the talents of the leads will find plenty to enjoy here. I know I did.

7/10

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Kiss Of Death (1947)

This classic film noir stars Victor Mature as Nick Bianco, a criminal viewers first see being caught red-handed for a robbery that will land him in prison for a fairly lengthy sentence. Tough and ready to take the punishment handed to him, Nick sneers when offered the chance of leniency in exchange for information. That eventually changes, however, when he wants a chance to see his young children. Passing along such valuable information will make him less of a friend to the dangerous Tommy Udo (Richard Widmark), which will put him in great peril if the word ever gets out.

Based on a novel by Eleazar Lipsky, Kiss Of Death is directed well by Henry Hathaway, who is fortunate enough to marry a solid script, written by Ben Hecht and Charles Lederer, to a pretty perfect cast. It also helps that, despite the 99-minute runtime, this thing seems to move with the speed and momentum of a racecar. It is, like many of the best noirs, a journey towards an inevitable final destination, but it's brilliantly paced, moving between some very different relationships between some of the main characters and a number of dark and deadly criminal acts.

Hathaway is also fortunate enough to get a brilliant feature debut performance from Widmark, who steals the show as the grinning and unhinged Udo, a character who emanates real menace while smiling at everyone around him. Easily up there alongside any of his future performances, and that is really saying something, Widmark portrays someone I would seriously consider as one of the most memorable villains in the history of film noir. Thankfully, the rest of the cast do well enough in their roles to avoid being completely overshadowed, with Mature excelling in his stoic turn, all too ready to spit in the eye of the authorities until he realises just how much he has to lose. There’s also Brian Donlevy being great as the Assistant D.A. who can offer some glimmer of hope to our lead, and Coleen Gray offers hope of a different kind, even if she seems a bit too sweet and naive in her very first scene (although it soon becomes clear that she knows exactly what situation she might be getting herself into, and her positivity might help to improve the situation for everyone she cares about).

There’s not a lot else for me to say about this film. I loved it, and I was thoroughly impressed by the presence of Widmark, yet equally impressed by those around him not being any less watchable (albeit in very different ways). There are a few different moments here that feel like classic noir key texts, with a major incident at about the halfway mark that is both darkly comedic and also genuinely distressing, and the cast are giving it their all in every scene.

Remade a couple of times, most notably with Nic Cage in a prominent role in the 1990s (more on that very soon), Kiss Of Death is a superbly entertaining character study of a man looking to change his fortunes at the risk of crossing a man even more entrenched in his life of criminality. I was tense, I was captivated, and I was kicking myself for not having seen this before today.

9/10

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Where The Sidewalk Ends (1950)

Let's not dilly dally here, Where The Sidewalk Ends is quite simply a brilliant piece of work. It's a classic that feels as fresh today as it would have back in 1950, it's a gripping piece of entertainment and it's a film that seems to have influenced many that came along after it (anything with a flawed, quick-to-fight, cop at the centre of things, basically).

Dana Andrews stars as Mark Dixon, a detective known for his heavy-handed ways. Unfortunately, he goes a bit too far one night and accidentally kills a man. Desperate to cover up his crime, the detective creates a scenario that makes it look as if the suspect is still alive, and has fled from the long arm of the law. It's not long until he's tasked with investigating this disappearance, which allows him to meet the lovely Morgan Taylor (Gene Tierney), the wife of the dead man. When the body is found and a murderer is sought, Dixon tries to shift the blame on to a gangster named Tommy Scalise (Gary Merrill), but instead ends up getting Morgan's father (Tom Tully) in some hot water. As he tries to put things right, Dixon gets more and more tangled up in his own web.

Directed by Otto Preminger, this is unforgettable stuff. It's gritty, it's smart and it keeps everything, or at least the main character, tightly wound.

I'm not sure if I've mentioned it much here, but I've certainly already told many people about my love for Gene Tierney and this film does nothing to change that. Andrews may be the main star, and absolutely brilliant he is too, but Tierney is easily believable as the kind of woman who would make a man try to change for the better. Merrill and Tully are both good, Bert Freed does well as a fellow lawman, and Karl Malden is the Lieutenant who wants the truth, as opposed to just a neat resolution.

Based on the novel by William L. Stuart, the script was worked on by a number of people as it made its way from page to screen, but the final result shows that the effort was worth it. This isn't necessarily a film that revolves around sizzling dialogue, but the script is a good one and the way that the story plays out is, well, it's nearly flawless, in my opinion.

What could so easily have been a movie that started to fall apart after one great idea, instead goes from strength to strength, thanks to the performances and the way that it manages to feel surprisingly plausible throughout. Essential viewing for film fans.

9/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Where-The-Sidewalk-Ends-DVD/dp/B0001GNJFG/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1385249216&sr=8-3&keywords=where+the+sidewalk+ends