Noir Films

[RedRiver]

Mann and Alton were exceptional at capturing that cold, dark urban atmosphere. You feel like you could open your front door and step right into the 47th Street subway!

[RedRiver]

Kenneth More would be the authority fugure! I do like the genre. It sounds interesting. But, as you say, some spy stories fail to maintain the required level of excitement. I read a lot of suspense fiction. The really fun ones drive you crazy at the end of a chapter. You just have to find out what happens next!

[CineMaven]

T Men directed by Anthony Mann, in his prewestern days, is a stark, gritty docudrama styled noir about undercover Treasury Department agents trying to bust a counterfeiting ring. It's a pretty straightforward crime drama but is set apart by its look. It is a very dark picture. Save for some establishing shots and one scene it is exclusively set at night. Shadows are everywhere. Charles McGraw, who plays the hit man in the gang, has such an angular face that even it throws its own shadows. Some of the darkness is especially striking in a couple of scenes where murders take place. A mostly "B" cast serves the film. It stars Dennis O'Keefe and his is supported by Wallace Ford, Charles McGraw and a host of others that are lesser known for me. Mann captures the atmosphere very well. The drama is okay but I think most everyone who likes noir would enjoy it even more from a visual standpoint.

“Did you ever spend ten nights in a Turkish bath looking for a man?”

I thoroughly enjoyed “T-MEN” MM’57. And I’ve made a discovery. I think I might be becoming hooked on the procedural docu-dramas. I’m pondering why I have this new-found interest in the docu-drama. Perhaps it’s because it’s a kind of a, sort of a minimalistic approach to filmmaking...in a way. You use a sonorously authoritative voice (like Reed Hadley’s) to tell the story...he sets up all the action and the whys and wherefores; and then you cut to the scene and just show the meat of the action. Simple...easy. And there’s an element of that here. But what might set “T-Men” apart from the grand-daddy of all docu-dramas, “THE HOUSE ON 92nd STREET” is John Alton.

John Alton. << (( Sigh!! )) >> As a filmmaker, I want to have his baby. He is a master chiaroscurist if ever there was one. He doesn’t so much paint with light as he paints with darkness. Our introduction to Charles McGraw sets the tone immediately. The silver sheen of the film made my fillings ache. Steam baths, the camera shots from the floor looking up into a lamp, O’Keefe bowing his head as the shadow of his fedora covers his face, the Schemer on the phone in the forefront with just his eyes showing and the other guy in the background; and also the shot that you described Chris: “In two shots one might be in the light and the other in darkness.” It’s all these touches and more that makes this docu-drama visually 'arresting' while we’re going through the procedures.

The film is well-acted, populated with character actors who do what they do...and do it well.

Dennis O’Keefe - Never crazy about this oatmeal-faced vanilla actor. But in “T-Men” he’s done an 180-degree persona switch playing a tough mobster a la Dick Powell as Philip Marlowe. Big and brawny. He sounds very natural and believable. Don’t tell me I have to give him a second look?

Alfred Ryder - Poor guy. He’s got a soft tough look. Married. He sees his wife and can’t acknowledge her. He won't give away the mission. Pathos. Very good. Faces the end with honor.

Wallace Ford (Schemer) - Good performance. You know the type...loser, the wannabe. I still felt bad for him in the end; trying to scheme his way out of the inevitable. With no luck. Saaaaay, when did Ford get that character actor look? I just saw him with Joan Crawford looking like a blonde-haired callow youth. No match for Gable of course, but he looked thin and young. This is now about ten years or so later; he’s pudgy...paunchy. Ahhhhhh, the better to Act with my dear. ("Shadow Of A Doubt").

Art Smith - I love that guy. He’s the department chief; gives the boys their assignment. I almost didn’t recognize him. For a nanosecond I thought he was Harry Von Zell. Flat affect. Love that guy. Who is he? You know him...Bogie’s agent in “In A Lonely Place” Robbie’s psychiatrist in “Caught” and Jourdan’s butler in “A Letter from an Unknown Woman.” He’s an asset in whatever he’s in.

Charles McGraw - Quick, where can I hide? He’s the pin - up boy for assassins! Cold, unfeeling, unblinking, McGraw makes Charles Bronson look like sisssy. He makes me think of Robert Shaw in “From Russia With Love.” He’s ice. He’s like a shark, single-minded. If he's visiting you...you're dead.

Jane Randolph - Is she the boss? No, but you’ve got to see her to see the boss. “The nature of the business is business Mr. Harrigan. Strictly.” It was a surprise to see a woman involved in it, much less Randolph of “Cat People” fame. She was wonderfully haughty in this, calling on the spirits of gals like Eve Arden, Jayne Meadows and Kristine Miller. Loved that long cigarette holder and the matter-of-fact way she says: “About Schemer...get rid of him.”

Good solid film. Thanx for bringing it up MovieMan.

...And speaking of “THE HOUSE ON 92nd STREET” I watched the Extras that came with the DVD and they said that the house was actually filmed on 93rd Street in Manhattan. So I went there this autumn...93rd Street near Madison Avenue. Check out the movie and then check my pix against them. (Wish I knew how to do screen caps). Two of the guys walk past this building seen here, (virtually unchanged from the 1940’s) to get to the actual house.



Check it out:


This is the actual house from the film (with a few architectural accoutrements now added on like the columns). Check it out.

And if you haven’t already...check out “T-MEN” do yourself a favor:
[youtube][/youtube]
In this screen shot, that looks like John Newland on the right, of "One Step Beyond" fame.

[movieman1957]

I'm glad you liked it. I'm very glad it made you write a commentary in a way that only you can write it. (Much better than mine.)

[CineMaven]

No no Chris...not better. Just my way. My crazy little way.

[RedRiver]

sets up all the action and the whys and wherefores; and then you cut to the scene and just show the meat of the action.

That's what I like about crime fiction in general. Who are these people? What makes them tick? That's one thing. Why is the story being told? Well...

[JackFavell]

Great review! Now I gotta go watch it!

I think I actually like Charles MacGraw, despite a shaky introduction to him in my first noir, The Narrow Margin. But the main reason I want to see it is that I am a big sucker for Wallace Ford. Check him out in Central Park, he's just a young pup in that one, making eyes at Joan Blondell. The Lost Patrol, Blues in the Night, and The Set-Up are my favorite Ford films so far. They span almost his entire career, from leading man to pudgy lowlife.

[CineMaven]

From leading man...



...to pudgy lowlife.

[feaito]

Theresa,

Are the pixs you posted of Wallace Ford? I recently revisited "Freaks" (1932) and I seem to recognize him....

[CineMaven]

Yes Feo, they are. I was just piggybacking on Wendy's comment above.

But now I must go through Hell:




<< ( GULP! ) >> Confession is good for the soul (they say) and I want to be cleansed before Friday...I have never seen "TOUCH OF EVIL" in its entirety in one full sitting, until yesterday.

Aaaaaah!! There.

Wendy, I must pull your sterling review from the archives and re-read it. I will only offer my humblest of observations a little later. First, I must crawl out from the muck and mire of the gutter that "Touch of Evil" threw me into while watching, before I can post my thoughts here. Crawl...crawl...crawl...

[JackFavell]

Awesome! I can't wait to hear your thoughts on Hank, Pete, Uncle Joe Grande and Vargas.

[RedRiver]

I think I actually like Charles MacGraw, despite a shaky introduction to him in my first noir, The Narrow Margin

I think that's a fine means of introduction. NARROW MARGIN is one of the sharpest, most expedient B features I know. MacGraw's character is tough, committed and dependable, and the actor plays it well. This movie is one of the premiere examples of low budget, but excellent filmmaking.

[JackFavell]

I guess so. I think I needed a little more pizazz for my first noir outing. However, Marie Windsor knocked me out!

[CineMaven]

I agree.