When con-artist John Garfield is released from Army hospital, he is eager to see his old girl Faye Emerson again, as well as the $50K he left in her care. But she found a new guy, a nightclub owner she also works for as a singer, and she made some bad investments with the money. Garfield smells something fishy and beats the money out of the nightclub owner. With his pal George Tobias he heads to LA. They find Garfield's old mentor Walter Brennan there, as well as another group of con-artists led by George Coulouris. Coulouris found a new mark, rich widow Geraldine Fitzgerald, and begrudgingly needs Garfield to work on her. Garfield pretends to be a wealthy businessman and befriends Fitzgerald. Soon Fitzgerald falls for Garfield, but he falls for her as well. Garfield wants out, and tries to pay off Coulouris and his gang. But they won't let their fat fish off the hook that easily.
A noir melodrama with a by-the-numbers story by W.R. Burnett ('The Asphalt Jungle'), but the excellent cast and crew elevates the movie. Garfield ('Body And Soul') is great as always and has great chemistry with Fitzgerald ('The Strange Affair of Uncle Harry'), who is excellent, bringing a lot of depth to her character. But the rest of the cast is great as well, altho Emerson ('The Mask Of Dimitrios') is underused, but does give off a nice femme fatale vibe every second she's on the screen. Coulouris ('Citizen Kane') is as oily and sleazy as can be expected, and Brennan ('Bad Day At Black Rock') does well in a stereotypical 'father' role.
Director Jean Negulesco ('The Mask Of Dimitrios') and DoP Arthur Edeson ('The Maltese Falcon') keep this movie interesting throughout, by offsetting the light and opulent surroundings of Fitzgerald's life with the dingy, dark and claustrophobic rooms that Coulouris and his crew live in, with top con-artist Garfield effortlessly navigating between both lifestyles. The movie ends with a fog-filled climax in a small harbor, which is beautifully shot and quite thrilling, but then ends in a bit of a redemptive whimper/cop-out. That and the story which lacks any real surprises or twists, are the only 2 flaws in an otherwise good movie. 8/10
A noir melodrama with a by-the-numbers story by W.R. Burnett ('The Asphalt Jungle'), but the excellent cast and crew elevates the movie. Garfield ('Body And Soul') is great as always and has great chemistry with Fitzgerald ('The Strange Affair of Uncle Harry'), who is excellent, bringing a lot of depth to her character. But the rest of the cast is great as well, altho Emerson ('The Mask Of Dimitrios') is underused, but does give off a nice femme fatale vibe every second she's on the screen. Coulouris ('Citizen Kane') is as oily and sleazy as can be expected, and Brennan ('Bad Day At Black Rock') does well in a stereotypical 'father' role.
Director Jean Negulesco ('The Mask Of Dimitrios') and DoP Arthur Edeson ('The Maltese Falcon') keep this movie interesting throughout, by offsetting the light and opulent surroundings of Fitzgerald's life with the dingy, dark and claustrophobic rooms that Coulouris and his crew live in, with top con-artist Garfield effortlessly navigating between both lifestyles. The movie ends with a fog-filled climax in a small harbor, which is beautifully shot and quite thrilling, but then ends in a bit of a redemptive whimper/cop-out. That and the story which lacks any real surprises or twists, are the only 2 flaws in an otherwise good movie. 8/10