Pitfall 1948 7 out of 10

Pitfall 1948  7 out of 10

Pitfall is a film noir movie from 1948 that centers on a married insurance adjuster (Dick Powell) that falls for a femme fatale (Lizabeth Scott) while on a case to get some stolen items back.

As a result he gets himself caught up with a creepy private eye that has also fallen for the girl  (Raymond Burr) and her jealous boyfriend that is about to get out of jail.  It was a good quality noir film with an everyman getting caught up in a dangerous situation.   The conclusion of the film features a showdown with the unlucky insurance man and the boyfriend who has just been released from jail which leads to some great noir stuff.

The best part of the movie for me was Raymond Burr's creepy detective -who basically decides he wants the girl whether she likes him or not.  The creepy scene where he shows up at her work where she is modeling dresses was uncomfortable to watch.   The way he asks her show off the dress makes you feel like he is asking her to strip naked for him.   So weird to see the guy I only know as Perry Mason in such a creepy role.  The level of creepy from Burr is almost to the level of Robert Mitchum in the original Cape Fear.  His character basically orchestrates the final showdown of the film to get his rivals for the girl out of the way.

All in all it was a decent film noir effort that was more focused on how the average everyday man (perfect father) life unraveled after a brief affair with the wrong gal. 

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The Whistler Movie Series: #1 The Whistler 1944 6 out of 10

The Whistler was a film noir movies series consisting of 8 films in total from 1944-1948 that were released by Columbia Pictures.  Each film begins with a mysterious character known as the Whistler seen as a shadow on the wall serves as a shadowy narrator of the tales that focus on crime stories.  It was originally a radio drama in the 1930's and 1940's.  Actor Richard Dix played the main character in the first 7 movies in which he played a different character in each film.  I was wondering why he wasn’t in the final film  so I looked up him up on IMDB and noticed that he had about 100 credits to his name.  He died at age 56 shortly after retiring.  The 8th film in the series starred Michael Duane as the main character taking over for Dix.  When watching some of these old movie series it feels like watching a TV Show, especially with the short running times of barely over an hour.

 1.  The first film in the series The Whistler from 1944 was directed by William Castle of gimmicky horror movie fame.  It features Richard Dix as an Industrialist whose wife was lost at sea that is so filled with guilt that ends up hiring a hit man to kill him.   He then finds out his wife is still alive --but is unable to call off the hit because the person he hired the killer from has passed away.   He diguises himself as a bum to try and hide from his killer. The movie is basically a cat and mouse tale with Dix character in a panic not knowing who is trying to kill him.  Richard Dix plays paranoid well. It was an enjoyable little mystery film- but not one of the best of this series.

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The Dark Corner 1946 6 out of 10

The Dark Corner  1946  6 out of 10

The Dark Corner was a decent 1940's film noir movie about a private eye (played by Cliffton Webb)  that finds out someone is following him and trying to kill him.  He thinks a man from his past is involved....but is he really or is someone else just setting him up?  He is helped by his new secretary (played by the famous comedy legend Lucille Ball) that believes in him and eventually helps him to solve the mystery.  It is a typical noir story with a tough private eye roughing people up for information, getting into fights and smoking more cigarettes and drinking more booze than an episode of Mad Men.  

  

The Big Heat 1953 8 out of 10

The Big Heat 1953   8 out of 10

Starring Glen Ford...The Big Heat is a solid film noir about a detective who finds out the suicide of a fellow cop was actually a murder. Then the person that tells him this information ends up dead as well.  He is warned off the case and doesn't listen which ends up in personal tragedy for him.  Then he sets out for revenge.

The movie also features a great performance by a young Lee Marvin as one of the ruthless bad guys.   I find myself always liking good guy revenge stories.  I like to watch the guilty be punished and this is exactly that kind of film.  Definitely a film noir film worth checking out.

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Film Noir: DOA 1949 7 out of 10

D.O.A. from 1949  is a solid Film Noir movie that follows an Accountant's search to find out who poisioned him before he dies.  The pacing of the film and its dialogue matches the main characters urgency to solve the puzzle quickly.   The movie starts with the main character stumbling down the hall of a police station   where he is revealed to report a murder.....His own murder.

The film then backtracks over the past day to unfold how it happened.  As each piece of the puzzle is revealed he gets closer and more desperate to solve the crime as time is his enemy.

The film was later remade in the 1980's with Dennis Quaid. 

It can be found on this set of Film Noir movies.