Very well executed

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Produced and released by Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc., by whom copyright 11 February 1950. Released 11 February 1950 (U.S.A.), 13 August 1951 (U.K.), 27 July 1951 (Australia). New York opening at the Globe: 26 January 1950. 8,139 feet. 90½ minutes. Shooting title: Somewhere in the City.SYNOPSIS: Complex crime yarn following Mayo and MacRae as they search for ex-G.I. pal O'Brien, who is on the lam for a murder he didn't commit.NOTES: Second collaboration of writers Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts. Their first was White Heat (1949).COMMENT: A moderately suspenseful thriller with engagingly atmospheric photography, some fair action sequences, and at least one stand-out support performance (Viveca Lindfors). In fact, all the support players walk rings around the two principals, here somewhat out of their element in non-musical roles. Actually, Virginia Mayo is not in the film to the extent her top billing implies (and often in TV transmissions her part is the first to be trimmed). The identity of the real killer is obvious, but nonetheless intriguing thanks to the skillful playing of the person concerned. The film is also a bit slow to get under way and there are some extraneous episodes that could have stayed in the cutting-room (but were doubtless left in to build up Miss Mayo's part). These things aside, the film is directed at a reasonably fast pace and with a modicum of power and style. Production values are no more than average by "A" standards but behind-the-camera credits (sets, costumes, music, film editing) reflect the usual craftsmanship of Warner Bros. studio.

Gordon MacRae is a wounded ex-GI who's been in an army hospital for treatment for a broken spine. He falls for the beautiful nurse who took care of him, and he and his army buddy have planned to go into business as ranchers when he was released from the hospital. However, his buddy disappears suddenly and MacRae is told by the police that's because he's the prime suspect in the murder of a notorious gambler. MacRae, refusing to believe that his pal is guilty of the crime, sets out to find his buddy and clear his name.Director Vincent Sherman, an old Warner Brothers hand, was an expert at making tight, suspenseful thrillers--check out "Underground", a terrific 1941 little "B" he made for Warners--but this isn't one of his better efforts. He doesn't seem to have had his heart in it, as there are holes in the somewhat contrived script big enough to drive a truck through, there are way too many convenient coincidences and the identity of the real killer becomes very obvious not long into the picture. Edmond O'Brien is excellent as MacRae's army buddy but Virginia Mayo isn't much more than window dressing as MacRae's love interest (his real wife Sheila MacRae has a small part as a brassy party girl). MacRae tries hard, but he just isn't up to the part. It has a good supporting cast and does have its moments, but overall it's one of Vincent Sherman's lesser efforts, with more minuses than pluses.

All You need do is Look at the very Last Shot in this Film to tell the Difference between Absolute Film-Noir and by 1950, the need for a more Optimistic View. To be a bit Melodramatic, the turn of the Decade was the Beginning of the End for the Genre known as Film-Noir. While there Certainly were a Number of Movies to fit the Category in the Eisenhower Years they were becoming, as a Whole, Diluted. This is a Complex Film that Requires some Concentration. It Moves through the use of Flashbacks to tell the Story and there are Numerous Characters with Numerous Interactions and it is all a bit much to Digest.But it is well Worth a Watch for some Good Scenes and a Number of Diverse Settings. The Dialog is less than Cynical and the Characters are less than Baroque. But it has Enough of a Conceit to draw You in and Play with You a bit, and Challenges at almost every Turn of Events.It does fit, somewhat Uncomfortably in the Noir Category but for the best of the Genre, it really is, Mostly, from 1940-1949. There are Exceptions of course but as Time Marched On, Film-Noir was not Always what it Seemed.

Although Gordon MacRae was signed for musicals by Warner Brothers, Jack Warner like the rest of his fellow Hollywood moguls did not believe in keeping players idle. With no musical properties at the ready, MacRae starred in Backfire about a World War II veteran trying to locate a friend whom the police suspect of murdering gambler Richard Rober. The friend is Edmond O'Brien and MacRae thinks so because he got a woman visitor with a mysterious foreign accent while he was still all doped up on anesthetic from a final operation. The visitor turns out to be Viveca Lindfors and MacRae despite warnings from police captain Ed Begley is on the hunt, aided and abetted by his nurse Virginia Mayo who took a real liking to MacRae while in her care.Backfire is not a mystery as such because the more MacRae looks, people get bumped off right and left. When MacRae is finally closing in on solving the mystery, the suspect is rather obvious.For the most part however Gordon MacRae confined himself to musicals of varying quality and later on left the Hollywood scene altogether for nightclubs. Still he did show he could handle a straight acting job in Backfire and Warner Brothers did give him a strong supporting cast. Backfire still holds up well for today's audience.