Instant Favorite.

A Brilliant Conflict

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

I have an aversion to gangster films. However, every once in a while one comes along that I can get into. This is one such film.Perhaps it's because for many years I avoided John Garfield films, but recently became somewhat interested in his acting. Additionally, this film has one of my favorite character actors in a major role -- Walter Brennan.The story here doesn't start out very promising -- another con artist story. And, of course, in the long range, the bad guy (Garfield) goes straight due to love. It's done very well. So what's the problem that keeps the film alive? The other bad guys who aren't going to let Garfield get away with getting out of the swindle.This movie stands above many gangster films due to some very good acting. John Garfield is excellent, and the plot requires him to tread a thin line between being a con artist, but also a good hearted man; he does it masterfully. Geraldine Fitzgerald is very good as the mark; she handles being a sensitive and fragile woman well. Walter Brennan is superb as a down-on-his-luck old con artist with a heart; a fine performance. George Coulouris is satisfactorily creepy as the ultimate bad guy in the story. George Tobias has a bigger role than usual, and handles it well. Richard Gaines plays his character well.It's difficult to find much to complain about here. It's a well constructed noir tale. Recommended.

This is a great film about an Ex-Gi named Nick Blake, (John Garfield) who goes back to New York City and gets back with his gal, Toni Blackburn, (Faye Emerson) who is a very attractive blonde gal. Nick soon finds out that the $50,000 dollars he gave her is gone and was given to her new boyfriend. Nick manages to get his money back and heads to Los Angeles and starts his con-artist career all over again. Nick travels with his sidekick, Al Doyle, (George Tobias) who is his bodyguard and good friend. Nick meets up with an old buddy of his named Pop Gruber, (Walter Brennan) who tells him about a very rich woman who is a widow and named Gladys Halvorsen, (Geraldine Fitzgerald). Gladys has a fortune of 2 million dollars and Nick decides to become much closer to this gal. This is when the story gets very involved and you will never be able to figure out how this film will end. Faye Emerson was the wife of famous band leader, Skitch Henderson in real life and she gave a great supporting role. Enjoyed the great acting by veteran actor Walter Brennan and last but least, John Garfield.

Of all the Hollywood writers now associated with classic film noir --among them James M. Cain, Raymond Chandler & Dashell Hammett— the least known and perhaps least appreciated is W.R. Burnett who was responsible for the story and often the screenplay of a number of film crime classics, among them the films Scarface, Little Caesar, High Sierra and Asphalt Jungle. Burnett's dialog is as sharp and tough as the others, and he often displays a finer insight and even greater sympathy for the criminal mind than the others whose stories feature and sometimes romanticize the hard-boiled detective. This excellently directed and photographed film tells the story of a charming con-man, perfectly played by John Garfield, who falls for the widow he is trying to cheat. The petty crooks who people his world played by a superb cast of character actors (George Coulouris, Walter Brennan, George Tobias) are all clearly drawn and don't resemble the usual cliché gang members of other films. Burnett obviously knew this world better than his colleagues.

Though John Garfield and the gorgeous Geraldine Fitzgerald turn in strong performances, this film can't seem to decide whether it wants to be a film noir/gangster flick or a love story. There's even a bit of war propaganda thrown in, as we're pointedly told a couple of times that Garfield's Nick has grown in character from his service overseas. Plot-wise, not much develops, and there are few surprises along the way. Nick's old girlfriend (Faye Emerson) shows up again late in the film, but plays no real part in the action of the final act. George Tobias as Nick's sidekick is annoyingly one-dimensional, and offers little in the way of the comic relief the director intended. This movie feels like it was written by committee. It's worth seeing only for real Garfield fans.