Steve Thompson returns to Los Angeles after eight months of roaming around the country trying to forget his painful divorce from sultry Anna. He finds a changed city, but a trip to a night club brings him again in close contact with a woman he should have been better off by staying away from. Anna, now married to Slim Dundee, a gangster operating in the city. She cannot resist the idea of two timing her present man when she meets Steve again.
Thompson, who has gone back to work as a driver for a security company, has no idea about how his life will change because of the fatal obsession he develops following Anna around town. As the two are surprised by Slim in his house, Steve, trying to get out of the situation, tells Dundee he has come with an offer he cannot refuse. He has the perfect solution about the perfect caper.
The 1949 Universal film, directed by Robert Siomak, one of the best men that worked in the noir genre, is a film that will not disappoint the viewer because it has the right ingredients going for it. The screenplay is by Daniel Fuchs, based on a novel by Don Tracy. The material was the right one for Mr. Siomak, who must have seen the potential in a movie that embodied all the elements that made this type of pictures a favorite of audiences. The amazing black and white cinematography by Franz Planer contributes to our enjoyment, as well as the music score by Miklos Rosza, that adds another layer in the texture of the finished product.
Burt Lancaster was at the height of his career. Having worked with Mr. Siomak in "The Killers", he probably felt this was the right vehicle, as he gives a subdued performance of the obsessed Steve Thompson. Yvonne DeCarlo plays the treacherous Anna with equal passion. Ms. DeCarlo always brought a sexual allure to most of the work she did, as it is the case of her Anna. Bad guy Dan Duryea specialized in the type he was asked to play, again, and again. He is a laconic Slim, who does not appreciate being double crossed by either Anna, or Steve.
The supporting casts in most of the Hollywood films of that era were a joy to watch, no matter in what film they were called to grace with their appearances. Thus we watch a young Tony Curtis, uncredited, dancing a rumba with Ms. DeCarlo. We also spotted Raymond Burr in a minor role. Stephen McNally is seen as a good guy, a change of pace for the characters he played in most films. Richard Long, John Doucette, and an effective Robert Osterloh, without credit in the film, do a good job for the director.
Thompson, who has gone back to work as a driver for a security company, has no idea about how his life will change because of the fatal obsession he develops following Anna around town. As the two are surprised by Slim in his house, Steve, trying to get out of the situation, tells Dundee he has come with an offer he cannot refuse. He has the perfect solution about the perfect caper.
The 1949 Universal film, directed by Robert Siomak, one of the best men that worked in the noir genre, is a film that will not disappoint the viewer because it has the right ingredients going for it. The screenplay is by Daniel Fuchs, based on a novel by Don Tracy. The material was the right one for Mr. Siomak, who must have seen the potential in a movie that embodied all the elements that made this type of pictures a favorite of audiences. The amazing black and white cinematography by Franz Planer contributes to our enjoyment, as well as the music score by Miklos Rosza, that adds another layer in the texture of the finished product.
Burt Lancaster was at the height of his career. Having worked with Mr. Siomak in "The Killers", he probably felt this was the right vehicle, as he gives a subdued performance of the obsessed Steve Thompson. Yvonne DeCarlo plays the treacherous Anna with equal passion. Ms. DeCarlo always brought a sexual allure to most of the work she did, as it is the case of her Anna. Bad guy Dan Duryea specialized in the type he was asked to play, again, and again. He is a laconic Slim, who does not appreciate being double crossed by either Anna, or Steve.
The supporting casts in most of the Hollywood films of that era were a joy to watch, no matter in what film they were called to grace with their appearances. Thus we watch a young Tony Curtis, uncredited, dancing a rumba with Ms. DeCarlo. We also spotted Raymond Burr in a minor role. Stephen McNally is seen as a good guy, a change of pace for the characters he played in most films. Richard Long, John Doucette, and an effective Robert Osterloh, without credit in the film, do a good job for the director.