Edmond O'Brien

With enough similarities and differences to make each film stand apart in their own right, Robert Siodmak’s version of “The Killers” is better in almost every way.

There is a salient point to be made about pictures that start off strong yet fail to maintain their initially impressive momentum. The opposite also proves true sometimes, but this second variation makes for a much more satisfying experience. Most would rather have a film require some opening sequences to get really going and then hit its stride until the finish line. A movie that accomplishes the first feat leaves much to be desired, the same of which can be said for William Dieterle’s The Turning Point, an unfortunately fitting title considering that there is indeed a very specific moment at which the film begins to stagnate, finding it very challenging to pick itself before the end credits roll.

D.O.A. Written by Russell Rouse, Clarence Greene Directed by Rudolph Maté U.S.A., 1950 In a terrifically dramatic opening, D.O.A. begins with a series of smooth tracking from behind one man as he walks the corridors of police headquarters whilst the credits appear in the forefront. When the man’s face is revealed, the viewer learns that …

The Hitch-Hiker Directed by Ida Lupino Written by Ida Lupino and Collier Young U.S.A., 1953 How is it that when topic of film noir comes up, most of the names connoisseurs and fans bring up are of the men who partook in the development of this fabled, legendary genre? Is it that the women were …

Backfire Directed by Vincent Sherman Written by Larry Marcus, Ben Roberts and Ivan Goff U.S.A., 1950 Reviewing movies with the benefit of hindsight offers ample opportunity to discover, analyze and extrapolate the several issues of the day their stories were concerned with. It puts such films into historical context, awarding them a sense of worth …