Una mujer de coraje

This intense and captivating film noir from 1950 feels groundbreaking and significant and deserving of noteworthy acclaim, which unfairly it hasn't received. While watching this remarkable film, I couldn't help but be keenly aware of how ahead of its time Undercover Girl is, not just for its content but cinematically. The story follows a female police officer named Christine Miller (played with mesmerizing brilliance by Alexis Smith in a career-best performance), who is determined to avenge the murder of her father by going undercover to take down the narcotics ring responsible for his death. In so many ways, this feels like a fantastic precursor for Police Woman, Cagney and Lacey, and even Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. Yet, the gender of our main character is not the only celebratory element: this is a damn good movie from start to finish. Giving Alexis Smith terrific on-screen support is Royal Dano in a complex role (his movie debut nonetheless) with which the very talented actor gains the audience's sympathy - something tough to do for a desperate low rent character. Director Joseph Pevney (who would continue to helm films with strong female leads including Because of You with Loretta Young and Female on the Beach with Joan Crawford) knows how to hold his audience in a permanent state of suspense, masterfully creating a level of nail-biting intensity, evident in the last riveting ten minutes of this taut thriller (you'll be on the edge of your seat cheering our tough and clever heroine on). There's much to admire about this hugely underrated cinematic gem: from breaking gender norms (a woman on the screen who has a dangerous job and isn't relegated to housework and cocktail serving to her overworked husband) to being one of the best crime films made, Undercover Girl deserves far better glory and a lot of respect.

Rookie policewoman Alexis Smith (Chris/Sally) goes undercover to help Police Lieutenant Scott Brady (Trent) smash a drugs gang and exact revenge on the man who killed her father.

The story is ok but the picture quality isn't too good. It's also unbelievable nonsense. Smith is badly cast - she doesn't have the looks to physically attract so many people and she is too square-looking to convince as a top gangster woman. It also makes no sense why seasoned bad girl Gladys George (Liz) would open up to her and tell her all that she does. There is also no way that Smith would be sent in to carry out that final sting. There is so much that is just a load of tosh with this film, but it keeps the audience watching.

Goodness knows why the female trainee officers have to wear shorts during target practice. Very funny. They should also wear shorts when making arrests. And when answering the telephone.

A cop has taken money from mobsters, though he now has second thoughts and decides instead to arrest these drug dealers. But they get the drop on him...killing him instead. A short time later, a cop approaches a policewoman candidate, Christine Miller (Alexis Smith) to inform her that her father was the man who had been killed and he needs help to figure out who was responsible. She agrees to leave her department to come to work with him on exposing the killers. This will mean her going under cover and pretending to be a crook looking to make a big drug deal and the hope is that as she works her way up through the gang that they'll find out who is in charge...and who killed her dad.

The best thing about this film is that it doesn't resort to the usual cliches and is a well made tale. Not exactly brilliant but still quite enjoyable and worth your time.

Alexis Smith and Scott Brady star in "Undercover Girl" from 1950.

After her police detective father (Regis Toomey) is murdered by people in the drug business, Chris Miller (Smith), a cop herself, infiltrates the gang on the recommendation of another female officer (Connie Gilchrist).

Chris turns out to be made for undercover, a quick thinker and quite an actress, able to be tough and sexy. She manages to convince them all.

Director Joseph Penney keeps the suspense going and the audience wondering if Chris will be found out.

Routine but a nice part for Gladys George, and an early one for Richard Egan as Chris' boyfriend. And Smith is a knockout.

Cop Regis Toomey returns the ten grand to Gerald Mohr and arrests him. In return, Mohr kills him. Some time later, police lieutenant Scott Brady wants Alexis Smith, Toomey's daughter to help him crack open a drug ring and clear the whispers about her father. She goes undercover on a path to leads to doctor Edmon Ryan.

It's a melodramatic and foolish movie, one I never found very engrossing, although Royal Dano, in his movie debut, gives a fine performance as an obvious hophead who's always looking for a score of any sort. There's nothing obviously wrong about any of it, except that everyone's motivations get in the way of any sort of accomplishment, from Ryan's lust for Miss Smith, to Miss Smith's quest for vengeance against whoever it was that killed her father, to Brady's lust for Miss Smith. It makes one admire Mohr, who at least knows what he's in the dirty business for. Neither is the dialogue ever particularly surprising. Cinematographer Carl Guthrie gets in some nice compositions, but they're not enough to lift this out of the ordinary.