Le cran d'arrêt

William Dieterle's resume shows him to be a solid craftsman only occasionally rising to true distinction. Same can be said of The Turning Point, an often routine noir about a government committee -- this was the era of the televised Kefauver hearings -- investigating mob activity and corruption in a "midwestern" city (though one scene is shot on Los Angeles' funicular railway). Routine also are cynical journalist William Holden and chief investigator Edmond O'Brien, though we're lucky to have the seldom-seen Alexis Smith as a woman attracted to them both. But the best thing in the movie is Ed Begley as the owner of a trucking company who is of course the hoodlum in chief, despite his panelled office and tailored suits. He's memorably slick and squirmy in front of the committee. But his best moment comes when he confides to a henchman his plans to burn down the tenement building where his records are stored: "You don't believe I'd do it?" he jokes. "I don't think a jury would believe it either." The following conflagration is as brutal a plot development as can be found in film noir, with firetrucks, ambulances and bodybags aplenty. It's a scene that sticks with you long after the screenplay's romantic triangle has faded from memory.

The 85-minutes amounts to a surprisingly good blend of a complexly constructed narrative. The personal, romantic, and political all combine here in what's clearly an effort to tap into Kefauver anti-racketeering hearings of the time. Only here it's Eddie O'Brien as legal eagle Conroy, aided by Holden as hawkshaw reporter McKibbon, both on the trail of racketeering kingpin Ed Begley as Eichelberger. Trouble is Conroy's policeman dad (Tully) has been on the take, so his son must now publicly expose him. Then too, Conroy and buddy McKibbon are in love with same girl, Smith as Amanda. There're a number of threads here, most of which weave in and out effectively.

The two biggest pluses are an expert cast, right down to lethally skinny Danny Dayton (Roy) and unforgettable heavy Neville Brand (Red). While dual leads, Holden and O'Brien, low-key their parts effectively. Together, the cast makes the material more plausible than it should be. Second, are the tacky LA locations, from Olympic boxing arena, to skid row, to beloved Angel's Flight tram. The seedy backgrounds also lend a patina of urban realism. Highlights include Red figuring out a catwalk above a fight arena, and the brutal blowing up of Arco's office showing the cruel reality behind Eichelberger's smooth exterior. And catch that surprise ending I didn't see coming.

I expect the b&w film was out of step with the Technicolor extravaganzas Hollywood was turning to at the time. The noirish parts especially have a 40's feel to them. Note early clunky appearance of that upstart menace TV, then making inroads into theatre attendance. Too bad this generous slice of professionalism likely got lost in the mix. It may not be one of Holden's better-known films. Nonetheless, the strong points make the 85-minutes worth catching up with.

The Turning Point (1952)

Great cast (good guys and bad), great director (William Dieterle is a stalwart Hollywood director who did "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" among many others), and solid plot. You can't go wrong. It moves fast, it makes sense, it has drama and romance, and a great shoot-em-up ending in a boxing arena.

And yet something is withheld. I think it's partly camera-work, all very shadowy and excellent, but not elegant, not pumped up and dramatic. The story, as well, is a little routine. By 1952 this kind of crime noir gangster film is old stuff. They even hint at this in the movie, by saying that the unnamed midwestern city is seeing a rise in crime in the old style, a return of 1920s gangsterism. But if they mean to return to the great gangster films, they don't quite make it.

But it's still really fine--William Holden is an understated player and therefore underrated. And the co-lead, the star of "D.O.A." and "The Hitchhiker" among a few other lesser films, is Edmond O'Brien, who is maybe at his best here. You see a curious position for Holden, hot off of "Sunset Blvd.," in a somewhat secondary role, because he might be the leading hunk, but O'Brien is the leading man.

A good film without that special something to lift it up, but without a flaw, either, in any usual sense. Totally a pleasure in its understated approach.

William Holden is Jerry McKibbon, a reporter who's trying to help his pal Edmond O'Brien as district attorney John Conroy and his girl Alexis Smith as Amanda Waycross expose the big city gangster Ed Begley as Neil Eichelberger with some help from O'Brien's cop father, Tom Tully as Matt Conroy. I'll stop there and just say this was quite a thrilling crime drama though compared to others from the period, also perhaps a little subdued. Still, a suspenseful atmosphere permeates throughout especially when a boxing match where someone tries to kill provides the exciting climax. No big music score is provided but there are some good sequences when the story doesn't take the time for some romance between either of the male leads and Ms. Smith which aren't really needed. So on that note, The Turning Point is well worth the time.

Not to be confused with more than five dozen other movies of the same name, The Turning Point (1952) has Edmond O'Brien tapped to head an investigation into organized crime, aided by his girlfriend Alexis Smith. This provides background for newspaperman William Holden, who advises him that there's a lot of corruption to be rooted out; even O'Brien's father, police officer Tom Tully may be implicated. As the committee's investigation falls apart, Holden keeps digging. He becomes the target.

Based on a Horace McCoy story, this is a fine, complex noir feature rooted in the events of its time. William Dieterle directs with his usual sure hand, pulling out fine performances. Although Lionel Lindon's photography is not as dark as some noirs, he shoots all of the standard LA noir spots except the Bradbury Building, and his shadows, particularly in the climactic Olympic Stadium sequence, are as dark as any.