Squadra investigativa

Down Three Dark Streets (1954)

An FBI man has been killed, and the suspects are related to the three cases the agent was working one when he died. So all three cases become priorities, thinking that by solving them all, the cop killer will come to light.

The title of the movie is a cue that this is in some ways a three part movie, with three basically distinct, if intertwined plots. But what holds it together is a single character, an FBI agent played by Broderick Crawford. And it's Crawford who holds it together beautifully. He plays his part with cool, somber, and weary reserve (and if you know Crawford in his more famous roles, such as "All the King's Men" or even more in "Born Yesterday").

Each of the three stories is layered up as you go, which makes it interestingly complex, and in each there is one leading woman connected to a suspect. Ruth Roman is the most powerful of these three, though the other two are bit weak. Luckily, the weakest of these, Ruth Hyer, loses relevance so that Roman and Marisa Pavan (playing a blind woman fairly well) carry their shares. And in a way you never quite notice the uneven acting because the events tumble one after another, through lots of changes of location, and from one plot to the next. It's filmed with economy but good drama. And the story, which might lose some viewers because of its complexity, also has the beauty of not being obvious, with lots of good dialog.

Why isn't it quite a classic? There's something awkward about the many parts that have to be connected, and an occasional odd aspect, like the unlikely ruse of a blanket carried as Roman's child into her car (it looks very much like a blanket). Still, there is a lot of suspense throughout, dark alleys, drives at night, phones that ring and aren't answered, all along waiting for something and not knowing what. An intense example is when Roman takes a senselessness lonely walk in a cemetery and a car pulls up.

"I'm waiting for a friend." "Maybe I'm that friend you're waiting for."

This is good movie-making, and it makes for a good movie. Then, to cap it off, it has what is maybe the best vintage use of the famous Hollywood letters on the hill overlooking movieland. Odd to say, but I think the movie is worth watching for that alone. This is exactly when the industry was falling apart (legally and literally), and the letters were no accident. There is also a nice use of that trope of money blowing away in the wind (made more archetypal in "The Killing" in 1958). The last line? "Sometimes you meet some nice people in this business." Perfect.

I enjoyed this early 1950s crime/drama and appreciate the nice job TCM did in restoring the print. The transfer looked outstanding; sharp with excellent contrast. The movie features some fine photography and lighting.

This was one of those semi-documentaries popular among crime stories in the late '40s/early '50s. It usually plugged one of the U.S. law enforcement agencies. Here, it was the FBI and we followed a couple of agents as they tried to tie in several cases in the Los Angeles area. Sometimes these movies were labeled "crime dramas" and sometimes "film noirs." This movie contains a lot of both elements.

Along the way, we see a lot of familiar faces, especially if you grew up watching a lot of television in the '50s and '60s. You may not know all the names, but you'll know the faces.

Names you probably know, however, are Broderick Crawford, Ruth Roman and Martha Hyer. There are three of the half-dozen or so actor who all play a significant part of this story.

Crawford is an FBI agent and lower-key one than you might expect. He's not the gruff lawman of "Highway Patrol" or the loudmouth politician of "All The King's Men." Here, he's gentle with people all the while being an effective FBI guy.

Ruth Roman, as "Kate Martel." plays one of several key female roles, as either crime victim or gangster-girlfriend. Ruth plays a role similar to one Lee Remick played in about 10 years later in a film called "Experiment In Terror." Marilyn Monroe-wannabe Martha Hyer is a hoot as a sexy blonde playing a thug's girlfriend, or should I say "moll." She has some great lines, calling the cops "you dirty crumbs" and the like. Her character is pure film noir.

Marisa Pavan is interesting as the blind "Julie Angelino" and so is a young Claude Akins as a boxer-criminal. Jay Adler, Kenneth Tobey and others all have those familiar TV faces.

Movie buffs will get a kick out of the climactic scene, which takes place at the foot of the "Hollywood" sign on top of a hill. That nostalgia, along with the very cool automobiles of the period, make this a good trip down "memory lane."

Unfortunately, this is one of those classic movies that never made it to VHS or DVD. Hopefully, someone will put it in a DVD classics box-set some day. It's a good film and deserves a DVD of its own.

FBI agent John Ripley wants to solve the murder of his partner Zack Stewart. He's digging into three of Zack's cases and hopes to find his killer. Joe Walpo is a murderous fugitive on the run. Kate Martell is being threatened and extorted by a mystery man on the phone. The last case involves a car theft ring.

This is a precursor to the modern TV police procedural. It can be a bit dry and three stories may be one too many. Of the many character actors in this film, I like Claude Akins the most. I love his scar. There is a big time location for the climax. It's great to get so close to the sign. In the end, it's an effective police drama.

Before J. Edgar Hoover stopped fogging mirrors in 1972 you would not see a film that did not show the Federal Bureau Of Investigation as less than dedicated and perfect. Stripping the man's paranoia away from him, Hoover did bring a certain order and professionalism to the FBI and when they stuck to crime and criminals as opposed to just amassing files on the world they did a good job. Like any other law enforcement agency when one of their own is killed in the line of duty everything stops until the perpetrator is caught.

Down These Dark Streets is one of the few films you'll see where someone who is a detective will be shown having more than one case. Indeed that is the crux of this plot. Which one of three cases did agent Kenneth Tobey get killed over by a sniper's bullet?

His supervisor Broderick Crawford takes over and the three cases are a case of an organized car theft ring where young Gene Reynolds is about to take a fall in federal prison because he won't rat out the leaders. Maybe it's notorious fugitive Joe Bassett who is armed and dangerous and who already killed a gas station attendant who rather stupidly called the FBI before Bassett was clear from his station. Or there's Ruth Roman who is being extorted for an insurance settlement by a stranger threatening her child on the phone.

Crawford takes on all three cases and systematically solves them and eliminates a lot of suspects. He's as thorough a professional as all big screen FBI men were at the time.

Take note of Martha Hyer who plays Joe Bassett's kept moll. Martha was one of the most beautiful women ever to grace the screen and here she shows some real acting chops in her scenes with Crawford.

Down Three Dark Streets is a crisp and competent police drama with a great ensemble cast. Definitely a must for noir fans.

...that shows how the FBI handles cases in addition to profiling three particular cases. In the process, it also shows some of the technology used by the FBI at the time.

Agent Zach Stewart (Kenneth Tobey) is assigned to these three cases. One case has to do with a known hijacker, robber and murderer named Joe Walpo who may be headed for Los Angeles. Another is the case of a young man who got caught stealing cars but refuses to give up the guys he works for because of a misplaced sense of loyalty plus the guys are scary and he's rightfully afraid of them. The third case has to do with a widow (Ruth Roman) who is being extorted for the ten thousand dollars in insurance money she got for her husband's death in a traffic accident. The unknown person who calls using a disguised voice is threatening her daughter's life if she doesn't cough up the cash.

When a woman calls saying she has information about one of Stewart's cases, Stewart and agent John Ripley (Broderick Crawford) show up to talk to the woman. When someone disappears out the back door, Stewart gives chase and is shot and killed by that person. The woman refuses to talk further. So now Ripley must solve Stewart's three cases - the titular "three dark streets" - to solve his colleague's murder.

Broderick Crawford plays the FBI agent in his usual TV style of acting, but he's fine for the role and the film is quite engaging. Highlights include Martha Hyer as Joe Walpo's girlfriend who isn't shy and isn't talking. She seems to be doing her best Shelley Winters imitation, but just lacks that "all of the brashness and va va voom that heaven and the production code allows" quality that Winters had.

Then there is Claude Akins as a big galoot who pushes around the spunky blind wife of the car thief and Jay Adler looking almost unrecognizable as the creepy uncle of the widowed extortion victim. William Schallert is a gas station attendant in Barstow who, for some reason that turns out to be a fatal mistake, does not wait until Joe Walpo pulls away from the gas station to try and notify the police in the opening sequence.

And just one more thing - In the extortion segment, Crawford's character tells Ruth Roman that extortionists say things to panic and isolate the victim and make them feel alone and that nobody can help them because that is how they make the victim more compliant with their demands. That's actually good advice when dealing with today's extortionists - otherwise known as internet scammers. Never do anything in a panic. Always think things through and ask yourself if what is being said to you makes sense. Would the sheriff's department REALLY call ahead and let you know they are coming to arrest you and then tell you that the whole thing could be cleared up with 1000 dollars worth of Apple gift cards?