La trama del delitto

This noir film is unusual in that its biggest surprises occur in the first half of the movie. The user reviews that consist mostly of recounting the plot thus spoil the effect of seeing it for the first time. If you think you'd like to watch it, I recommend avoiding them.

It's usually best to save surprises for the end of a story, but given the film's plot it would have been difficult.

Without giving away too much, Frank Lovejoy plays an LA drive-in restaurant owner and compulsive gambler who gets inveigled into a plot to recover Nazi loot hidden during WW II.

The second half of the film is straight adventure and suspense, much of the latter coming from trying to guess who is or isn't in on what seems to be a rather large conspiracy for a relatively small goal.

Co-stars Mari Blanchard and Richard Denning are enjoyable in juicier parts than Lovejoy's. An enjoyable watch even if a tad implausible in spots.

This is just a bit too convoluted for it's own good. It's all about a scheme to retrieve some gold from Germany buried at the end of WWII by Richard Denning ("Frank"). Frank Lovejoy ("Stan") and his gal Mari Blanchard ("Joanie") are the pair trying to manoeuvre their mark into taking them back to find the loot, but they also they have an ulterior motive of which poor old "Frank" is unaware. It's got a few twists and turns to keep the plot moving, but much of the story seems to exist in order to perpetuate itself, rather than offer us anything to get our teeth into and after a while it becomes a bit dull. The performances are weak, the dialogue really wordy and I found the music got on my nerves a bit, too. Director Nathan Juran usually had a good eye for a story and phototography at his best; this isn't it.

Yes, the cast is great. Yes the first ten minutes or so, up to and including the first twist, is a great movie.

But after that it goes so completely insane in a way that's super not fun or campy or bombastic. It somehow manages to be both boring, and implausible. The plot folds in over on itself. It's just very, very bad writing.

Right now, this has an average of a six. I just think that's way way too high. This deserves a four at best, and so I'm on here to try to push that to happen. I love noir, and I've now watched so many, to relive the high of first seeing the greats. I've seen so many bad ones. This is the worst one I've ever seen.

Holy cow. Completely ridiculous, unbelievable crime (not noir) drama that would put Ed Wood and Harry Stephen Keeler to shame.

The movie is acted and directed OK, and it's oddly watchable, but the plot is laughable. It's quite simply, ludicrous.

Frank Lovejoy runs a roadside cafe. He's in love with carhop Mari Blanchard, and wants to get married. She wants security. When her brother, Richard Denning, shows up, he's got a big deal in Chicago, which Mari drunkenly spills to Frank is about $200,000 in stolen and buried gold in Germany. Deming is willing to cut Frank in for operating expenses.... yet when Frank goes home, Denning and Miss Blanchard meet up and canoodle. When they meet Denning's partner in Chicago, he doesn't want any more partners, and says he'll do it all on his own, so Denning shoots him.

It's clearly a confidence scam at this point. The question is, what has Lovejoy got that they are willing to spend such time and effort to get him to Germany? The movie veers fast and furiously as it bumps along, with a great script. Nathan Juran's directon is adequate, but the performers are up to their roles for a movie that is a lot of fun for fans of con-game movies like me.