Il pozzo maledetto

This noir begins with a man trapped in a cistern berating himself. We learn that he is David Cummins (Kent Smith), a self proclaimed drifter, who was picked up by the police and subsequently bailed out of jail by a lawyer who he didn't know. The lawyer explains that he wants to hire him to impersonate his wealthy client for an inheritance case. It would be for just a short period of time and he would make $5,000, but he can't ask any questions.

David must fool the man's brother, sister-in-law, and wife...oh! And his dog, Angel. Angel is a beautiful dog too, who is only kept at bay by the smell of her owner's clothing and the non-threatening nature of David.

It's clear from the minute he sets foot on the property that things aren't as they seem...this is both a missing person and a murder mystery, but the biggest question is can David get out alive?

I enjoyed this mysterious noir. I appreciated that they answered all the questions in the end. This is a recommendation to noir fans. It may not be in the top tier but it was a great house and a good watch.

Kent Smith, Viveca Lindfors, Janis Paige, Robert Douglas, and John Alvin star in "This Side of the Law," a 1950 film directed by Richard L. Bare. Smith plays David Cummins, a vagrant who is baled out by an attorney named Phillip Cagle (Douglas) who wants him to impersonate a missing millionaire in order to divide a $3,000,000 estate. Cummings agrees to do it for $5,000, but he walks into a hornet's nest: a wife (Viveca Lindfors) who doesn't seem to like him much, a brother (Alvin) who detests him, and a sister-in-law (Paige) who likes him a little too much. It's all pretty confusing, as Cummins tries to do the right thing by the millionaire's obviously hurt wife. Then murder complicates the situation further.

The story is told in flashback, as we see in the beginning that Cummins is in grave danger -- as he tries to save himself, he goes over the events that brought him to his present problems.

Fairly interesting story. I'm sure for Lindfors, a wonderful actress brought over from Sweden, this was hardly the stuff of star-making, but she does a good job. Paige is gorgeous.

All in all, fast-moving and satisfying.

Waves crashing violently over jagged rocks, against a moonlit sky, presided over by an isolated, almost spectral clifftop house, while a desperate man, trapped at the bottom of a disused cesspool rapidly loses any hope of escape. It all sets the tone for a movie as preposterous as it is atmospheric.

Dishevelled, down at heel vagrant, Kent Smith, comes under the gaze of suave, sophisticated, savvy but scheming lawyer Robert Douglas. With his educated English accent and pencil thin moustache, he is the template for the Tom Helmore character in 'Vertigo'. Smith scrubs up sufficiently well to pass for dapper, prosperous Malcolm Taylor, seven years missing and about to be pronounced officially dead, which will spark serious financial repercussions for his estate.

That a grubby, random, homeless man could be so remarkably transformed, have the confidence, poise audacity and chutzpah to pull off such a stunt, even for BIG money, certainly stretches credibility. To then arrive on the doorstep, after seven years without trace or explanation and greet 'wife' Viveca Lindfors with a slightly sheepish, "Hello Evelyn" is almost as laughable as The Disaster Artist's 'Oh! Hi Mark' moment. Smith also has to deal with hostility from brother, John Alvin, who loathes him and the advances of sister in law, Janis Paige, who loves him. All minor fare compared with the relentlessly barking, snarling, howling dog, Angel, who would gladly eat him...... before moving on to the main course!

Smith may look, sound, act and even smell like Missing Malcolm, but as always the Devil is in the detail. Small revelations start to arouse suspicion concerning his veracity. As the double crosses double, every ten minutes, the absurdities of the plot ultimately give way to something altogether more intriguing and absorbing. Whilst the stark, forbidding settings evoke the aura of the best goth noir. The largely second tier cast turn in convincing performances, with Janis Paige's femme fatale especially memorable in a movie which emerges with greater integrity than initially anticipated. Undiscovered by myself, until recently, 'This Side of the Law', is an interesting addition to my ever expanding noir catalogue.

A vagrant is bribed into impersonating a millionaire as part of an inheritance scheme. The trouble is he gets more than he bargained for.

I'm not sure why this little noir-- and it is a noir (hand of fate, a web of intrigue, a spider woman, & dark atmosphere)-- remains so obscure. This Warner Bros. entry may not be top-flight, but it is respectable. That opening scene with the pin-light on Cummins' (Smith) ravaged face is a grabber. Several other moody scenes emerge along the way, plus a neat plot twist, that makes this thriller an entertaining 70-minutes.

I'm guessing one reason for the film's obscurity is the cast, especially the lead, Kent Smith. He performs well enough. The trouble is he lacks screen presence, almost fading into the background at times. On the other hand, Lindfors and Paige split the women's time, such that neither is able to establish much presence of her own. John Alvin, however, comes across vividly in the thankless role of the weakling brother. Also, I'm surprised director Bare manages the dark material as well as he does, given that his previous career was exclusively with comedy shorts. (Note, for example, how Cummins has to work at getting a name off the ID bracelet—a good realistic touch.)

Nothing memorable here, just a solid little noir.

The movie opens with the lead at the bottom of a well. David Cummins gets arrested for vagrancy and fined $50. Philip Cagle pays the fine and wants a favor in return. Philip is a lawyer who needs David to pretend to be his doppelganger millionaire Malcolm Taylor.

This is a fair noir film. I do wonder how David fits so easier into their world. A bit of uncomfortable misunderstandings would be more compelling. That's why the dog is the best. He should carry some doggie treats. The other issue is that David should automatically distrust Philip. It would be even more compelling if David tries to double-cross Philip. I'm saying that there should be more double-crossing.