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The title of this review says it all. In 1951, who knew who Ernest Borgnine, Richard Kiley and Charles Buchinsky were? But in this Columbia noir, made after Broderick Crawford became an unlikely star because of ALL THE KING'S MEN has the lead going undercover to investigate racketeering on the docks, we see how good actors can overcome a basically decent script overloaded with 'snappy' dialog, cheap sets and unexceptional directing. The actors are, frankly, amazing and this is as good as a movie can get with a major flaw like this -- ace DP Joseph Walker can't do much with the studio sets and back projection, but he makes a good effort with a highly mobile camera.

I saw The Mob at Cinevent in 2013 and it was the best film of the weekend. This tight noir is filled with great one-liners and unexpected twists.

Broderick Crawford plays a cop who goes undercover as a hoodlum to try to take down a crime ring. We constantly question whether he is totally legit because his mouth is just as tough as the criminals' he's working to put in jail. The story keeps moving and if you blink you might miss something, but the plot never quite gets away from the viewer. This is realism done with panache. It is unfortunate that this movie has had no formal release because it is certainly worth seeing.

Consistent with its simplistic title, "The Mob" is a straightforward cops vs. mob story starring the reliably tough Broderick Crawford. He goes undercover among the longshoremen after being 'suspended' from his police-detective job. He's trying to find the big cheese controlling extortion and payoffs on the docks, and meets up with several shady (or actually criminal) characters along the way. Crawford is his usual no-nonsense self, working his way into the scene with an abrasive coating over a good-cop personality. Neville Brand and Ernest Borgnine have a few scenes as mobsters, and Crawford's dockside pal is played by Richard Kiley. The only confusing part for me was that the TCM description stated that Crawford's character goes "from California to New Orleans" to discover the mob crime, but as far as I can tell, he leaves "town" (wherever that is) briefly, then returns by ship in his undercover mode to the place where he started. Overall, a good-quality crime-fighter movie, worth watching on Saturday night for a B/W movie fan.

The Mob is directed by Robert Parish and adapted to screenplay by William Bowers from the novel written by Ferguson Findley. It stars Broderick Crawford, Betty Buehler, Richard Kiley, Otto Hulett, Matt Crowley, Neville Brand, Ernest Borgnine and Jean Alexander. Music is by George Duning and cinematography by Joseph Walker.

Cop Johnny Damico (Crawford) is fooled by a mob killer during the slaying of a witness and is chastised by his superiors. Sent undercover to infiltrate the waterfront organisation to flush out the killer, Damico faces danger at every turn.

He's a cop who is hell bent on atoning for what could basically be a career ruining error. It's this core essence that really oils the pistons of this tough and under seen slice of crime cinema. Awash with characters so shifty it's hard to locate a moral compass in the mix, director Robert Parrish (Cry Danger) takes a standard under cover plot and elevates it to a riveting tale of corruption, paranoia and the search for redemption at any cost.

William Bowers' script positively pings with the sort of dialogue you could cut a joint of beef with, with most of it spat from the mouth of the excellent Crawford. No matter what the situation, what the danger, Damico has a quip or a put down to always exude a calm and carefree menace, he literally is a sardonic miserablist who is unflappable. It's a wonderful characterisation that's helped enormously by a screenplay that contains some surprises, with a nifty plot line standing out that sees Damico hired by the mob to enact a hit on himself! Wonderful.

Parrish keeps the atmosphere side of things on the boil, always ensuring that Damico could be snuffed out at any moment, while Walker's (The Velvet Touch) photography is tight to the plotting. Around Crawford are a raft of familiar faces from film noir, with the villain roll call considerably boosted by Borgine and Brand. From the quite excellent opening murder played out in the nighttime rain, story unfolds in a whirl of sarcasm, set-ups, machismo, stand-offs and mobster machinations. The Mob, under seen and under valued, add it to your "to see lists", especially if you be a fan of Brod Crawford. 8/10

Off duty police detective Johnny Damico (Broderick Crawford) lets a killer slip through his hands after witnessing a mob hit. Damico is given a chance to redeem himself by going undercover to break up a waterfront crime racket and find the kingpin that ordered the hit. Damico under the assumed identity of small time New Orleans hoodlum Johnny Flynn, infiltrates the docks to find the 'big guy' known only as Blackie Clegg. Along the way Damico comes across an assortment of characters played by, at the time, relatively unknown actors like Ernest Borgnine, Neville Brand, Richard Kiley, and John Marley. Look for Charles Bronson in one of his earliest screen appearances in an uncredited role as a dock hand.

Director Robert Parrish works what might have been routine police procedural crime drama into an edge of the seat mystery. A lot of the credit has to be given to writer William Bowers who Parrish teamed up with on his previous movie Cry Danger starring Dick Powell. Both enjoy a fast paced script with tongue in cheek banter, hinting of the same style that Bowers would use almost twenty years later when he wrote the script for Support Your Local Sheriff! While an actor like Powell would seem better suited for this type role, Crawford just off an Oscar win for All the Kings Men two years before, comes off surprisingly natural as a wise cracking undercover cop.

The Mob though listed as film noir really isn't noir in the classic sense though it does have some of the elements. The Mob is an enjoyable 1950's style mystery crime drama. The run time of 87 minutes breezes by and keeps you guessing. Fans of the genre will enjoy this one.