La Rue des pécheresses

Officer Dean (George Montgomery) is taking over the beat, and he's not making any friends on his very first day. The thugs are testing him, to see what they can get away with. Leon (Nehemiah Persoff) is the antagonist, the "business man", who really does run a legit business. But he also runs a few businesses that aren't so clean, even selling booze to under age kids. Dean is determined to shut him down and clean up the street. It comes across as a documentary, like dragnet, but it's a little too on the nose. Everything is overdone. The kids overact, the punk kids are dressed a little too clean as they break the law. Dean doesn't even make an effort to get along with the kids from the very first day. And it all goes exactly as expected. There's going to be big showdown at some point. It's just fair to middlin. Montgomery had a long successful career, acting and even directed a few things. Since Persoff had so many early roles in tv, he managed to skip many of the "uncredited" roles that actors get as they claw their way to the lead. He was frequently the second banana, playing parts on both sidess of the law. Persoff himself has an interesting story on wikipedia. Story by Philip Yordan. Directed by Bill Berke. No oscars, but was successful in film and tv series. Died young at 54. This one was made in the late 1950s, when all the studios were making films on the rough, gritty, city life.

It's the first day for New York city beat cop John Dean (George Montgomery). He's taking over from a retiring veteran who allowed for a loose interpretation of the law. John is the opposite and he intends to clean up. Leon owns the local bar, owns the police, and runs the wild streets. Nancy is the underaged wild girl working in the bar. Terry is the local drunk who often takes off her clothes in the street.

It's a police melodrama. It's a 50's fantasy street life. There is an element of selling to middle America. There is over-acting here and characters worthy of pulpy crime comics. It's fun in an enjoyable B-movie way. The actors are pretty good despite the melodramatic material. The characters may be one-dimensional but compelling enough to be rooting interest.

If you can get past the stereotyping, clichés, cheesy dialogue, and the fiery jazz soundtrack with screeching brass, you will probably enjoy this as a solid B movie. It started out typical, but it progressed into a formidable sociological statement. It is entertaining!

It's clear the entire cast wanted this project to succeed. For that reason, I categorize this as an ensemble. Some actors shine; some do not. But my gut instinct tells me the entire crew was so happy to be working that they decided to give it their all. And it shows.

I rate this film a 7 because of the production, which includes the director. It's typical Hollywood, but that's what makes it fun. Not for those who can't handle dated films.

I saw this film in a late night slot many years ago on BBC television and it left a lasting impression. It was obviously made on a very tight budget, with next to no location shooting, but included a very telling performance from George Montgomery, one of his best in my opinion. Reading Ms Lott's account/synopsis, however, has thrown me a bit, as it's not how I remember the film. However, I must stress it was a long time ago when I viewed it! The action was, as I recall, almost all set during the night hours when policeman Montgomery walked his beat, the so called Street Of Sinners. Persoff was the local badman at the heart of the troubled area. George was on friendly terms with the ladies of the night, whilst also striving to reform the local youngsters.I remember one great scene where our hero walked into a bar and slammed his night stick baton on the bar and closed down the joint. Sadly, this underrated little picture has never been shown again on UK television. I shall continue to hope that it will one day be released on DVD.

Novice cop George Montgomery starts his beat on a street uptown. Bar owner Nehemiah Persoff controls the neighborhood of drunks and delinquents. He and Montgomery tangle, and when Geraldine Brooks jumps off the ledge of her apartment while Montgomery and her ex-husband are present, Montgomery is suspended.

It's a fast-paced little programmer, and Persoff is terrific as the guy who came out of the gutter and didn't travel far. It's well produced on a cheap budget, but like most of Montgomery's vehicles in this period, it was designed to make a profit without doing much for anyone's career.