Murder, My Sweet

Murder, My Sweet.  Dick Powell stars as private eye Philip Marlowe in this 1944 film adaptation of a classic LA crime novel by famed writer Raymond Chandler. Director Edward Dmytryk used all the film noir trappings starting with the the darkened police interrogation room with the single light glaring into the suspect's eyes, after which the story enfolds in flashback.

Dick Powell departs from the boyish musical roles that made him a star in the 30s to play a hard boiled, wise-cracking private eye who is tough but vulnerable at the same time. This film revitalized his career. Claire Trevor, an always excellent actress, revitalized her own career playing the femme fatale, and Anne Shirley is fine as the"good" woman. 

I love Mike Mazurki in this film. This Ukrainian immigrant somehow managed to graduate from Fordham Law school, but then become a professional wrestler before gravitating to Hollywood where his craggy face and large body enabled him to carve out a career as a tough, menacing figure. He is unforgettable as Moose Malloy.

Here is a link to Eddie Muller's informative intro.

Dick Powell and Claire Trevor

 

Nightmare Alley

In this grim 1947 film noir Tyrone Power stars as a two-bit hustler working in a traveling  carnival where he learns the tricks of a mind-reading act that elevates him to the big time. He brings his act to fancy nightclubs and becomes the toast of high society until he meets up with a scheming psychologist, played by Helen Walker. Together, they plot to bilk her wealthy, credulous patients. 

Edmund Goulding directed this film that portrays 1930s America as “a sleazy, run-down carnival, where everyone is either on the make, a born sucker, or trapped in a real or psychological cage.” Coleen Gray, Joan Blondell, and Mike Mazurka are featured as members of the carnival. 111 minutes. CC.

In Nightmare Alley Tyrone Power departed from his dashing leading man image and turned in a performance that he believed was the best of his career. The other members of the cast are equally fine especially the little known Helen Walker. This film was a box office flop in 1947 but modern critics like Eddie Muller of TCM's Noir Alley rate it very highly. Here is a link to Muller's intro.

Helen Walker and Tyrone Power