I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

How could you go wrong? Directed by Siegal.Written by Silliphant.Starring Wallach.I realize as this is written (2016) B&W police procedurals from the 1950s are no longer cool, and to many this is a piece of history.But I just re-watched it and I suggest it holds up regardless of age. The last 10 minutes includes a scene where one of the two gangsters explains to a helpless female captive that criminals "need" violence and that regular folk never understood that. A double irony -- and a credit to Silliphant's genius -- is that this particular character never touched a gun in his life.Wallach of course steals the show. By a bizarre coincidence I was watching GOOD BAD AND UGLY (Leone) on another device at the same time and I was gob-smacked at how this actor could hold the camera like no other.Recommended.

The Tag Film-Noir is associated with this Don Siegel Film because of the Psychopathic, Sociopathic Criminals, Atypical Brutality for its Time, and the Unflinching Underbelly of a Heroin Syndicate.The Shadows of First Wave Noir were mostly Gone by the Turn of the Decade Replaced with Gleaming Daytime Milieus containing Freeway Infrastructures that Reflected Eisenhower Era Optimism as Backdrop. But if it was a Noir, it was a Road to Nowhere.This is another of Director Siegels Unforgettable Forays into Crime, Presenting Powerful Punctuating Murders committed by the Psychologically Disturbed but Pathologically Interesting and the Criminally Insane.Eli Wallach is the Totally Bonkers "Dancer", a completely Detached Personality that like an Animal can only Track One Thing at a Time. If You Cross His Path an Upset His Method of Attaining the Task at Hand, it's Curtains. He can be Restrained by His "Handler", if in Close Proximity, but Otherwise.For 1958, these Characterizations were not found on TV Shows and this kind of thing was Rare even for the Movies. "The Lineup" was based on a Long Running Series but it was brought to the Big Screen with a Bravado of Realism. There are many Set-Pieces that are Striking and Unforgettable, one Involving a Mother and Child in Peril that is Gut-Wrenching.One of Don Siegel's Best Efforts containing a Good Sterling Silliphant Script and Impressive Cinematography.

THE LINE-UP 1958 This 1958 Columbia Pictures release is a film version of the popular police series of the same name. The series ran between 1954 and 1960 and was a no nonsense police procedural along the lines of, DRAGNET.Don Siegel directs with Eli Wallach as a hit-man slash muscle type with Robert Keith as his handler. Richard Jaeckel plays the pair's local driver. There has been a foul up with a shipment of heroin being smuggled into San Francisco. Wallach and Keith have been brought from out of town to trace the "misplaced" product and retrieve said item.Wallach is a man who loves his job and is only kept in check by the older Keith. There is soon a string of bodies left littering the city as Wallach and Keith do their stuff.Called in at the start are San Francisco Detectives, Warner Anderson and Emile Meyer. They are of course one step behind the hit-man and his handler. Once the bodies and clues fall into place the chase picks up steam. Needless to say there are going to be more bodies along the way before Anderson and Meyer can close the matter.This is top flight noir which moves along at a nice pace. Director Siegel keeps things on an even keel as he goes back and forth between the crooks and the pursuing Detectives. Siegel really has a firm grip on what is needed for this kind of film. His work included, THE VERDICT, RIOT IN CELL BLOCK 11, THE BIG STEAL, PRIVATE HELL 36, CRIME IN THE STREETS, EDGE OF ETERNITY, THE GUN RUNNERS, INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, THE KILLERS (1964), THE SHOOTIST, CHARLIE VARRICK, TWO MULES FOR SISTER SARA and DIRTY HARRY.Handling the look of the picture is the talented cinematographer, Hal Mohr. The three time Oscar nominated, and two time winner, Mohr, worked on films such as, DESTRY RIDES AGAIN, PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, WOMAN ON THE RUN, THE WILD ONE and BABY FACE NELSON.This one is well worth the time invested to watch it. Wallach is fantastic as the off kilter in the head killer.

Far too often, car chase films made in San Francisco are laughable because the locations don't match up with reality--the magic of this film is its logic and locale accuracy; not only is this a stunning film noir that often takes place in broad daylight (without the usual attendant shadows and smoke), it is also a tour of so many legendary places that no longer exist, most notably a lengthy sequence shot at Sutro Baths, the magical Victorian amusement center that had a last gasp during the period this film was made--you can also see the dank interior of the pre-remodeled Steinhart Aquarium (also featured in Welles' Lady From Shanghai), and experience a steep drive up California Street, spotting an actual theatre marquee at the Fairmont Hotel--the Nob Hill cinema was still there instead of on Bush Street--and it's featuring An Affair To Remember! OK--Im a sucker for specific detailed shots of The City by The Bay--but when mixed with this strange tale of a jumpy psychopath, perfectly tuned by cold-blooded Eli Wallach in conjunction with his teacher, twitchy Robert Keith, as the frightening pair track down some smuggled heroin, the story tossing in in a vivid police procedural cogently assembled by Don Siegel, and ending on one of San Francisco's legendary freeways to nowhere--well, its a total winner! The downside, strictly optional, is the disc commentary--not because of affable, informative Eddie Muller, but because the jokey, better-than-thou author Elroy poses as Bad Boy Commentator rather than contribute meaningful dialogue; some may find him amusing, and like a kid who says nasty words to shock the girls, he might be; I just found him snarky and uninformative. I say watch the film, skip the commentary--The Lineup is an underrated classic noir of quality.