I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

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

Playing the lead is unfamiliar territory for Lee J Cobb but a welcome change of pace in a role usually reserved for a handsomer marquee player. Love is in the air for the usually abrasive haranguer but in this case it leads to his undoing.Wealthy Lois Frazier (Jane Wyatt) is in the midst of an acrimonious divorce with her husband Howard. When she finds a receipt for a 38 she immediately suspects her hubby might want her dead as well. Fortunately for her she's involved with police lieutenant Cullen (Lee J Cobb) who can smooth things over. When the husband returns she drills him and Cullen clumsily tries to cover the murder up. His green detective brother (John Dall) psyched in his first week on the job begins to piece things together while Cullen does his best to distract him from the trail. But he may have taught his brother too well.Cobb acquits himself well in a part that calls for softness and not the generic intolerance and rage he specializes in. He has the rumpled veteran dick down pat but in his clinches with Frazier a realistic every-man blinded by beauty. As the supercilious Frazier, Wyman overreaches but for those of us brought up in the 50s it can be quite jarring to watch Father Know's Best wife making out with Johnny Friendly.A B-picture Double Indemnity it lacks the classic's dialogue but director Felix Feist does have top shelf cinematographer Roger Harlan ( Gun Crazy) along for the ride who delivers at least two scenes ( an interrogation and an abandoned factory scene near the Golden Gate) that any noir or crime drama would be proud to inject into their mise en scene.

Women referred to as "dames", people getting trapped in convoluted plots, men with weaknesses, detectives in trench coats and smoking all around - this movie has most charms you'd expect from a noir movie.The plot was generally enjoyable, with some fun twists along the way. The scene where the murder takes place (no spoilers) was really good, as it built up tension, which got released through the character's actions. My main objection to the story, is Cobb's reaction to this afterwords (which sets it all off) does not really make much sense. Cobb's character is at times quite smart, but at other times inept at what he is doing. There's a lack of consistency to him that makes the entire story a bit unbelievable.Having only seen Cobb in 12 Angry Men, it's interesting to see his performance here. He is still good, but you expect him to burst into rage at any time (which he doesn't).

I've heard film historians describe film noir as being about a man destroying himself because of sex. That certainly is the case here where police lieutenant Lee J. Cobb witnesses the society girl (Jane Wyatt) he's in love with frantically kill her husband whom she believes is about to try and kill her. Rather than arrest her, he aids and abets her, which creates suspicion with his younger cop brother (John Dall). Younger brother quickly begins to suspect the truth, and in trying to cover up his protection of Wyatt, Cobb inadvertently destroys himself in the process.It is entirely obvious what is going to transpire here, but it is so much fun watching all the pieces fall into place. It is also interesting to see "Father Knows Best" mother Jane Wyatt play a not-so-nice character, a far cry from the majority of the film heroines she played, dating back to the original "Lost Horizon". Cobb certainly wins sympathy for what he does to protect the woman he loves (who most certainly would end up betraying him if she had the chance) and his performance is excellent. This is one of those little "sleeper" films that deserves re-discovering for a crafty screenplay and the little details that are sometimes looked over yet end up being pivotal when included. Here, that comes with each and every character, even the minor ones, including Dall's fiancée, Lisa Howard, an airport security guard, and several witnesses.

As B movies go this was three-fourths of a good movie, done in by its confusing cop-out ending. To be honest, I still don't completely understand the denouement as it appears on my DVD. Dependable Lee J. Cobb gives it his best, just a few years before "On The Waterfront".On the other hand, Jane Wyatt does not, and gives a comatose performance she probably wished she could have back. The big surprise was John Dall, who as Cobb's younger brother/detective is a breath of fresh air. Makes you wonder why he didn't become a bigger star.I tried very hard to like this picture as it was a novel idea and it was working for a while. Sometimes filmmakers have a good idea but can't figure out how to end it (see "Harvey"). So disappointed was I that I dropped my rating to its present 6.