Harrison's Reports (1950)

February 4, 1950 HARRISON'S REPORTS 19 "The Tattooed Stranger" with John Miles and Patricia White (RKO, no release date set; time, 64 min.) An interesting program murder mystery melodrama. It has all the excitement and suspense one generally associates with pictures of this type and, in addition, in enhanced by a documentary flavor by reason of the fact that all the action was shot against actual New York City backgrounds. The most absorbing part of the story has to do with the depiction of the crime detection methods employed by the police to track down the murderer. The players mean little at the box-office, but their performances are adequate. A love interest is worked into the plot, but it is of minor importance: Assigned to investigate the murder of a woman found in a stolen car, police lieutenant Walter Kinsella and detective John Miles, his youthful aide, have as their only clues to her identity a marine corps emblem tattooed on her forearm, and broken arches and purple ink marks on her thumb, indicating that she had been a waitress. Miles, who had found several blades of grass in the murder car, learns from Patricia White, a pretty botanist, that the grass is of a similar type that had been grown in the Bronx. Doggedly pursuing the different clues, the two detectives, after visits to many restaurants and tattooing establishments, learns not only the woman's identity but also the name of a merchant marine sailor who had been her sweetheart, and who had supposedly been killed in action. Further investigation discloses that she had been a bigamist, and that she had been defrauding the Government of the insurance checks of several dead service men who had married her. The murder of a tattoo artist who had given the detectives information leads them to the discovery that the supposedly dead sailor sweetheart is very much alive, and that he had committed the murders to collect the insurance checks himself. Through clever detective work, and with the aid of Patricia, Miles tracks the killer to a tombstone cutting works in the Bronx, where he gets his man after an exciting battle. It was produced by Jay Bonafield and directed by Edward J. Montagne from an original screen play by Phil Reisman, Jr. Unobjectionable morally. "Outside the Wall" with Richard Basehart, Marilyn Maxwell and Signe Hasso (Universal'lnt'l, March; time, 80 min.) A pretty good crook melodrama. The fact that the story revolves around a $1,000,000 armored car robbery gives it a timely angle and good exploitation possibilities because of the recent $1,500,000 Brink holdup in Boston. Although the plot is inclined to run wild at times and some of the situations are incredible, these shortcomings are not serious enough to lessen the interest of those who enjoy pictures of this type. The first half, which concerns itself mainly with the hero's reaction to the outside world after a prison stretch of fifteen years, is slow but interesting. It picks up speed and excitement in the second half, where he becomes involved with the armored car robber and a group of mobsters seeking the whereabouts of the stolen money. The direction and acting are good, and the actual prison and Philadelphia backgrounds help to make some of the action realistic :— After fifteen years in prison for the accidental killing of a guard in reform school, Richard Basehart, now thirty, is released. The hustle and bustle of the outside world bewilders him, and to find peace he obtains employment as a laboratory assistant at a private sanitorium in the country. Here he meets nurses Dorothy Hart and Marilyn Maxwell. He is attracted to Marilyn, but she offers him little encouragement, frankly admitting that she is interested only in wealthy sweethearts. When John Hoyt, a former cell-mate of Basehart's, comes to the sanitorium as a tuberculosis patient, Basehart recognizes him as the thug the police were seeking for a $1,000,000 armored car holdup. Hoyt asks Basehart to deliver "hush money" to Signe Hasso, his ex-wife, and offers to pay him handsomely for his trouble. Basehart, with Marilyn on his mind, agrees. Signe, secretly working with a group of mobsters who wanted the money stolen by Hoyt, suspects that Basehart had been Hoyt's unidentified accomplice in the holdup. She arranges with the gangsters to capture him and give him the third degree in a mountain hideout. But Basehart escapes and makes his way to the sanitorium. He is followed by the gangsters, who bribe Marilyn and kidnap Hoyt from his room. Learning what had happened, Basehart dismisses Marilyn from his life and takes Dorothy into his confidence. He finds in Hoyt's room a baggage check for the loot, gives it to Dorothy, and instructs her to deliver it to the police. He then heads for the mountain hideaway to rescue Hoyt. There, he is nabbed by the gangsters who has succeeded also in intercepting Dorothy. Bluffing his way, Basehart, for a cut, agrees to accompany one of the gangsters to claim the trunk with the loot. The gangsters prepare to kill him and Dorothy when he returns with the money, but the police, notified beforehand by Basehart, converge on the scene and arrest the criminals. Cleared by the dying Hoyt of complicity in the holdup, Basehart embraces Dorothy. It was produced by Aaron Rosenberg and directed by Crane Wilbur from his own screen play, based on a story by Henry Edward Helseth. Adult fare. "The Third Man" with Joseph Cotten, Valli, Orson Welles and Trevor Howard (Selznic^ ReJ. Org., Feb.; time, 104 min.) A ^superb thriller! Carol Reed, whose "Odd Man Out" and "The Fallen Idol" have distinguished him as one of the foremost motion picture producer-directors, can take a deserving bow for the brilliant job he had done on "The Third Man." It is a superior melodrama in every sense of the word, one that will be appreciated by all types of audiences. Exhibitors who are apathetic about British-made pictures needn't worry about this one because of the American stars who head the cast. As a matter of fact, it should prove to be one of the biggest box-office pictures of the year because of the excellent word-of-mouth praise that it is sure to receive. The writing, direction, acting, lighting, camera work and background music are excellent. Set in post-war Vienna, where most of the action was shot on location, the story follows the bizarre experiences of Joseph Cotten, an American author, who comes to Vienna to visit his friend, Orson Welles, only to learn that he had been killed in a street accident. Cotten's curiosity is aroused by conflicting stories about how his friend had died, and he becomes even more upset when informed by Trevor Howard, head of the British military police, that Welles had been a worthless fellow, a penicillin racketeer whose activities had either killed or mentally maimed helpless children. He refuses to believe that his friend had been corrupt and, suspecting that he had been murdered, starts an investigation of his own, despite Howard's warning that he would get into trouble. He cultivates the friendship of Valli, a showgirl who had been in love with Welles, and through her learns that three men had carried Welles to the curb after he had been struck down. He meets two of the men but neither seems able or willing to identify the third man. After a series of events in which his life is endangered, Cotten discovers that Welles is alive, and that he had permitted another man to be buried under his name. He becomes convinced that Welles is no good and, despite Valli's pleas, agrees to help Howard capture him. Welles, led into a trap by Cotten, is finally killed after a hectic chase through the city's massive sewer system. A brief synopsis cannot do justice to the many fascinating and exciting twists of the suspenseful story, the finely drawn characterizations, the subtle humor, and the extremely effective pictorial drama of the war-torn Vienna backgrounds. Particularly noteworthy is the background music played by a single zither, a new innovation that must be heard to be appreciated, for it interprets the action and sets the mood for the different scenes. The pursuit of Welles through the network of sewers is one of the most thrilling chase sequences ever filmed. All in all, it is a thoroughly satisfying motion picture. Graham Greene wrote the story and the screen play. The picture is a David O. Selznick and Sir Alexander Korda presentation. Morally, there are no objectionable situations, but the film seems best suited tor mature audiences.