Tonight I watched two more Noirs from Alpha Video. I'm telling ya, if you're willing to overlook the picture quality, Alpha's got a lot of hard-boiled flicks from the '40s that you may not have heard of, and many of them are damn good. I was able to watch a double feature because of the short running times. The first one was called "C-Man"(1949). Dean Jagger stars as a United States Customs Agent. His friend and fellow agent "Steve" has been murdered while on assignment in France, chasing some jewel thieves. Jagger is sent to Paris to investigate. Before leaving, he is briefed on the case. A wealthy woman in New York has filed an insurance claim against her stolen necklace, worth $325,000 bucks - a fortune in 1949. It's whereabouts are unknown, but the suspect is still in Paris. He may have killed Steve, the other Customs agent, and if he doesn't have the necklace, he probably knows who does. He is Matty Royal (played by an actor named Rene Paul), the head of a group of international smugglers. He looks to be untouchable, because - like Trump - he has his underlings do all his dirty work.
Before Agent Jagger departs for Paris, he meets a nice French lady at a New York pier close to the airport. She seems a bit too friendly, so Jagger plays along, suspecting she is part of the smuggling ring. He will come to find out that she's not one of the thieves, but a dupe for them. Unbeknownst to her, she is about to become their mule. I won't reveal any more of the plot, which gets a little confusing at times, but not so much that you're left in the dust. This is the kind of late-40s New York Noir that Tarantino would love, full of Hard Guys and Tough Dames. Dean Jagger plays his Customs Agent as the kind of Smooth Operator the chicks fall for the moment he walks in the room. This aspect is a difficult sell, because Jagger's image is too soft. He looks like a cross between Jack Lemmon and Kevin Spacey, and doesn't have the requisite swagger. But he's otherwise good, and he takes his beatings (of which there are several) like a champ. He'll do anything to avenge Steve (his agency pal) and get that necklace back. Maybe in the bargain, he'll get the girl too. Look for John Carradine in a supporting role as an alcoholic doctor, not a big stretch for him, lol. ///
The second movie was called "Unforgotten Crime" (1942), which had the distinction of having one of the shortest running times of any film I've seen, only 53 minutes. I found it and "C-Man" at West Valley Libe, which I've been frequenting because of their wide selection of movies I've never seen.
"Unforgotten Crime" was originally titled "The Affairs of Jimmy Valentine". In it's initial form, for release in theaters, it ran 72 minutes, but apparently the rights to the film were sold as part of an early "package deal" for TV stations, and because of this it was edited down to 53 minutes to fill a one hour time slot (the other seven minutes were for commercials, naturally). Nineteen minutes were cut, which amounts to over 1/4 the movie, so I asked myself "can I count this"? Meaning, does it count as an Actual Movie? I'm a big "lists" and "statistics" guy. Numbers are a big deal for me. In the last couple years I've discovered one hour Westerns, which I've come to love, in part because of their brevity. My life being what it is, I need Short Movies much of the time to fulfill my viewing requirements, and I consider a movie to be short if it is under 80 minutes in length. With the hour long Westerns, I had no problem counting them as "real" movies because they were created that way, to be released in theatres as part of a double feature. I guess I can count "Unforgotten Crime" because the 53 minute version is the only one that still exists. According to IMDB, all of the 72 minute theatre prints have been lost, only the TV version remains, so we're calling it a Real Movie because of that factor; it's the only version you can see.
Dennis O'Keefe stars as radio host Mike Jason. To boost ratings, his station is offering a $10,000 dollar reward to anyone who can locate the world-renowned safe cracker Jimmy Valentine, whose last known address was the state penitentiary. After making parole, Valentine disappeared. A tip comes in from a hoodlum named Mousey, the kind of guy you'd call a "chiseler" or a "squealer". Mousey is looking for Valentine, too, but for other reasons (he wants to kill him). Mousey's tip leads O'Keefe and his assistant to a small town that you can think of as Anywheresville, U.S.A. O'Keefe heads directly to the offices of the local newspaper, to see if anyone knows Valentine. There, he meets the cute daughter of the publisher (Ruth Terry, a gem). She's a spark plug who wants in on the search. She's 19 and won't take no for an answer. O'Keefe is trying to win the contest himself, to keep the money in the hands of the radio station, and doesn't want Miss Terry trampling his efforts. Now she thinks she's his girlfriend, much to the chagrin of his female assistant.
It seems like the townspeople are hiding something. Everyone denies knowing Valentine, but all the clues suggest he lives there. Could he be hiding under an assumed name? Has he resumed his life of crime? The answers might be surprising. The newspaper publisher is trying to help in any way he can, even though his advertisers are threatening to pull out if he continues. He is also the father of Ruth Terry, and he can't say no to her either.
"Unforgotten Crime" moves at one hundred miles per hour. I'm guessing that a good portion of the set-up was lost in the 19 minutes that were cut, but what we don't know won't hurt us here, because whoever cobbled together the short version did a good job of keeping the plot intact. It's a Noir with a light heart, in contrast to our first feature - the gritty and merciless "C-Man". Though that would ostensibly be considered the better film, and I'll bet Scorcese is a fan, I actually preferred "Unforgotten Crime". A big reason is the presence of Ruth Terry. We need more movies with her, so I'll be on the lookout.
So there you have it! Two good films from Alpha. Both get Two Thumbs, and I'm gonna head to West Valley right now to look for more. Remember, short movies rule! (you can watch two in one night, or you can watch one and an episode of "Rawhide", or you can watch one and read a book, or you can watch one and two episodes of "Tales From The Darkside". The possibilities are endless).... :):)
See you tonight at the Usual Time.
Tons of love! xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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