He Walked By Night (1948)

[David]

Written by Dave

Darker and chillier than a storm drain at midnight, this expertly-crafted thriller from directors Alfred Werker and Anthony Mann; screenwriters John Higgins and Crane Wilbur; and cinematographic master John Alton represents one of the strongest semi-documentary/police procedural noirs - a sub-sub-genre that roughly spanned from 1945's 'The House on 92nd Street' to 1950's 'Union Station' - with 'Walked' arguably being the most sober and nihilistic.

The film's no-frills parallel narrative is divided between hunters and hunted - the L.A.P.D. and a coolly calculating electronics expert/cop killer, respectively. Sought by authorities for the point blank murder of an off-duty officer who had stopped him for questioning, Roy Martin (Richard Basehart) easily makes noir's most malevolent psycho-loners top ten. Fresh from a successful stint on Broadway, Basehart deftly inhabited his darkly charismatic sociopath in a performance that could've very easily slipped into an unintentionally funny stereotype - but the actor keeps it subtle, keeps it real - and single-handedly elevates the film during his self-administered bullet-extraction scene with acting that's nothing less than brilliant.




Tracking Martin on his decidedly cold trail are L.A.P.D.'s finest (Scott 'Canon City' Brady, Roy 'Force of Evil' Roberts, and a skinny Jack Webb - who clearly used 'Walked' as an influence on his later 'Dragnet') who use proto-'C.S.I.' tactics to help narrow their search and expedite the collision course they and the killer are on. With the guidance of technical adviser and actual L.A. cop Marty Wynn, the filmmakers blend dry, clinical police procedure with near-expressionistic cinematography - Alton's chiaroscuro as impressive as it's ever been. The master's low-key lighting, jagged diagonal lines, and claustrophobic compositions a dazzling eye-candy backdrop for the character's deadly game of cat-and-mouse. Though somewhat weakened by razor-thin characterizations, the film's strengths (including a fascinating, uneasy sympathy drawn for the antagonist) are highly rewarding - and it's edge-of-the-seat chase finale in a nearly pitch-black L.A. sewer system a noir tour de force.

[MartinTeller]

(review from January 17, 2007)

A decent detective thriller gets elevated by its superb sewer chase ending (that actually predates The Third Man). This film was the inspiration for "Dragnet", which shows in the narration and the attention to police work. It's unusual how much it focuses on the police, actually, and it works both for and against the movie. Some of the stuff isn't that interesting (although perhaps it might have been to a 1948 audience), on the other hand the fact that there's no half-assed attempt to explain the killer's psychology is kind of refreshing. The highlight is without a doubt the sewer scene, the low point is the corny voice-over. Rating: 8


(review from February 23, 2010)

The inspiration for "Dragnet" and pretty much a textbook definition of police procedural. Far from a perfect noir, it leaves a lot to be desired, but also has a lot going for it. The soundtrack is almost entirely devoid of music, which often makes it feel very flat. Some scenes definitely could have used some punching up with score. On the other hand, it makes the music that is there that much more effective. The film lacks the moral ambiguity of the best noir, but nails the lighting perfectly. Almost all the scenes of cops hanging around the station doing police work are dull (as are most of the cop actors), and there are a number of them. But everything else is very good. The highlight is obviously the pre-Third Man sewer chase, but there's a lot of other good stuff, too. Rating: 8