Dark Passage (1947)

Directed by Delmer Daves. Starring Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Bruce Bennett, Agnes Moorehead, Clifton Young, Douglas Kennedy, Rory Mallinson, Tom D’Andrea, Houseley Stevenson.

Here’s a daring move for a film made during the Golden Age of Hollywood—cast arguably the biggest star in town as the lead, and then keep his face unseen or obscured until over an hour into the picture! Bogart plays a San Quentin fugitive, convicted of killing his wife, who undergoes a surgical operation to change his appearance, then sets out to find the true culprit while dodging those that are looking for him. Reasonably captivating psychological thriller, though short on logic or credibility; Sidney Hickox’s extended subjective POV camerawork in the first act seems a tired gimmick at length, though the suitably noir-ish atmosphere and flavorful locations oil those hinges nicely. The romance with Bacall (who voluntarily helps the wanted stranger) is as preposterous as anything else, but the two stars always paired well, so why carp? Thorny pro Moorehead steals most of her scenes. A critical death late in the film is so abrupt and clumsily-staged that even though it was accidental, it seemed closer to hysterical suicide! Scripted by the director from David Goodis’ same-named novel.

72/100