Where The Sidewalk Ends (1950) – A police detective takes out his anger on the criminals he arrests, until one night he hits the wrong guy. With a death now on his hands, Mark Dixon (Dana Andrews) has to find his out of his old life into a possible future of happiness.
Directed by Otto Preminger Starring – Dana Andews, Gene Tierney, Karl Malden
This is another film noir (see note below on film noir) that I had never heard of before. I will confess that I may have tagged this movie thinking of the Shel Silverstein book of the same name. In that case, call this a happy accident.
Dana Andrews and Gene Tierney are two actors who were once big stars, that many movie fans today may not know. Andrews was one of the biggest stars of the 1940s but would begin a slide into the second tier around the time of this movie as he battled alcoholism. He had a long career doing just this kind of role. Strong, silent and deep. Tierney had a shorter career as she struggled with mental illness. Considered one of the great beauties of her time, Tierney got an Oscar nomination for the movie “Leave Her To Heaven“. Both had short but brilliant spans in their careers and deserve to be better remembered than they are.
This was their second movie together, following 1944’s “Laura” (which was also directed by Otto Preminger). I think it also suffers in comparison. The basic stories are very similar. The earlier movie is considered one of the great mystery movies of all time. As solid as “Where the Sidewalk Ends” is, it just can’t compete at that level. Andrew’s Mark Dixon is driven by the memory of his thief father to a one man crusade against crime. It will cost him a great deal during the course of the movie. What begins to deflect him is the beautiful Morgan Taylor (Tierney), whom he meets during a murder investigation. The movie has a nice tempo to it, there’s chemistry between Tierney and Andrew’s characters and Preminger does a nice job with the direction. If there’s a weakness it’s in the script. Nothing particularly novel here. Even in that time it wouldn’t have broken much new territory. Even with that caveat, this is still a very good movie.
So what is film noir? That’s a very good question, that continues to be discussed by movie historians and critics. Some consider it a genre, others a style, others merely a “mood”. Most commonly they are movies that involve detectives and strong sexual undertones. The movies tend to have a cynical view of life and a dark visual aesthetic. But any of those rules can be broken. Much like Supreme Court Justice Stewart Potter’s famous quote about pornography in 1964 (Jacobellis vs Ohio), “I know it when I see it”. With no clear definition of what is “film noir”, you will have to make your own decisions about what it is.
Made before the days of rating, this would be a solid PG today.
Why I Liked It – The noir vibe is excellent here for me. Love Andrew’s angry man who is pulled into a tortured self examination by a beautiful woman.
Why You Will Like It – Great cast takes a solid but unremarkable script and under the direction of a great director create something that will hold your attention to the very end.
Rating – **** Recommended
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