Night and the City (1950)

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Night and the City (1950) – J. Dassin

With Dassin’s talent for film noir to aid him, this is really Richard Widmark’s show.  His nervous energy drives the frantic pace of the film and gives even the quieter moments a tense desperation.  He’s a hustler, trying to make a name for himself by any means possible, clearly because he’s been kicked around so long and is the laughingstock of the London underworld.  In reality, Widmark is working for (one of my faves) Francis L. Sullivan as a “tout” for his sleazy club, the Silver Fox but he does happen upon one plausible scheme – to promote wrestling backed by a famous retired Greek champion.  However, it probably isn’t such a good idea that said champion is really the father of the current wrestling promoter (a mobster played by Herbert Lom) and starting this new venture equates to dirty double-crossing and worse.  So, this is a tale of doom and Widmark’s bad decisions and just plain bad luck makes him an archetypal noir loser, done up in low-key lighting on gritty London streets.