The Dark Corner (1946)

"I can be framed easier than 'Whistler's Mother'.", 16 February 2006

The Dark Corner is the story of a P.I. framed for the murder of his ex-partner. Not only does he appear to have had the opportunity to commit the crime, he also has a very good motive. The partner was responsible for the P.I.'s two-year stay in prison. But who's the real murderer? With the help of his plucky girlfriend, the P.I. has to get to the bottom of this case before the police find the dead body and send him back to prison.

I've seen several wonderful noirs lately that have become "new" favorites, but I can't include The Dark Corner on this list. It's good, but it's just not great. Much of the blame has to be put on the P.I. as played by Mark Stevens. He is one of the most un-charismatic characters of this type I've seen. For the movie to work, you have to care about his plight and I just couldn't feel anything for him. If it weren't for his secretary/girlfriend, I doubt he would have ever been able to clear himself. He's just doesn't seem that bright or ambitious enough to pull it off on his own. I'm not that familiar with him, but if this is the way Stevens played characters in his other films, it's no wonder he never became a big star.

The rest of the cast is generally good with a real standout performance from Lucille Ball (yes, the same Lucy who would go on to eat chocolate off a conveyor belt and stomp grapes with her bare feet). I had no idea Lucy could "play it straight". She's wonderful. I'll have to track down some of her other early film roles. Other cast members include William Bendix as a big bruising heavy and Clifton Webb basically reprising his role from Laura. But as good as each of these actors are, they never felt like more than actors. The roles were too stereotypical to be as believable as I would have preferred.

One of the highlights for me is the feel and look of The Dark Corner. The film has a dark, gritty feel to it that adds to the characters' desperation. Lighting and cinematography are more than adequate. Director Henry Hathaway has given The Dark Corner a mood and atmosphere second to none. And, as a bonus, The Dark Corner includes some wonderful on-location shots of New York City in the 40s. Forget about studio sets when you can film in the real thing.

6/10