Looking for an old-school film noir to watch, I took a recommendation that writer Angelica Jade Bastien wrote about, The Dark Corner (1946) released by 20th Century Fox and directed by Henry Hathaway. What caught my attention was that it starred Lucille Ball, and this was Lucille before The Lucy Show, from what I understand when she was a B-movie actor (she replaced Ida Lupino who had to drop out due to scheduling). In any case, this feels like a classic black and white film noir set in New York City with darkly lit scenes of sidewalks or dimly lit interiors with light casting shadows across faces or illuminating profiles. With Ball playing the new secretary to a private eye Bradford Galt (Mark Stevens), they are established as having a warm, flirty partnership that becomes a relationship. However, Galt is haunted by a shadowy past from his time as a P.I. in San Francisco and is currently tailed by a white suited bruiser (William Bendix). Without spoiling the twists and turns, the criminal plot involves an old associate, a suave blackmailer and ladies’ man, Tony Jardine (Kurt Kreuger), and involves members of high society, an art gallery owner (Clifton Webb) and his much younger wife (Cathy Downs). What I came to love about the movie was the relationship between the secretary and the private eye who is a tough guy, yet lacks confidence (Steven as an actor establishes himself as tough but doesn’t quite measure up to a Bogart or a Mitchum, which works for the role) and he can’t get over his past, often falling apart in front of the game, interested Lucille Ball who keeps picking him back up and encouraging him to not give up. Ball has such a strong presence, that it’s a shame she’s not the lead character, but there is more of a Thin Man sleuth duo vibe than the solo detective wins-it-all deal. There are several copies on YouTube including a decent HD version. Recommended.
VHS Tracking 