Bad Cop Noir: Where the Sidewalk Ends

Where the Sidewalk Ends is an extremely well plotted, well acted, and well produced movie that only loses its impact when a studio ending is imposed on what otherwise would be the top of the noir heap.

Directed by Otto Preminger and scripted from a story by Frank Rosenberg by prolific screenwriter Ben Hecht (Scarface). Otto Preminger is noted for smooth camera moves and fewer cuts while he had one of the best cinematographers in Joseph LaShelle, doing the camera and lighting work.

Film noir comes in several flavors - this one serves up the rogue cop who uses the same methods as the thugs he is up against, then lies about it.

The protagonist is bent cop Mark Dixon (Dana Andrews), one of the natural film noir actors, similar to the detective he played in Laura, but older and more cynical. Dixon is hunting for the local big fish Scalise played by Gary Merrill whose biggest role was opposite Bette Davis in All About Eve. Scalise is really a wiseacre and you want to help Dixon put him away, even though he's trying to frame him. Preminger with his camera moves helps you get on the side of Dixon, even when he is doing wrong.

The movie opens with detective Dana Andrews receiving a reprimand and demotion from the inspector for multiple counts of brutality. A few minutes later he is patrolling and is called to the scene of a murder. When they inspect the scene, he finds Scalise, his thugs, and a dead body. Following a lead to another thug's room, Andrews gets into a tussle and accidentally kills the suspect with a single punch.

This is where the story makes the turn into noir: instead of calling in and telling them the truth, and possibly taking another reprimand, he hides the body, and then goes through an elaborate deception to throw it in the river. When the police arrive on the scene of the apartment following another clue, they arrest the father of lovely Gene Tierney, who was used as a decoy to draw players into the illegal crap game where the killing took place. The father is played by Tom Tully, who was heard to say he was going to beat up the victim, who was also Tierney's ex-husband. Andrews must hear his supervisor tell the exact moves he made, except with Tully as the perp. There is even a witness who corroborates the cop's theory.

All of this takes place within the first 15 -20 minutes of the film and the rest plays out showing Andrews trying to take down Merrill while staying ahead of the investigation whose target is himself.

There are great performances all around, but Dana Andrews really carries the picture with a jaded cynical air that is very believable. Gary Merrill is supported by several familiar thugs including Neville Brand and Craig Stevens (Peter Gunn). Gene Tierney is as lovely as she is in Laura but her presence here seems a little superfluous. I think Preminger may have been infatuated with her like Hitchcock was with his blonds. Oleg Cassini appears as a dress designer who uses Gene Tierney as a model. They were in fact married at the time.

The Ben Hecht script is full of colorful phrases and will help you expand your gangster slang vocabulary. There is another theme where Andrews is afraid of becoming what his father was - a hoodlum. This has been played out in several other movies, like Detective Story and Deep Cover - both brilliant forays into crime drama.

The movie plays out brilliantly until the last minute or two and then tacks on a repentant ending, which was no doubt imposed by the studio. Because the movie is otherwise such a great thriller, I have to give it the full five stars.

The Fox DVD is newly released and the 90 minute video looks great in black and white 1.33:1 theatrical format. There is an interesting commentary by film noir historian Eddie Muller included as an extra.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening