Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema XVIII (Blu-ray)

This collection features three film noir classics. City of Shadows (1955) – Their Business Was “Legitimate”—Because the Law Couldn’t Touch Them! Iconic screen tough Victor McLaglen (The Informer, Klondike Annie) is Big Tim Channing, a small-time racketeer who makes a living supplying old, out-of-date slot machines to businesses. He strikes up a prosperous partnership with newsboy Dan Mason when the precocious kid shows him how to corner the slot-machine racket and, at the same time, put his crooked competitors out of the running. But when Dan grows up and graduates from law school, it thrusts old Tim into a compromising position. From William Witney, director of the legendary serials Daredevils of the Red Circle and Adventures of Captain Marvel, and co-starring John Baer (We’re No Angels), Kathleen Crowley (Curse of the Undead) and Anthony Caruso (Never Steal Anything Small). Crashout (1955) – It Blasts the Screen with Violence! Six ruthless convicts break out of prison and frantically try to avoid an extensive manhunt. Arthur Kennedy (Bright Victory) co-stars with a legendary lineup of Hollywood heavies: William Bendix (The Web), Luther Adler (D.O.A.), William Talman (Big House, U.S.A.), Gene Evans (Fixed Bayonets!) and Marshall Thompson (It! The Terror from Beyond Space). Once the coast is clear, they set out on a long and dangerous journey by foot, train and car to retrieve bank loot. After barely surviving two deadly incidents, the gang seeks refuge in a farmhouse as the action reaches a fever pitch. Ironically, the men start to realize that it’s not the law that they need to worry about. A hardboiled, edge-of-your-seat noir produced by Ida Lupino’s Filmakers Releasing Organization for director Lewis R. Foster (Those Redheads from Seattle). Cinematography by the masterly Russell Metty (Touch of Evil). Finger Man (1955) – I Put the Finger on Public Enemy Number One! Frank Lovejoy (The Hitch-Hiker, House of Wax) stars as ex-con Casey Martin, who is caught red-handed while heisting a truck shipment. When he discovers that his sister has now become a desperate drug addict after working for gruff bootlegger Dutch Becker (Forrest Tucker, Sands of Iwo Jima), Martin accepts the deal that the T-men offer him and goes to work undercover to nail Dutch and his gang. Peggy Castle (99 River Street) plays Gladys Baker, the gangster’s associate who falls for the finger man. Timothy Carey (The Killing) plays Lou Terpe, the finger man’s former cellmate and a particularly sadistic member of Dutch’s crew. A crime-busting noir yarn spun by director Harold D. Schuster (Loophole).