This is an unusual film noir as it reverses the usual formula of the genre.
Lucia Harper (Joan Bennett) visits low-life LA criminal Darby (Shepperd Strudwick) to stop him seeing her seventeen-year-old daughter Bea (Geraldine Brooks). Darby agrees for a price but Lucia refuses to pay him so he manipulates Bea to believe her mother is lying. When Bea discovers the truth she hits him and unbeknownst to her, he staggers, falls from a height and dies. Lucia discovers the body and hides it in a swamp but when a murder investigation begins she finds herself being blackmailed by smooth-talking criminal Donnelly (James Mason) at the request of his boss, loan shark Nagel (Roy Roberts).
In most film noirs, everyone is shady as hell but with the exception of Nagel no one here is truly awful. Lucia's actions are entirely an attempt to protect her daughter. I love when Donnelly says that Bea is lucky to have a mother like Lucia and Lucia replies "everyone has a mother like me. You probably had one, too." This is a woman who has always been law-abiding and wants to avoid the murky criminal world other characters here populate but is willing to steep to their depths if it means Bea is safe.
It initially feels like Donnelly is going to be a proper tricksy antagonist who manipulates Lucia into getting money but it gradually becomes clear that he's a decent bloke. He understands what she is doing and doesn't want any harm to come to her- there's even a sense he has romantic feelings towards her. It's a real reversal from most film noirs where the good guy does bad things to meet his goals where as Donnelly is a bad guy who does good things.
Director Max Ophüls used what is known as the 'baroque' film style in his movies. The idea of this is that throughout the movie major plot points occur when characters are doing day-to-day things like talking on the phone or driving the car. This deliberately creates a contrast between the character's ease of movement and the tension within the dialogue. That's also amplified here by Lucia remaining stoic and refusing to get too emotional in front of Donnelly. It's a style that works well for this film, effectively creating tension whilst also bringing the shadiness of the genre closer to the reality of home.
An unusual film noir which occupies the same shady world but views it from a completely different angle to normal.
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