Review of 99 River Street (1953) by Christopher B — 21 Mar 2016
John Payne plays a washed-up boxer driving a cab who catches his wannabe gold-digger wife with another guy. This sets the wheels in motion and the screws gradually tighten on Payne in true noir style. Turns out the other guy is a diamond thief who has trouble with his fence and the fence's tough guy assistant (played by noir stalwart Jack Lambert) over Payne's wife's involvement in the heist.
When she turns up dead, the cops come looking for Payne. After having reality literally ripped away from him in one crazy scene, he has to use his knuckles to fight his way to the truth. Director Phil Karlson knows his noir sets (see also Dark Alibi, Kansas City Confidential, or The Phenix City Story) and he lays them all out for us here (late night drug store, boxing ring, all-night café, waterfront, expensive upper class apartment, neon lit or darkened streets of New York, and unusually the Broadway footlights).
Perhaps there isn't as much a sense of dread as in other 1950s noirs and perhaps Payne is a little too wooden in the lead but for solid genre fare, look no further.
This review of 99 River Street (1953) was written by Christopher B on 21 Mar 2016.
99 River Street has generally received positive reviews.
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