Appointment With a Shadow

A boozehound reporter gets one last shot at a scoop that will put his career back on track… if he can stay sober long enough to get the story.  I figured that most of this film would consist of the protagonist’s struggle with alcoholism, a psychological issues drama.  But that’s really only the first half (and it’s done nicely, if a tad clichéd).  Then it takes a surprising turn into a more exciting, noir-ish tale.  In the interest of full disclosure, I should mention that I only watched about 60% of the film.  Oh, I sat through the whole thing (at a tight 71 minutes).  But it’s a CinemaScope movie that I had to watch in a pan n’ scan version.  The quality was quite murky, too, so I can’t comment much on the visual aspects.  What I saw looked all right but could have used more flair… but again, I’m not in a position to judge fairly.

The cast is mostly solid.  George Nader has a fitting sad sack quality to him, a bit of a Barry Sullivan vibe.  He may be recognized by some as the lead in the schlock classic Robot Monster (he was also apparently Rock Hudson’s lover).  Joanna Moore (in her first screen role) is decent as his long-suffering girlfriend, and the reliable Brian Keith has a good turn as her brother, the skeptical cop.  I would have preferred some more memorable villains.  Frank DeKova does a rather generic gangster and Virginia Field makes for a pretty shabby moll.  That shabbiness could have worked to her advantage, but she doesn’t leverage it much.

This is the second movie in a row with a veteran actor at the reins.  I’ve seen a few of Richard Carlson’s performances (All I Desire, Try and Get Me, Behind Locked Doors) but he’s never left a strong impression.  As a director, he seems quite capable, and this is a very respectable effort.  Rating: Good

IMDb