The Dark Past (1948)
Genre: Filmnoir / Crime
Duration: 75 minuten
Country:
United States
Directed by: Rudolph Maté
Stars: William Holden, Nina Foch and Lee J. Cobb
IMDb score:
6,3 (2.490)
Releasedate: 22 December 1948
This movie is not available on US streaming services.
The Dark Past plot
"SENSATIONAL SUSPENSE DRAMA!"
Al Walker is a deranged killer who escapes from prison with his girlfriend Betty. His gang catches him and they together raid the remote home of psychiatrist Andrew Collins. As they wait for their getaway car, Collins penetrates deeper and deeper into Walker's psychotic brain.
Actors and actresses
Al Walker
Betty
Dr. Andrew Collins
Laura Stevens
Owen Talbot
Ruth Collins
Mike
Prof. Fred Linder
Frank Stevens
Pete
Reviews & comments
mrklm
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- 11629 messages
- 10041 votes
Although William Holden here plays Al Walker, a murderer who holds a family hostage after his breakout, this is not a crime film but a psychological drama. This remake of 'Blind Alley' (1939), based on the play of the same name, centers on the efforts of police psychiatrist Andrew Collins [Lee J Cobb] to understand and even help the man who has taken him hostage. to come from a terrible nightmare. So get ready for a nicely done dream sequence, lots of psychological talk and a Freudian denouement. Of course there is some room for tension and Holden and Cobb are acceptable (but not ideally cast) in the lead roles, but that also makes the tone of the film a bit unbalanced in tone. Certainly interesting considering the cast, but the story simply lends itself better to stage.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Bobbejaantje
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- 2301 messages
- 2092 votes
The Dark Past is a remake of Blind Alley that was shot 9 years earlier. Both films concern the film adaptation of the Broadway theater performance Blind Alley, written by James Warwick. The Dark Past starts with a five-minute intro in which the story is told with a voice-over by Lee J. Cobb (typical noir style) as well as with a subjective camera reflecting his point of view. Beautiful. Reminded me for a moment of The Lady In The Lake where this trick is continued throughout the movie. After this scene a new intro starts - from Cobb's flashback - where the storyline of Blind Alley also begins.
Overall, I think Blind Alley is a bit better than The Dark Past. The acting performances of William Holden, Lee J. Cobb and Nina Foch (what a pleasant appearance) are certainly not bad, but in Blind Alley it is all a bit more on edge. There is also more sharp shooting in Blind Alley, which equates to a higher body count. Not that the quality of a film depends on that, but it is an indication that Blind Alley is more serious. If I had to make a real 'blame' for The Dark Past, it would be the lack of direction and photography to add anything new to the dream and memory scene of mobster boss William Holden. Beautifully portrayed in Blind Alley by Charles Vidor, and almost copied - but with less care for details - in The Dark Past. Where is the creativity of Rudolph Maté and co?
What I also thought was a shame is the fact that the side characters in The Dark Past are less developed than in Blind Alley.
What The Dark Past does add explicitly - via the voice-over - at the end is a moralistic message about the need to pay attention to the mental state/care of every person. And I can certainly live with that because it is a message that makes more sense today than ever.
Translated from Dutch · View original
starbright boy (moderator films)
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- 22474 messages
- 5144 votes
Rarely naive film noir. Because that word doesn't fit film noir at all, it's rare. Lee J. Cobb plays a police psychiatrist (complete with pipe) who tells in flashback why he became a police psychiatrist. And that's the movie. The ideas in this film about psychiatry and crime are so oversimplified that it almost makes the film charming. Even in 1948, I don't think anyone was so naive.
But stylistically there is something more going on. This was Maté's first film as a director. He was originally a cameraman and has quite an impressive past. For example, he was the cameraman on films by Dreyer including one of the greatest classics of the silent era: La Passion de Jeanne D'arc, He also worked with Fritz Lang and Hollywood also on famous films such as Stella Dallas, To Be Or Not To Be and the noir classics The Lady From Shanghai and Gilda. His directorial career is modest and contains a lot of noir and western, mostly low budget. The film begins in the pseudo-documentary style that was somewhat fashionable at the time. Then follows something quite rare: A long point of view shot. The tone then becomes much more straight forward and especially a home invasion thriller in a room, but then a very naive one. With camera work as a very strong point.
Better than Cobb are Holden and Foch who both play strong. But the film doesn't break free from the weird twists in the script.
Translated from Dutch · View original
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