The Chase (1946)

Director:

Arthur Ripley

Writers:

Philip Yordan (written for the screen by)
Cornell Woolrich (book)

Release Date:

16 November 1946 (USA)

Genre:

Film-Noir

Plot:

Chuck Scott gets a job as chauffeur to tough guy Eddie Roman; but Chuck's involvement with Eddie's fearful wife becomes a nightmare.

Plot Keywords:

Chauffeur | Wallet | Napoleon Brandy | WWII Veteran | Betrayal

Cast

Robert Cummings	...	Chuck Scott
Michèle Morgan	...	Lorna Roman (as Michele Morgan)
Steve Cochran	...	Eddie Roman
Lloyd Corrigan	...	Emmerrich Johnson
Jack Holt	...	Cmdr. Davidson
Don Wilson	...	Fats
Alex Minotis	...	Lt. Acosta (as Alexis Minotis)
Nina Koshetz	...	Madame Chin (as Nina Koschetz)
Yolanda Lacca	...	Midnight
James Westerfield	...	Job the Butler
Jimmy Ames	...	The Killer
Shirley O'Hara	...	Manicurist
Peter Lorre	...	Gino

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #12019, Adult Audience)

Company:

Nero Films

Quotes:

Chuck Scott: Can't I make you understand you've got the wrong man... I loved her.
Lt. Acosta: you loved her so you killed her... the understandable.
Chuck Scott: She was all I had.
Lt. Acosta: So you made sure no one could take her from you.

Movie Connections:

Edited into Terror in the Pharaoh's Tomb (2007) (V)

Dreamlike Film Noir Chase To Havana

Chuck Scott, a returning WW II soldier, takes a job as driver to Eddie Roman, a vicious gangster who will typically stop at nothing to get what he wants. Roman, who has a particularly sadistic side to his nature, likes to test new drivers and so has an accelerator in the back seat of his car so that he can "take over" total control whenever he wants. This bizarre quirk drives Roman's right hand man, played by Peter Lorre, understandably crazy. Scott passes the test and gets the job.

He then proceeds to fall in love with Roman's wife, who is so frightened of her husband that she tries to commit suicide. The two decide to run away together, but Roman finds out about their plans and the chase is on. Or is it?

This is probably the most dreamlike film noir ever made, due in great part to the plot by Cornell Woolrich----the master of bizarre situations------from his novel THE BLACK PATH OF FEAR. It's a bit confusing, but that only adds to it dreamlike atmosphere.

Robert Cummings, Steve Cochran, Peter Lorre, Michele Morgan, and even Don Wilson, more famous as the announcer on the Jack Benny Television Show, are perfect in their roles. And Lloyd Corrigan has a small but dramatic scene where Roman and Lorre decide to put the bite on him in the wine cellar.

It's an obscure film noir that's seldom shown on televison and strangely isn't yet on video. What a shame.