Thieves' Highway (1949)

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Director:

Jules Dassin

Writers:

A.I. Bezzerides (screenplay)
A.I. Bezzerides (novel)

Release Date:

10 October 1949 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Film-Noir | Thriller

Tagline:

Rackets Ride The Roads!

Plot:

A war-veteran-turned-truck driver attempts to avenge the crippling and robbing of his father at the hands of an amoral produce scofflaw. |

Plot Keywords:

Produce | Boarding House | Criminal Gang | Transport | Truck Driver

Cast

Richard Conte	...	Nick Garcos
Valentina Cortese	...	Rica (as Valentina Cortesa)
Lee J. Cobb	...	Mike Figlia
Barbara Lawrence	...	Polly Faber
Jack Oakie	...	Slob
Millard Mitchell	...	Ed Kinney
Joseph Pevney	...	Pete
Morris Carnovsky	...	Yanko Garcos
Tamara Shayne	...	Parthena Garcos
Kasia Orzazewski	...	Mrs. Polansky, the Apple Farmer's Wife
Norbert Schiller	...	Mr. Polansky, the Apple Farmer
Hope Emerson	...	Midge, a buyer

Also Known As:

Collision (USA) (working title)
Hard Bargain (USA) (working title)
The Thieves' Market (USA) (original script title)

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #13530) | West Germany:16 (nf) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Lee J. Cobb (Mike Figlia) and Morris Carnovsky (Yanko Garcos) were both members of the famous Group Theater (1931-1940) and appeared together in the original Broadway production of Odets' "Golden Boy," Carnovsky played the father of the boxer. When the play was filmed with William Holden in his debut role, Cobb played the father.

Quotes:

Nico 'Nick' Garcos: [to Rica] You look like chipped glass.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Fast and the Furious (1955)

Soundtrack:

Five Foot Two, Eyes of Blue (Has Anybody Seen My Girl?)

Beautiful, Haunting, Heartfelt Noir

I've seen many hundreds of noir movies and this is one of the very very best. The triumvirate of Conte, Cortez and Cobb have never been better and if Dassin's simple but heartfelt story of betrayal and redemption doesn't tug at you hard, you must be made of stone. Cobb has never been more convincingly merciless; I get angry just thinking about his brilliant performance. Cortez is sexuality incarnate but she displays real range and sensitivity as the one person who first destroys Conte's life then ultimately redeems it. Conte, who is always reliable, is absolutely at his best as the desperately driven truck driver who sets out to right a terrible wrong but soon learns that you can't beat the system. The last shot of the fruit rolling down the hill has to be one of the most evocative and heartbreaking in all of noir. This movie haunts and moves me whenever I think about it and is one of those buried low budget classics that must be seen to be believed. First rate in all regards despite the meager funds and gets to deeper feelings and emotions than ten $100 million dollar-budgeted present day pictures combined. Trust me on this one...Thieves' Highway is hard to find but absolutely worth it!