Port of New York (1949)

Two narcotics agents go after a gang of murderous drug dealers who use ships docking at the New York harbor to smuggle in their contraband.

Director:

Laslo Benedek

Writers:

Eugene Ling (screenplay), Leo Townsend (additional dialogue)

Stars:

Scott Brady, Richard Rober, K.T. Stevens

Cast

Cast overview:
Scott Brady	...	Michael 'Mickey' Waters
Richard Rober	...	Jim Flannery
K.T. Stevens	...	Toni Cardell
Yul Brynner	...	Paul Vicola
Arthur Blake	...	Dolly Carney
Lynne Carter	...	Lili Long
John Kellogg	...	Lenny
William Challee	...	Leo Stasser

Storyline

Agents Mickey Waters and John Flannery re-team to investigate the theft of medicinal narcotics from the S.S. Florentine. The vicious gang responsible is headed by the ruthless, but debonair Paul Vicola, who doesn't hesitate to murder anyone who stands in his way. Vicola's girlfriend is garroted when she becomes unreliable, and when go-between nightclub comic Dolly Carney poses a risk, he is thrown from his apartment window. After Waters is shot and killed trying to break into the gang's Brooklyn-based yacht club front, Flannery decides to go undercover and pose as a San Francicco drug dealer. The gang is smoked out and after a furious gun battle, Vicola is apprehended and his gang broken.

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Plot Keywords:

man murders a woman | man slaps a woman | narcotics | drugs | murder | 

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Taglines:

No crime too vicious ... no justice too swift for the Merchants of Death who lurk in its shadows !

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 November 1949 (USA)

Also Known As:

Rauschgiftbrigade

Filming Locations:

Wilmington, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Samba Pictures, Aubrey Schenck Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Feature film debut of Yul Brynner.

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Quotes

Paul Vicola: Tie him up. Mr. Wylie's leaving the boat.

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Connections

Referenced in The Killing Floor (2007)

User Reviews

Gritty, Violent Little Noir

Had a chance to sit down and watch PORT OF NEW YORK some time ago and I have to say that this is a terrific little noir/crime/thriller! Told in "documentary style" as in such films as HOUSE ON 92ND STREET, THE NAKED CITY and HE WALKED BY NIGHT, the movie is swiftly paced, violent with a decent amount of suspense and plenty of fisticuffs. Scott Brady and Richard Rober play a couple of federal agents, one a customs agent and the other a treasury agent out to stop the distribution of illegal "contraband", i.e., opium, that came in on a ship but was smuggled off by drug dealers. The leader of the drug operation is Yul Brynner, sporting a head of dark, wavy hair and appearing in his first film role I believe. Brynner is suave and refined and listens to avant-garde piano music but it is clear that he is also quite cold and violent as the bodies start to pile up. Plenty of action to keep one interested and wonderful direction from László Benedek. The real star though is cinematographer George E. Diskant. Filmed entirely on location in New York City, the film bursts to life with magnificent images of the Big Apple and some truly wonderful shots of the NYC maritime scene. This is a rather obscure, "B" noir/crime film that was a pleasant surprise and a movie that all fans of the genre should check out.