Darkness Before Dawn [Or The Sunday Morning Movie...]"Raw Deal..."Starring Dennis O'Keeffe, Claire Trevor and Marsha Hunt....

[deedee gauzot]

Critical reception

When the film was released, The New York Times film critic Bosley Crowther, panned the film, "But this, of course, is a movie—and a pretty low-grade one, at that—in which sensations of fright and excitement are more diligently pursued than common sense...Except for the usual moral—to wit, that crime does not pay—the only thing proved by this picture is that you shouldn't switch sweethearts in mid-lam.^[2]

In Girl and a Gun: The Complete Guide to Film Noir, David N. Meyer wrote "It's the richest cinematography in noir outside of Orson Welles' Citizen Kane."^[3]

Raw Deal is a 1948 film noir directed by Anthony Mann and shot by cinematographer John Alton.^[1]

Prisoner Joe Sullivan (Dennis O'Keefe), who has "taken the fall" for an unspecified crime, breaks jail with the help of his girl, Pat (Claire Trevor).

Neither Joe nor Pat is aware that the escape has been facilitated as a set-up by mobster Rick Coyle (Raymond Burr), a sadistic pyromaniac, who has arranged for Joe to be killed during the break-out in order to avoid confronting him and paying Joe his agree-upon share of $50,000 for the crime.

When the break-out scheme succeeds, contrary to Rick's expectations, Rick decides that he must have Joe done in some other way, by somebody else.

In the course of their run, Pat and Joe kidnap a social worker, Ann (Marsha Hunt) who has been visiting Joe in prison, trying to reform him. This begins a doomed film noir love triangle. A fight with a vicious thug ends when Ann shoots Joe's attacker in the back. After this act of murder, Ann realizes she is in love with Joe. Relenting, he sends her away and prepares to flee the country with Pat.

[This Is AFamous Shot From Cinematographer Extraordinaire John Alton...]

In their hotel room, Pat receives a phone call from Rick's associate warning them that Ann has been seized by Rick, and will be harmed if Joe and Pat do not come out from hiding.

Pat does not disclose the nature of the phone call, but instead tells Joe that it was a call from the hotel desk clerk about their check-out time, since she is anxious to avoid telling him anything about Ann that would lead him to hesitate beginning a new life with Pat.

After boarding a ship to flee the country, Joe attempts to convince Pat that they can start over a new life together, however Pat finally realizes that Joe will always be thinking of Ann. Pat realizes she must tell Joe that Ann is in danger and does so.

[SPOILER ALERT~]

Cast

• Dennis O'Keefe as Joseph Emmett (Joe) Sullivan
• Claire Trevor as Pat Cameron
• Marsha Hunt as Ann Martin
• John Ireland as Fantail
• Raymond Burr as Rick Coyle
• Curt Conway as Spider
• Chili Williams as Marcy
• Regis Toomey as Police Capt. Fields
• Whit Bissell as Murderer
• Cliff Clark as Gates

[deedee gauzot]

[PLEASE REMEMBER TO WATCH THE FILM IMMEDIATELY, BEFORE YOU-TUBE OR THE YOU-TUBE OWNER REMOVE THE VIDEO...THANKS,]

[deedee gauzot]

[The Toronto Film Noir Festival had a very successful-turn out...Therefore, stay tune for their 3rd feature in the series... "Nightmare Alley." Thanks,]