Directors: Nicholas Ray, Ida Lupino
Writers: A.I. Bezzerides, Nicholas Ray, Gerald Butler
Photography: George E. Diskant
Music: Bernard Herrmann
Editor: Roland Gross
Cast: Robert Ryan, Ida Lupino, Ward Bone, Ed Begley, Cleo Moore, Charles Kemper, Ian Wolfe, Sumner Williams, Frank Ferguson, Anthony Ross
The oddly structured and executed On Dangerous Ground is kind of a lumpy affair, arguably stagy and affected in many places. IMDb credits Ida Lupino as an uncredited director with Nicholas Ray, who also gets a credit as writer. Wikipedia has nothing to say about this so I’m not sure what the issues are. Just looking at it, it’s pretty clear most of the first 30 minutes are wasted on establishing that Jim Wilson (Robert Ryan) is a sadistic cop who beats confessions out of criminals on the regular. It’s not that it’s a bad plot point—indeed, it’s an important one. But they take too long with it in a movie that is already short.
There’s a strange, prolonged, and inadvertently hilarious scene, for example, where Wilson’s boss, Captain Brawley (Ed Begley), is eating solo at a restaurant. He’s going at it like a starving squirrel that just discovered garbage treasure. “More peas,” he orders, telling Wilson the restaurant serves unusually excellent vegetables. He has asked Wilson there to reprimand him, between mouthfuls, for Wilson’s brutality. But the warning doesn’t take, Wilson ruptures the bladder of a suspect during an interrogation, hospitalizing him. He is subsequently sent “upstate” to work a case and cool off. These scenes upstate are shot mostly on location in Granby, Colorado, at which point the picture notably comes alive.
The oddly structured and executed On Dangerous Ground is kind of a lumpy affair, arguably stagy and affected in many places. IMDb credits Ida Lupino as an uncredited director with Nicholas Ray, who also gets a credit as writer. Wikipedia has nothing to say about this so I’m not sure what the issues are. Just looking at it, it’s pretty clear most of the first 30 minutes are wasted on establishing that Jim Wilson (Robert Ryan) is a sadistic cop who beats confessions out of criminals on the regular. It’s not that it’s a bad plot point—indeed, it’s an important one. But they take too long with it in a movie that is already short.
There’s a strange, prolonged, and inadvertently hilarious scene, for example, where Wilson’s boss, Captain Brawley (Ed Begley), is eating solo at a restaurant. He’s going at it like a starving squirrel that just discovered garbage treasure. “More peas,” he orders, telling Wilson the restaurant serves unusually excellent vegetables. He has asked Wilson there to reprimand him, between mouthfuls, for Wilson’s brutality. But the warning doesn’t take, Wilson ruptures the bladder of a suspect during an interrogation, hospitalizing him. He is subsequently sent “upstate” to work a case and cool off. These scenes upstate are shot mostly on location in Granby, Colorado, at which point the picture notably comes alive.
Part of me wants to say it’s the snow that does it. It’s real snow for once, obviously, and it makes a difference. They’re driving in it, running in it, and the whole high wild scene is taken a notch up. Also, the Bernard Herrmann score returns. After the absolutely scintillating titles, his music largely disappears until we get to the various snowy exteriors. Ward Bond shows up as Walter Brent, the vengeful father toting a shotgun. It’s his daughter who has been murdered. Now he and Wilson are chasing an unknown suspect in the snow with the music playing.
Eventually, 40 minutes in, practically halfway, we get to Ida Lupino, playing a strangely melodramatic role as Mary Malden, blind woman. It’s not hard to see there’s going to be some falling in love going on here even if there isn’t particularly any chemistry between Ryan and Lupino. It’s in the script so that’s what we’re doing. Basically, Mary’s quivering vulnerability somehow heals Wilson’s sadistic heart. Of course, Wilson and Brent don’t believe anything she says when they first get to her. Her house is the only one the man they were chasing could have sheltered in (presumably they are following tracks in the snow, but we don’t hear about it).
They also don’t believe she is blind. Both Wilson and Brent keep comically testing her, passing the flame from a lighter back and forth in front of her face or thrusting a fist at her to see if she winces. Oh, she’s blind all right. But she also knows more than she is saying. Both Brent and Wilson believe that. This is the point where Wilson would normally start knocking someone around and Brent is inclined to do it himself. But the love is quietly blooming and there’s not much time left in the movie. Wilson protects her from Brent and makes a lot of promises to her about restraining himself. Mary says stuff like, “The city can be lonely too. Sometimes people who are never alone are the loneliest.”
The main performances are fine within the film noir mode, which at the lower levels can be prone to be soundstage-bound and relatively inert, people in rooms trading lines. Ryan is suitably menacing, Lupino is suitably vulnerable, and Bond is impressive as the aggrieved father. He’s the best player here and/or has the role most suited to him. In many ways On Dangerous Ground is buoyed by its generous casting of character actors, such as Ed Begley at the restaurant, or Wilson’s goofy gumshoe partners, Anthony Ross and Charles Kemper. The detectives work in groups of three in this one, one guy ridiculously sitting in the backseat. Kemper as Pop Daley keeps trying to talk sense to Wilson. “To get anything out of this life you’ve got to put something into it—from the heart,” he says. In another exchange, Wilson in his despair cries out, “You’ve been doing it for 16 years.... How do you do it? How do you live with yourself?” Pop says, “I don’t! I live with other people.” Yeah, that’s telling him, Pop.
I go up and down and all over the place with film noir. The best ones are some of my favorite movies (Double Indemnity, Touch of Evil, The Maltese Falcon, Night and the City). I’d say On Dangerous Ground is about 60% excellent. The Bernard Herrmann score stands out every time it plays. The outdoor locations are a relief from noir’s soundstage. The principals are fun to see even if they don’t entirely mesh, the character actors come up with lots of good stuff, and love wins out (somewhat improbably) over tragedy. Kiss kiss. The End.
Eventually, 40 minutes in, practically halfway, we get to Ida Lupino, playing a strangely melodramatic role as Mary Malden, blind woman. It’s not hard to see there’s going to be some falling in love going on here even if there isn’t particularly any chemistry between Ryan and Lupino. It’s in the script so that’s what we’re doing. Basically, Mary’s quivering vulnerability somehow heals Wilson’s sadistic heart. Of course, Wilson and Brent don’t believe anything she says when they first get to her. Her house is the only one the man they were chasing could have sheltered in (presumably they are following tracks in the snow, but we don’t hear about it).
They also don’t believe she is blind. Both Wilson and Brent keep comically testing her, passing the flame from a lighter back and forth in front of her face or thrusting a fist at her to see if she winces. Oh, she’s blind all right. But she also knows more than she is saying. Both Brent and Wilson believe that. This is the point where Wilson would normally start knocking someone around and Brent is inclined to do it himself. But the love is quietly blooming and there’s not much time left in the movie. Wilson protects her from Brent and makes a lot of promises to her about restraining himself. Mary says stuff like, “The city can be lonely too. Sometimes people who are never alone are the loneliest.”
The main performances are fine within the film noir mode, which at the lower levels can be prone to be soundstage-bound and relatively inert, people in rooms trading lines. Ryan is suitably menacing, Lupino is suitably vulnerable, and Bond is impressive as the aggrieved father. He’s the best player here and/or has the role most suited to him. In many ways On Dangerous Ground is buoyed by its generous casting of character actors, such as Ed Begley at the restaurant, or Wilson’s goofy gumshoe partners, Anthony Ross and Charles Kemper. The detectives work in groups of three in this one, one guy ridiculously sitting in the backseat. Kemper as Pop Daley keeps trying to talk sense to Wilson. “To get anything out of this life you’ve got to put something into it—from the heart,” he says. In another exchange, Wilson in his despair cries out, “You’ve been doing it for 16 years.... How do you do it? How do you live with yourself?” Pop says, “I don’t! I live with other people.” Yeah, that’s telling him, Pop.
I go up and down and all over the place with film noir. The best ones are some of my favorite movies (Double Indemnity, Touch of Evil, The Maltese Falcon, Night and the City). I’d say On Dangerous Ground is about 60% excellent. The Bernard Herrmann score stands out every time it plays. The outdoor locations are a relief from noir’s soundstage. The principals are fun to see even if they don’t entirely mesh, the character actors come up with lots of good stuff, and love wins out (somewhat improbably) over tragedy. Kiss kiss. The End.
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