Eddie Muller is a writer, filmmaker, noted noir historian, and president of the Film Noir Foundation.

In his directorial debut, editor Robert Parrish skillfully molds Bill Bowers' droll script into what Eddie Muller calls a “crackerjack crime film – short, smart, sassy, and full of surprises.” The tersely pitch-perfect Dick Powell portrays ex-convict Rocky Mulloy who returns to Los Angeles to find the gang that framed him for a crime he did not commit. Aided by a hard-drinking, crippled ex-marine (brilliantly realized by Richard Erdman), Mulloy sets up home-base at a Bunker Hill trailer camp that is home to his ex-girlfriend Nancy, played by the graceful Rhonda Fleming. The standout performance here belongs to his cohort Erdman. The New York Times noted that the film had “sardonic lines that are tossed off most effectively by a young actor named Richard Erdman, who has been around Hollywood since 1943-just waiting for the right chance…” Jean Porter, wife of noir director Edward Dmytryk, is also a standout delight as one of several downtown denizens adding to the equally amusing and seedy local color.

Preserved in cooperation with Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. from two 35mm acetate composite master positives.