Victim of the underworld

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Movie
German title Victim of the underworld
Original title DOA
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1950
length 83 minutes
Age rating FSK 16
Rod
Director Rudolph Maté
script Russell Rouse ,
Clarence Greene
production Leo Popkin
music Dimitri Tiomkin
camera Ernest Laszlo
cut Arthur H. Nadel
occupation

Victims of the Underworld (Original title: DOA ) is in black and white twisted American film noir directed by Rudolph Maté dating back to the 1950s.

action

During the opening title, the inconspicuous mid-thirties Frank Bigelow walks a long way through a police station to report a murder at the end. He himself is the victim. The cops seem to know Bigelow. A flashback begins:

Bigelow plans to leave his hometown of Banning, California, for a week's vacation in San Francisco. He works as an accountant and notary in Banning and has a relationship with his secretary Paula. She's frustrated because Bigelow doesn't want to take her with her. At his hotel in San Francisco, Bigelow goes after attractive women and meets a group of business people whom he accompanies on a foray into San Francisco's nightlife. In the jazz club "The Fisherman" the colored, sweating musicians unleash a true pandemonium. In addition, Bigelow flirts violently with a blonde. He misses the fact that a stranger in a flashy scarf and jacket, of which you can only see the back, is exchanging his drink. In the hotel Bigelow finds a bouquet of flowers from Paula. He tears up the piece of paper with the blonde's phone number.

The next morning Bigelow feels sick. He visits a doctor who diagnoses him as having been poisoned. There is no antidote to this poison. Horrified and incredulous, Bigelow storms off to get a second opinion. The second doctor also comes to the same conclusion. Too much time has passed since the poisoning. With only a few days left to live, Bigelow decides to clear the matter up. A surprising call from Paula brings him a clue. A certain Eugene Philips tried to contact him, but immediately afterwards, that is, the day before, he died. Bigelow goes to the Philips company, an import and export company, and speaks to the secretary Miss Foster and the accountant Mr. Halliday. Halliday tells him Philips committed suicide. Then Bigelow seeks out the widow and Eugene's brother Stanley.

Bigelow and Paula keep talking on the phone. She finds an invoice for a transaction that Bigelow himself had notarized six months earlier. It turns out that it involved the sale of stolen iridium. The gang boss Mayak has Bigelow kidnapped by his henchmen. Since Bigelow knows too much about the business from his certification, he is said to be killed by the psychopath Chester. But Bigelow manages to escape. Bigelow first suspects Mrs. Philips and Stanley of poisoning him. When he confronts Stanley, it turns out that Stanley was also poisoned. Bigelow sends him urgently to the doctor: immediate treatment could save his life. Stanley names Mr. Halliday as the killer who organized the robbery of the Iridium. He was also having an affair with Mrs. Philips. When Eugene found out, there was an argument with Halliday, as a result of which Halliday pushed him off the balcony. With Bigelow's death, all traces of the robbery should be covered. Bigelow, who is getting weaker and weaker, visits Halliday, who is now wearing a scarf and jacket like in a jazz club. There was an exchange of fire in the famous Bradbury Building , Bigelow kept shooting the defeated Halliday as if in a frenzy.

The flashback ends. Bigelow dies in the police station, his last word is "Paula". The police officers stamp their documents on the case with DOA (Dead on Arrival).

background

Victim of the Underworld was the feature film debut of Neville Brand and Beverly Garland , which still appeared here under the name Beverly Campbell.

It premiered on April 30, 1950 in the United States. The German theatrical release followed on August 8, 1952.

1969 turned Eddie Davis a remake titled The shining death (Color Me Dead) with Tom Tryon and Carolyn Jones in the lead roles. In 1988 Annabel Jankel and Rocky Morton directed a remake called DOA . Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan played the main roles .

Reviews

"B-thriller that benefits from the director's experience as a long-time cameraman [...]."

- Lexicon of international film

Awards

The film was entered into the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress in 2004 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Victims of the Underworld in the Internet Movie Database .
  2. ↑ a b Victims of the Underworld in the Lexicon of International FilmsTemplate: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used .