Starring Dana Andrews, Thomas Mitchell, Ida Lupino, John D. Barrymore, George Sanders, Rhonda Fleming, Vincent Price

(7-Very Good Films)

Suspenseful. Effective. Strong.

One of the earliest films I’ve seen that focuses on an ensemble of characters rather than one out and out star, Fritz Lang’s murder mystery is an engaging inside look at the life of journalists and all that goes into getting a story in the newspaper. The plot revolves around the spoiled owner of the New York Sentinel (Price) offering an executive position to the person who scoops the recent string of murders for the paper. This sets off the bloodhounds out to catch the serial killer known only as “the lipstick killer.” It’s a minor work by a master, but as the theory goes, a minor work by a master is better than most films.

-Walter Tyrone Howard-

(708)