The Racket

Despite being a silent film this feels a lot closer to the noir tradition of the 40s than the vast majority of 30s proto noirs. It has a lot of dark scenes and good use of lighting, a surprisingly brisk pace for a non-comedy silent, great tension, and interesting enough characters, archetypes though they may be, to make for a very enjoyable time.

Probably better at its time, this is a very straightforward crime narrative by today's standards. I didn't care for Meighan much as the lead, but Wolheim is very good as the villain. One of the first Best Picture nominees, it was thought lost until a copy was found in Howard Hughes' personal collection after his death.

The characters may be rather stock, but it's a fine-looking take on the theme, with a great and expressive cast. The stage-play origins become a bit clearer as the second half settles into the police station for the rest of the duration, though the drama works out a bit better for the focus (and uptick in actual dialogue) it brings.

84.50.

Excellent tale of corruption in criminal, procedural, and political rackets. Milestone's ending is bleak, suggesting a world in which people cannot change, and dead crime boss amounts to only a blip in the night, a feature for some washed out reporter.

late 20's crime movies tend to be pretty crappy, which is strange considering the era was the golden age for hard-boiled detectives. so it comes as a complete surprise that this movie is pretty good, aside from the melodramatic, contrived ending that this one is awesome.

I saw this film with a live sonorization from Calibro 35...fantastic, I was amazed by the expression of the actors and the play