1941-1950 Anthony Mann Crime Film Noir USA

Anthony Mann – Side Street (1950)

adminDecember 4, 2019

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Joe Norson, an expectant father and a New York City postman of modest means is chased by both cops and crooks when he steals a shipment of dirty money.

New Crime Story
The respectable but somewhat tedious formula of M-G-M’: “Crime Does Not Pay” shorts has been used by that studio for “Side Street,” a feature-length drama of crime and its profitless consequences, which came to the Palace yesterday. The story is semi-documentary, being a detailed account of the fearful adventures of a young mail carrier who recklessly steals a wad of money that is “hot,” and it is played for considerable realism against the actuality background of New York. In the principal role, Farley Granger makes a vividly terrorized lad, and James Craig, Paul Kelly and Edmon Ryan stand out as assorted thugs and cops.

In short, it’s a fair enough crime picture, ending with a screaming downtown chase and the moral very tenderly delivered by the usual narrator’s voice. But, cut down to its essentials, that’s just about all it is: in short. It can only be fully recommended to those who have a deep and morbid interest in crime.
Bosley Crowther, NY Times, March 24, 1950