Product: Pickup on South Street (The Criterion Collection) (1953)
Rating: 5.0
Brutal Little Known Noir Masterpiece!
This little known gem is a knockout sleeper. Tough, brutal, and effective noir. Fuller pulps it up as he tells us the story of a down on his luck pickpocket who hits it big when he steals a topsecret microfilm that's worth a look to the commies. But the film's plot isn't its strong point. The quiet scenes between Jean Peters and Richard Widmark are unbearably sexy. The scene where he knocks her out and then wakes her up by spilling cold beer on her is one of the defining moments in noir history. Thelma Ritter delivers a devastating performance as the tough Moe, a weary kindhearted informer who `has to make a living somehow', a heartbreaking performance. Also the last scenes where Widmark beats the hell out of Peters's weasely commie boyfriend is just about as violent as you could get back then. From a scale of 1-10 I give this film an 8!