Quicksand (1950).

Review #1374: Quicksand.

Cast: 
Mickey Rooney (Dan), Jeanne Cagney (Vera), Barbara Bates (Helen), Peter Lorre (Nick), Taylor Holmes (Harvey), Art Smith (Mackey), Wally Cassell (Chuck), Richard Lane (Lt. Nelson), Patsy O'Connora (Millie), John Gallaudet (Moriarity), and Minerva Urecal (Landlady) Directed by Irving Pichel (#617 - Destination Moon and #709 - The Most Dangerous Game)

Review: 
Every decade has its dawn and characteristics that distinguish it from the one before it, particularly for film. The 1920s served as a prosperous time for silent film while the 1930s cultivated sound into a permanent trend alongside finding ways to entertain Great Depression audiences and the 1940s
found war along with film noir and the beginning of the end of the studio system. With the beginning of the Atomic Age, one could only wonder how different things could get for film and the world at large. With scares of the television and red kind, stars and directors found themselves at a crossroad over where to go with a choice beyond studio loyalty in free-lance work. In this case, this film served as a crossroad for its stars and director. Rooney, to put it lightly, had one of the most distinguished careers in acting. He had his debut in film at the age of six, having started in vaudeville with his parents before they separated and his mother moved with him to Hollywood. The following year, he starred in the short film series Mickey McGuire, doing 78 films in seven years. He would find himself into stardom in the latter half of the 1930s with films such as A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935), A Family Affair (1937), and Boys Town (1938). He had reached the peak of his career by the time of his 30s (including an Academy Juvenile Award at the age of 18), but he kept on in a variety of media for 88 years until his death in 2014, whether it was a big or small film role, television, or even Broadway. Lorre had come from the stage to film through Fritz Lang's M (1931) before settling in Hollywood four years later. He had a career of B-movies and character roles that allowed for some highlights, such as Mad Love (1935), The Maltese Falcon (1941), and The Beast with Five Fingers (1946). His career had slowed down in the late 1940s, but he continued on until his death in 1964. Pichel had his start in the theater after graduating from Harvard, soon finding himself into directing alongside character roles in film in the 1920s and 1930s. He had his debut in film direction with The Most Dangerous Game (1932). His career slowed down in the 1950s as a victim of blacklisting (a consequence of fear over certain activity of American writers and directors), with a subsequent heart condition leading to his death in 1954.

This is a decent little film noir, one with a quiet presence of careful pace and a standout performance from Rooney that makes this ever-growing web of seediness and naivety work out fine. Rooney makes things work as well as they do because we can see ourselves in this everyman though his various moments with others in an attempt to play against type, playing tension with grace. Cagney does well with in a role oozing alongside a descent, while Bates serves as a decent contrast, although both have just slight chemistry with Rooney. Lorre is nice to see with his careful seedy presence, but he disappears from the film after the first half (speaking of sudden appearances, Bates really only becomes a presence in the last 25 minutes), since the real villain of the film is ill-advised decision making. Noirs can find themselves in binding twists and turns, and this one (written by Robert Smith) moves along for 79 minutes with an aim for descent that one can at least think is possible (where one mistake can lead to several others) without shaking their heads too much, particularly with its ending, where crime may not pay, but that doesn't mean one mistake is too much to overcome with time. Ultimately, this is a fairly competent little noir from Pichel as a useful curiosity through Rooney and Lorre that serves itself well in the public domain to view at some point in time.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.