This Side of the Law

This Side Of the Law is a rather fun thriller from the early fifties and concerns a man hired to impersonate someone else, a greedy family and other unwholesome things. The cast is decidedly of the second-string variety; however that doesn't make it bad. Kent Smith and Viveca Lindfors were both talented performers and play their starring roles well. It's particularly nice to see Smith in a leading role for a change, as he was a decent actor who never quite made the cut in Hollywood. Character actor John Alvin does nicely in a showy supporting part. I wouldn't quite call the movie film noir, though it's close. It plays somewhat like an episode of the Perry Mason TV series, as it's full of similar plot twists and surprises. If one likes dark mysteries this is a good one to look for.

The writer started with a good idea, came up with an ending and packed it with some filler. This couldn't pass as a 70s or 80s made for TV movie. No wonder they held onto it for two years before they released it.

At the beginning, a narrator speaks as we are shown a residence and the dog named "Angel" that guards it. The viewer is shown the top of a cistern, with "David" the narrator (played by Kent Smith) at the bottom of the cistern. Here's the flashback to tell his story...

When David is picked up for vagrancy, someone pays his fine, and has a proposition for him: He is to pretend to be a millionaire, who had disappeared several years prior. Even the millionaire's wife can't tell he is an impostor, but things start to go wrong. The man he is impersonating wasn't very well liked, and David must find out why. Viveca Lindfors gets top billing as "the wife", but it's Janis Paige as the sister- in-law who (rightfully) steals the show. Watch for Monte Blue as the Sheriff. The acting isn't anything special, but the story is mildly compelling, and since we know right from the start that David ends up in the well, we get hooked on finding out how he ends up there.

Written by Richard Sale, who had several novels and screenplays made into films. This one IS available on DVD, although you can catch it on Turner Classic Channel about once a year. Directed by Richard Bare, who wrote a book on the proper technique on film directing.

Get out of that of you can. Kent Taylor (David) is at the bottom of a covered well at the film's beginning. We go to flashback to tell the story of how this has come to pass. The story develops gradually so that you are not given all the information as to what is really going on. We learn what is happening as our lead man Taylor discovers things. Lawyer Robert Douglas (Cagle) holds the strings as to what is really happening and reveals things when necessary. It is his plan to have Taylor turn up at an Estate and pretend to be the long-lost owner so that the Estate's money does not get passed on to any undesirable characters who currently live on the premises.

It's an entertaining film with a good cast and scenery that gives you a spooky vibe. It's well filmed and keeps you guessing at the mysterious relationships and who is colluding with who. It's a small cast with a special mention to Janis Paige (Nadine) as my favourite character who plays the not-so-dumb relative of Taylor.

One reviewer has focused on the cliff aspects of the film and makes a good contribution. A good cliffy location for this film to play out. An enjoyable film with a good technique for getting out of a well should you ever fall into one.

A vagrant is bribed into impersonating a millionaire as part of an inheritance scheme. The trouble is he gets more than he bargained for.

I'm not sure why this little noir-- and it is a noir (hand of fate, a web of intrigue, a spider woman, & dark atmosphere)-- remains so obscure. This Warner Bros. entry may not be top-flight, but it is respectable. That opening scene with the pin-light on Cummins' (Smith) ravaged face is a grabber. Several other moody scenes emerge along the way, plus a neat plot twist, that makes this thriller an entertaining 70-minutes.

I'm guessing one reason for the film's obscurity is the cast, especially the lead, Kent Smith. He performs well enough. The trouble is he lacks screen presence, almost fading into the background at times. On the other hand, Lindfors and Paige split the women's time, such that neither is able to establish much presence of her own. John Alvin, however, comes across vividly in the thankless role of the weakling brother. Also, I'm surprised director Bare manages the dark material as well as he does, given that his previous career was exclusively with comedy shorts. (Note, for example, how Cummins has to work at getting a name off the ID bracelet—a good realistic touch.)

Nothing memorable here, just a solid little noir.