The Big Steal (1949)
Robert Mitchum is Lt. Duke Halliday, after having an army payroll stolen from him ($300,000 payroll ) by Patric Knowles as Jim Fiske, Halliday is pursued by Captain Vincent Blake (William Bendix),who thinks Halliday has the money. Halliday pursues Fiske into Mexico where he meets Joan Graham (Jane Greer), Fiske girlfriend who lent him $2000,and now wants it back . Basically a noir chase movie with abit of Romantic comedy thrown in for good measure. Mitchum and Greer make for a great and entertaining combo as they race across Mexico, with plenty of sharp witty dialogue they make for a great couple. The film is directed by the great Don Siegel who has so many great movies under his belt The Big Steal is an early effort that shows all the hallmarks of his later films. Mitchum throws everything he's got into the role , with plenty of fisticuffs and lots of wise guy charm. I prefer Mitchum to say Alan Ladd ,although they both have a laid back style of acting, Mitchum does know how to change gear every now and then and does seem to put allot more effort into his roles, plus he is also allot taller than Ladd as well. Jane Greer is re-united with Mitchum after appearing in Out of the Past together ,they make a great screen couple with plenty of chemistry between the pair. The only version that I have seen is in Film Noir Collection box set, the version there is a colourised print. I've never been a fan of black and white movies that have been colourised on the whole they usually look pretty terrible, but I'm sure the technology has come on leaps and bounds since those early days, As for the version I watched , It looked pretty good, better than allot of others I've seen .If the original Black and white version is available then I suggest watching that one. Definitely recommended for Noir and Mitchum fans alike.
out of 5