La città prigioniera

Robert Wise directs but without much enthusiasm and Lee Garmes, the cinematographer has little opportunity to show his skill. Indeed, this little B movie, I hesitate to use the much overused 'noir' tag, is most uninspired. Prompted, apparently, by the real life Senate Committee on organised crime and even sporting an afterword by the real life head of that committee, Senator Estes Kefauver, urging American citizens to play their part in stamping out such crime in their neighbourhoods, this still lacks a bit of 'life'. John Forsythe doesn't help with a lacklustre performance as the lead and Joan Camden even less so as his wife. The thing here is that this was clearly intended as a well meaning do good kind of a film, setting out the problem and urging everyone to help solve it. To help things along at one point the wife asks her husband, 'What is the mafia?' so there's little doubt at what level this film was aimed. Competent but far too uninteresting a story and with no violence the 'real life' message is about all this has.

When newspaper editor John Forsythe and wife rush into the police station with an urgent tale told in flashback, I thought Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956). In fact, there are a number of similarities between the two films. Here, however, the menace is not seeds from outer space but plain old organized crime. The story is told in grippingly fluent fashion by versatile director Robert Wise. I really like the way the film uses unfamiliar faces in the important supporting roles, giving the docu-drama a more authentic appearance.

Actually, the movie is rather educational since it reveals the various pressure points within a community where criminal influence can make a difference. Note how newspaper policy can be manipulated by advertising revenue; how church involvement can be influenced by congregation size; how police policy can be set by civic elders instead of the law. That is the point of the movie-- to show how a community can be corrupted by exploiting these various pressure points. At the time (1951), the Kefauver Committee on Organized Crime was making national headlines, accounting for the Senator's public service epilogue.

Surprisingly for a crime drama with noirish overtones, the violence and menace are mostly understated. Menace consists mainly of warnings to crusading editor Forsythe from ordinary-looking people. For me, however, the scariest part was neither the beating nor the hit-&-run, but the sudden transformation of affable used car salesman Andy (Jess Kirkpatrick). In social scenes showing the town's normality, Andy comes across as the typical friendly, outgoing salesman, but later, when the pressure's on, he slides into a startlingly sinister personality-- one of the many parallels with Body Snatchers.

Filming on location in grainy black&white amounts to a real plus for an authentic feel. Forsythe and Camden are excellent in their central roles, without going over the top. There's a low-key intensity to the narrative that rivets interest, but never reaches the emotional pitch of the sci-fi classic. In my book, this is one of those polished little B- productions that Hollywood used to turn out with some regularity. Too bad that they have no counterpart in today's over f-x'ed cinema.

This is a true story of moral heroism, as a lonely journalist struggles headstrongly against all odds and all advising against it to expose the firm grip of a town by a mafia, which apparently is expert at committing murders and getting away with it. The mood of the film is slightly paranoic, but, as usual with Robert Wise's films, it is efficiently made and keeps a firm grip on the audience to the bitter end, which comes as an unexpected relief. John Forsythe never became a great star, maybe he was to intense in his roles of exposed risk-takers to ever advance from that stage, but his films are always worth watching. The music, also as usual in Robert Wise's films, is exquisitely well suited and keeps up the drama. The message of the film is almost universal: this could happen to you and in any town, and the warning message is to always keep alert and never flinch at the truth.

An atmospheric dramatisation of the revelations about the activities of the mafia in the United States investigated by Senator Estes Kefauver; who set his seal of approval on the venture by putting in a special appearance as himself.

The sensitive subject matter meant raising even a shoestring budget took more time and effort than actually making the film itself; but enhanced the atmosphere of the film itself with glacial documentary-style deep focus location work by veteran cameraman Lee Garmes.

Bernard Herrmann was keen to score it but they couldn't afford him, hence the incongruously playful music recognisably the work of 'Big Country' composer Jerome Moross.

Directed by Robert Wise, The Captive City is a B movie done in the noir documentary style about a newspaper editor, Jim Austin (Forsythe) who is visited by a detective. The detective claims to be in danger from the police and is being harassed by them due to information he has about crime in the city. Austin brushes him off, but when the man winds up dead he starts asking questions. This leads him to a bookie operation and the hold that organized crime has on the city.

Okay movie and lots of fun to see people who went on to TV careers here - Forsythe for one, Martin Milner as a newspaper photographer, Ray Teal, Paul Brinegar. Estes Kefauver makes a guest appearance to tell us this was a true story. One of the actors, Harold J. Kennedy, was a theater director who wrote a hysterical book on theater called "No Pickle, No Performance."

Given the times we live in today, it's inspiring to see David go up against Goliath.