One Way Street

This movie was a joy to watch and James Mason really shines in his role as well as Dan Duryea, and William Conrad. I loved every minute until the very end which to me was so senseless. I won't give it away but this film would have been a ten out of ten had it not been for this mistake. It is still a very entertaining film.

One Way Street opens beautifully. Sirens shriek through the Los Angeles nightscape while, from the window of an apartment building, an elegant woman (Marta Toren) smokes as she watches them disappear. She reports her observations to Dan Duryea, who has just masterminded a big heist. One of his lieutenants (William Conrad), however, has taken a bullet, which gang-sawbones James Mason is summoned to extract. He does so, meanwhile launching a ploy by which he departs not only with all the loot but with Toren – Duryea's moll. Although fate almost deflects their escape, they finally cross the border to Mexico.

And here the movie settles in for a long siesta. Mason and Toren find themselves in a primitive village where Mason's medical skills are pressed into service (he cures a horse but can't save a little girl). There's plenty of warmed-over wisdom issuing from an itinerant priest (Basil Ruysdael) and plenty of danger from bandidos who keep cropping up, swigging mezcal while wiping their lips with the backs of their hands and eying Toren up, down and sideways. Despite these distractions, she seems to like it there and wants to stay, but Mason wants to press on to Mexico City (and their divergent goals and low-key temperaments serve to keep the romance distinctly cool).

This snooze is interrupted a couple of times by cuts back to Los Angeles, where Duryea and Conrad are bent on recouping the money – and on revenge. But only when Mason returns to have a face-to-face reckoning with Duryea does the movie spring back to life. And in a rhyme of its earlier, unexpected intervention, fate proves that it always has the last word.

One Way Street was the first feature in English by the Argentinian-born director Hugo Fregonese, who stayed in Hollywood long enough to churn out a few westerns and genre-pictures (Man In The Attic, one of the many versions of The Lodger was his work). From the bookends that open and close One Way Street, he had a feel for the look and pace of film noir, but the thick volume of Mexican folklore they surround turns out to be a not very film-worthy property.

### Movie Review: "One Way Street"

**By Edward Sterling**

Stepping into the cinema to watch Universal-International's latest production, "One Way Street," directed by Hugo Fregonese, feels like navigating the winding alleys of a noir-soaked labyrinth. This film, rich with the shadowy ambience of crime and retribution, anchors itself in the gritty reality of betrayal and the quest for redemption.

James Mason, delivering a performance both enigmatic and compelling, plays Dr. Frank Matson, a man whose veneer of calm conceals a maelstrom of desperation. Mason's portrayal captures the quintessential anti-hero, a character teetering on the precipice of moral ambiguity, pulling the audience into his tumultuous journey.

Supporting Mason, the luminous Märta Torén as Laura provides a stark contrast to the film's darker themes. Her character, though ensnared in the web of crime, emanates a glimmer of hope and humanity. Torén's portrayal brings an emotional depth that softens the otherwise relentless tension.

Dan Duryea, portraying the menacing mob boss, adds to the film's sinister undercurrent. Duryea's ability to infuse his character with a chilling sense of unpredictability keeps viewers on edge, embodying the palpable threat that looms over Matson's attempt at escape.

Fregonese's direction, paired with Irving Glassberg's evocative cinematography, masterfully captures the essence of noir. The interplay of light and shadow creates a visual symphony that underscores the film's central themes of conflict and resolution. The searing landscapes of Mexico, where much of the film unfolds, provide a stark, almost surreal backdrop to Matson's flight from his past.

"One Way Street" excels in its pacing, maintaining a relentless drive that mirrors Matson's own urgency. Frank Skinner's score punctuates the film's tense moments, heightening the sense of impending danger and the fragile hope of salvation.

However, while the film triumphs in many aspects, it does not escape certain clichés inherent to the genre. The storyline, though gripping, treads familiar paths, and at times, the dialogue slips into predictable tropes. Despite these minor shortcomings, the film's strengths lie in its atmospheric tension and the robust performances of its leads.

In a year where the silver screen has been graced with a multitude of crime dramas, "One Way Street" stands out as a testament to the enduring allure of the noir genre. It is a journey worth taking, a descent into the dark heart of humanity that ultimately suggests that redemption, though elusive, is not entirely out of reach.

In conclusion, "One Way Street" is a cinematic venture that, despite its occasional foray into the well-trodden, captivates and compels with its stark visuals, strong performances, and an unflinching gaze into the shadowy corners of the human psyche. It is, without a doubt, a notable addition to the noir canon of 1950.

....which ruined the ending of this movie.

"One Way Street" from 1950 stars James Mason, Marta Toren, Dan Duryea, and William Conrad. Mason plays Dr. Frank Matson, a mobster, John Wheeler's (Duryea) doctor. It isn't clear why the doctor isn't in practice; one assumes he botched an operation or something.

Matson steals $200,000 from Wheeler by telling him he has just given him poison, and that he'll call in one hour with the antidote. He then leaves with the money and Wheeler's girlfriend Laura (Toren). They wind up in a small village in Mexico where the two become fixtures - Matson provides medical care for the people and animals, and Laura says it's the only place she has ever felt safe.

However, Wheeler is looking for them, so Matson makes a tough decision.

Well the code wrecked the end of this film. I was very disappointed.

Someone commented that Mason was miscast - he certainly has a lot of class and expertise for a mob doctor, who are usually drunks whose hands shake. Marta Toren was so beautiful, but she died at the age of 31. Tragic. Dan Duryea is his usual mean self, and William Conrad is on hand as a fellow thug.

Good movie except for...the end.

I tend to mostly avoid James Mason films in a British setting as he frequently evokes the staid, bloodless, leather driving glove school of acting of England in the 1950s.

Here, however, as a fish out of water character in this U. S / Mexican saga he is rather good. The accompanying cast of Marta Toren, William Conrad and the always excellent Dan Duryea are hard to resist. The final act contrasts of a baked Mexican pueblo back to a rain sodden nocturnal American city are extremely evocative. Ditching the Noir urban for a village, and redemption in the bucolic charms of country life is a novel take for a film of this genre.

Here's the kicker - very hard to find a 35mm converted version of this film, instead it is the horror of Blu ray / HD manipulations which are in ready supply, a technology which completely destroys old movies. The displaced filmic world, the wealth and grain of celluloid is replaced by shiny, immediate, clear cut images, completely erasing depth of field and the necessary suspension of disbelief - instead, constantly jolting the viewer out of absorption and into an over awareness of sets, props and the artifice of production.