Good noir movie with Dick Powell as a bored insurance man attracted to Lizabeth Scott. Raymond Burr is the highlight as a private detective obsessed with Scott. Character actor John Litel has a bit part as a D.A.
John Forbes (Dick Powell) is tired of the routine life he lives. He has a nice home, a nice wife Sue (Jane Wyatt) and a nice young son Tommy (Jimmy Hunt). Things start to pickup when he calls on Mona Stevens (Lizabeth Scott).
Her boyfriend Bill Smiley was bonded by the company for ten thousand dollars. He stole it and bought expensive gifts for her. He ended up in jail. Private Detective J.B.MacDonald (Raymond Burr) traced her down for Johnny’s company. He tells Johnny that Mona is the girl for him.
Johnny sees her and takes back an engagement ring among other items. Then she tells him she also has a boat. They go out to see it and ride around for a while. They become attracted to each other. Mac gets jealous and follows Johnny.
He waits for him late one night outside his house and works him over as a warning to stay away from Mona. He tells Sue he was mugged. Mona finds out he’s not in the office and is home with a cold. She gets him sone relief for his cold and drives over to his house. Outside she hears Sue talking to the doctor and that’s when she finds out he’s married. They meet later and break it off.
Mac continues to stalk her. She wants nothing to do with him. He tells her he’ll go to Johnny’s wife if he gets in the way. Johnny goes to Mac’s apartemt and returns the favor and leaves him laying. He says if he comes near his family he’ll kill him. Now it’s back to hsi routine life and he likes it.
Mac starts visiting Smiley in prison and needles him about Mona and Johnny. When he’s due to be released Mac meets him. He gives him a gun.
This is a good one and everyone involved gives a good performance, especially Burr. Jimmy Hunt played David MacLean in 1953’s “Invaders From Mars.”
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