STUFF YOU GOTTA WATCH - The Big Heat

THE BIG HEAT

(1953)
With Glenn Ford, Gloria Grahame, Alexander Scourby, Lee Marvin, Jocelyn Brando
Directed by Fritz Lang
Black and White
Reviewed by JL

One of the great films noir, THE BIG HEAT was an unrelentingly brutal film for its time, unapologetic in its portrayal (and suggestion) of crude violence, particularly to women. It's the ultimate "dames gettin' slapped around" film. Glenn Ford gives one of his strongest performances as an uncorruptable cop fighting a one-man battle against a citywide crime organization. In one of his earliest screen roles, Lee Marvin is a standout as a barbaric henchman, and Gloria Grahame is sultry and sassy as ever, further confirming her status as one of the icons of the noir genre. - JL