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A delight for old movie fans—perfectly cast, engagingly scripted, and generally unpredictable. O'Brien's a brash, penny-ante lawyer who hooks up with slick, financial tycoon Price and his silken mistress- secretary Raines. Somebody's going to get taken for a ride, but who. O'Brien's so good at playing fast-talking operators, while Price calibrates (no hamming here) surprisingly well as a sly fox. And the long haired Raines looks absolutely ravishing as the cool and calculating Noel. Judged from this showcase, it's really too bad that O'Brien and Raines have slipped into obscurity. Also, catch John Abbott as Charles, the rather mysterious factotum. He always adds eccentric color to his parts.

Those early scenes of O'Brien getting entangled are expertly scripted with sharply drawn characters. The banter is especially engaging without being cutesy or competitive with the story. I also like the way O'Brien's character (Regan) is kept purposely ambiguous, adding an element of unpredictability to the story's direction. Bendix's crafty cop is nicely conceived too. His scenes with O'Brien are little gems of sly one-upmanship. My only complaint is that tacky exterior set where O'Brien and Raines rendezvous. Doing the outdoors on a sound stage was always a challenge for the studios.

Anyway, the movie comes as a pleasant, noirish surprise, again demonstrating the vitality of post-war Hollywood.