A decent thriller, albeit one that's a bit formulaic and predictable. A fairly interesting cast of characters helped to keep me interested - the hard-nosed cop, the alcoholic dog doctor, the ex-con trying to stay on the straight and narrow, the deranged gang member... they all keep the film zipping along at a brisk pace, even though nothing remarkable ever happens. The bank job itself was quite exciting, though, and I thought the ending was very cleverly done.

Nothing is stellar but it does everything very well and there's nothing to fault it for. The story's tight and incredibly compelling, the performances are a bit rough but set the right tone, the pacing is excellent. It's an interesting study on the concept of redemption that concentrates on the little things as opposed to large heroic acts. Nelson really sells the inner conflicts of his character and I loved the way he reacts to pretty much every turn of the plot. Hayden and Carey are cool too.

Crime was portrayed as very tame in that period of cinema history, but I sense that Crime Wave may have had a slight edge over other films. Young Charles Bronson and Timothy Carey are as tough and rugged as characters were allowed to be in 1950's Hollywood. Sterling Hayden's police detective is almost as convincing. But it's hard to ignore the film's general hokeyness.

The story is a noir staple (ex-con trying to go straight gets pulled back into crime) and de Toth doesn't really pack any surprises here, but it's fun to watch. I don't think I've ever come across a noir that I really hated. Interesting to see Tim Carey (in a very small but memorable role) and Sterling Hayden in a film noir together two years before The Killing. Also a young Charles Bronson.

I liked it well enough. It's a noir archetype (ex-con pulled back into one last job), but it's done well enough, and moves along quickly, and it's got a nice focus on character. And hey, Charlie Bronson!

Good story, deftly directed. Good cast as well, especially Nelson, Kirk and de Corsia; the only debit is Hayden's over-the-top villainish portrayal of the detective. Timothy Carey was also a hoot as the addle-brained, perpetually grinning Johnny; he was very nearly as bonkers as Neville Brand was in DOA.

Routine story heightened by strong performances, steady direction and unique noir photography. Some of the police station scenes are fantastically lensed, very 'fluorescent noir'.

After a great opening scene, stuff just falls apart. The structure of this movie is like an amorphous blob. Not that it's hard to follow or anything, but each new scene just doesn't flow smoothly after the last, and the whole thing feels pretty disjointed. The acting isn't all that great either, and even Sterling Hayden seems to be just shelling out lines from the script with little interest of his own. I did like seeing a young Charles Bronson though.