Panic in the Streets

Of all the bubonic plague noirs I have seen, this is surely one of the ten best.

Widmark is a great actor but a fairly bland lead part means that it falls to villains Jack Palance (in his screen debut) and Zero Mostel to give the film its spark, and both rise to the challenge admirably. The title is a little misleading in its promise of excitement or frenzy though, as the subdued story plays out like a standard crime procedural instead of doing anything memorable with its bubonic plague angle.

Panic isn't quite as palpable in the film as I'd like it to be, but it's there, especially in the potential for panic. And that's enough to carry a very tight script with two great lead performances from Widmark and Douglas, and superb supporting one from Palance. Kazan likes to imbue his films with a swath of moral gray area, and this film is no different with the conflict between individual and communal good running through the film in various flavours.

Great naturalistic acting in a gritty naturalistic setting with fine noir photography and effects. Widmark and Douglas make an excellent doc-cop buddy duo, and Jack Palance and Mostel are interesting baddies.

Widmark and Douglas are both wonderful, setting up the classic hate-each-other-then-earn-other's-respect dynamic. The other performances are just as winning. As is often the case with these movies, watching the bad guys is a lot more enjoyable than watching the good guys, and its those segments that are the most noir-ish. But the manhunt scenes are quite compelling as well, and the film as a whole really holds up. Fantastic chase scene at the end, with a number of memorable shots along the way.

Very entertaining. The script is great (and, indeed, Oscar-winning) and so is the cast. Elia Kazan keeps Richard Widmark on a leash, and Jack Palance debuts as the film's crook, Blackie.

Had its moments but never really packs a punch in any of the scenes. The climax didn't really exist and the chase at the end had zero suspense. Could've been a lot better with a more memorable scene or 2 but just kind of goes through the motions and isn't terrible but isn't exactly great either. Elia Kazan is incredibly overrated.

not into epidemic movies but the crossing w/noir styling&plotting is very unique&done well.good drive as Widmark searches for patient 0 who's at odds with being found for his own gangster reasons.domestic scenes were the most memorable moments for me, certainly carrying more weight than the somewhat lackluster chase finale

A lesser-loved gem from Kazan with a great premise. All of the performances are top-notch (Jack Palance as "Blackie" in particular), and you really feel the race against the clock. I was expecting things to wrap up quite suddenly, as similar films from back then often do, but the final act is drawn out in a way that's tense and engaging.

An epidemic noir is a fantastic concept and Elia Kazan does an excellent job with the concept. The acting by everyone is really good, from Richard Widmark's family man to Jack Palance's frightening killer and his funny partner Zero Mostel. Exciting from start to finish, with great action sequences, Panic in the Streets is one of those great Hollywood movies, for we suspend our belief just to enjoy a finely crafted story.

Interesting, but I wasn't blown away.

Jack Palance steals the movie, Richard Widmark is the relentless hero, this is a tense and exciting film noir movie with a plague twist.

The acting overal is very solid, Widmark is very restraint and Palance just naturally very menacing. The directing by Kazan is fabulous, with great use of depth in staging his shots. The good use of location give it a very realistic feeling.

84.000

Good quarantine viewing.

Starts off very brightly with the chase and the murder, but then gets a bit hamstrung by the tedious domestic scenes with Widmark's wife and his bratty kid (who thankfully isn't it that much). Jack Palance is suitably badass. There's an epic scene near the end where he catapults a dying guy off a stretcher down a flight of stairs. Harsh.

The cast, which is comprised largely of unprofessional N.O. locals, is great. The performances are all very naturalistic, unlike a lot of other films from the period. The tension lies in the urgency of the investigation and the unrest it causes, and the believability of the setting and the people in it makes it more effective. Outside of the great acting though, this noir doesn't do anything else particularly new or grand, but it's still an enjoyable watch.

You wouldn't think a police procedural about tracking down possible carriers of plague would be so gripping. Throw in a great cast (although I like Widmark more as a villain) and a noir-ish look, and the result is mostly a very good movie even when it falls back on some of the standard tropes.

"Tense and pulpy." - Eric Henderson

Nothing special,though its theme is quite modern it has a good noirish 50's feel to it.

Surprisingly engrossing for what feels like a somewhat rushed premise. Kazan knows how to draw all the tension and paranoia into this noir and pulls some engrossing performances out of his cast as well.

Loved the moodiness of the images--a kind of neo-realist noir. But Palance cuts a terrifying figure here, kind of making his one-armed push up at the Oscars 40+ years later take on a more menacing hue.

I think I feared Jack Palance more than the plague. He was definitely the type to cause Panic in the Streets (1950)!

With only a 96 minute running time, there was too much time devoted to the relationship with Barbara Bel Geddes.