The Prowler

Van Heflin gives an extraordinary performance as a cop with a heart of stone in this absorbing, mood-drenched film expertly directed by Losey. What a nice switch for once: a noir that features a manipulative bad news man, an "homme fatal."

Van Heflin was incredible. He's a combination of James Cagney and Michael Shannon rolled into one. Just a hell of a screen presence! This was my first time seeing Heflin and I will now seek out more of his films. Evelyn Keyes was also great and it was nice seeing a very complex female character in a film noir. The roles were basically reversed with Heflin being the "femme fatale" - really interesting stuff. A lot of the dialogue felt very contemporary as well! Highly recommended.

The title and the first scene are rather misleading. And, in general, although the storyline is iconically traditional, the plot of Losey's noir classic is never completely by the numbers. Heflin and Keyes are both entirely solid.

Exciting and colorful, and okay, pulpy and melodramatic, but the character arcs are so beautiful, it still works. Only the finale is really too much, but it's a negligible one minute and I forgive it.

Sometimes my pleasure in watching noir comes from having a film make me think "Wow, I can't believe they got away with that," and this film seemed to make me feel that way every 10 minutes. It's not a particularly fast paced film, but that's more than made up by just how sharp and unexpected the turns are. Even when I saw them coming I was still surprised by the way they were executed. Heflin and Keyes both have unique screen presence and they really make it work for their conflicted characters.

Mostly well-done film noir tale about a slimy cop on the lookout for a way to find easy street. Van Heflin is very good, there’s an air of electricity, the plot moves along in some surprising directions, and the whole thing seems intentionally dirty – what’s not to like?

A fine story that I'll forget about in a week.

The fruitless nature of American capitalism. The distrust of your neighbours. The misery of the working class and the actions they're forced to take out of jealousy. An action they might not even know they're committing but they've become so disconnected from broken dreams and broken promises. Bitter men and women that are forced to bear the brunt of that. Women facing their own new reality in American suburban landscape and the banality that ensues because of it and the damage done

86.500

watched: 2013, 2015

Heflin and Keyes are fine, though I'm not terribly impressed with either. The story has a subversive edge to it, but it's really not THAT edgy. Miller is not a noir cinematographer, and only a few shots are interesting. But the main issue is that it's kinda slow. Not painfully so, but it definitely is a bit sluggish. I did like how the film went in a couple of different directions that I didn't expect, and overall my complaints are fairly minor. But it isn't the masterpiece I was led to believe.

Underrated, absorbing and unconventional noir. Heflin and Keyes have a unique chemistry that elevates the sordid, melodramatic scenario into an atmospheric, intense cinematic experience.

Cúmplice das Sombras estreava há 70 anos nos EUA. Noir finíssimo da fase americana de Losey, lida bem com o oco do ser humano, especialmente aqueles embebidos por um poder arbitrário que não lhes pertence (a polícia) - o que pode ser uma alegoria à perseguição arbitrária e destruidora de vidas de um outro orga de poder nos EUA na época: a HUAC, que limitou o roteirista Dalton Trumbo e fez evadir a Losey. Box Versátil Filme Noir Volume 1 (que é até hoje o melhor volume dessa coleç

A bit of a mindfuck with a few unexpected twists and turns. Very well made.

Intense and simple. Van Heflin is a perfect fit for his role.

83.625

Two of a kind, but only one of them is a murderous bastard. Wasn't expecting the psychology of it to get that deep, but the unfolding of their cravings and gradual mental backlash was engrossing to observe. Van Heflin and Evelyn Keyes both are excellent. Not many other involved, but the few that are, are just there just to establish public opinion that these are okay people, while we know they're not. A can easily say this was a satisfying downfall.