''The Undercover Man'' is a 1949 American

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Ca ...

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

directed by Joseph H. Lewis and starring Glenn Ford.

Plot

Frank Warren is a treasury agent assigned to put an end to the activities of a powerful mob crime boss. The agent struggles to put together a case but is frustrated when all he finds are terrified witnesses and corrupt police officers. Although most informants end up dead, Agent Warren gets critical information about the mob from an unlikely source.

Cast

* Glenn Ford as Frank Warren *

Nina Foch Nina Foch ( ; born Nina Consuelo Maud Fock; April 20, 1924 – December 5, 2008) was a Dutch-born American actress who later became an instructor. Her career spanned six decades, consisting of over 50 feature films and over 100 television appea ...

as Judith Warren *

James Whitmore James Allen Whitmore Jr. (October 1, 1921 – February 6, 2009) was an American actor. He received numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Theatre World Award, and a Tony Award, plus two Aca ...

as George Pappas * Barry Kelley as Edward O'Rourke * David Bauer as Stanley Weinburg (as David Wolfe) * Frank Tweddell as Insp. Herzog * Howard St. John as Joseph S. Horan * John Hamilton as Police Sergeant Shannon * Leo Penn as Sydney Gordon * Joan Lazer as Rosa Rocco * Esther Minciotti as Maria Rocco * Angela Clarke as Theresa Rocco * Anthony Caruso as Salvatore Rocco * Robert Osterloh as Manny Zanger * Kay Medford as Gladys LaVerne * Patricia Barry as Muriel Gordon (as Patricia White)

Background

The film was based on an article titled "He Trapped Capone," the first part of the

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English p ...

''Undercover Man'' by Federal Agent Frank J. Wilson, which was serialized in ''

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'' in 1947. Many details were fictionalized. The timeframe was changed from the

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...

era to the postwar era.

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

became an unnamed fairly-nondescript big city.

Al Capone Alphonse Gabriel Capone (; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-founder and boss of the ...

was referred to only as the shadowy "Big Fellow" and photographed only from the rear and was a more diversified mobster rather than primarily a bootlegger (reflecting the change in US

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally tho ...

following Prohibition's repeal). Also, of course, IRS Criminal Investigator Frank Wilson became IRS Criminal Investigator Frank Warren. Nevertheless, the film authentically portrayed the efforts of Wilson's team to put together a tax evasion case against Capone, and in many respects, despite the name changes and nondescript settings, the film is a far more accurate depiction of the investigation than later films on the same subject like '' The Untouchables''. For example, in ''The Untouchables'' the judge presiding over Capone's trial abruptly changes juries in the middle of the case, something that would never happen in real life. What actually happened was that the judge switched jury panels just before the trial began, and the incident is accurately portrayed in ''The Undercover Man''.

Critical response

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though his ...

panned the film in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'': "Furthermore—and this is fatal—it is a drearily static film, for all its explosive flurries of gun-play and passing of violent threats. The big crisis in the picture comes when the Treasury man, played by Glenn Ford, is uncertain whether to stick with the case or retire to a farm. And the basis of his decision to go on sleuthing for Uncle Sam is a long-winded lecture on justice which a sad-eyed Italian woman gives. Mr. Ford, in a battered gray hat and a baggy suit, makes a pretty case for higher salaries to civil servants but a not very impressive sleuth. And James Whitmore, who played the sergeant in ''Command Decision'' on the stage, seems much more inclined to low clowning than to accounting as an assistant on the case. Barry Kelley is robustly arrogant as "the big fellow's" lawyer and front-man, with several other performers doing standard character roles." The staff at '' Variety'' magazine gave the film a positive review, writing: "Narrated in a straightforward, hardhitting documentary style, ''The Undercover Man'' is a good crime-busting saga. Standout features are the pic's sustained pace and its realistic quality. Fresh, natural dialog help to cover up the formula yarn, while topnotch performances down the line carry conviction. Joseph H. Lewis's direction also mutes the melodramatic elements but manages to keep the tension mounting through a series of violent episodes." ''

Time Out Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to: Time * Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team * Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken * Timeout (computing), an enginee ...

'' film guide lauded the film and wrote, "A superior crime thriller in the semi-documentary style beloved by Hollywood in the late 1940s... he filmachieves an authenticity rare in the genre. Perhaps even more impressive is the acknowledgment that mob crime affects not only cops and criminals, but innocents too: witnesses are silenced, bystanders injured. And Lewis - one of the B movie greats - directs in admirably forthright, muscular fashion, making superb use of Burnett Guffey's gritty monochrome camerawork."''Time Out''
Film review, 2006. Last accessed: January 20, 2008.

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Undercover Man, The 1949 films 1949 crime drama films American crime thriller films American black-and-white films Columbia Pictures films 1940s English-language films Films scored by George Duning Films based on non-fiction books Films directed by Joseph H. Lewis American crime drama films Film noir 1940s crime thriller films 1940s American films