Blu-ray Review – The Man Who Cheated Himself – Flicker Alley

The Man Who Cheated Himself

Director: Felix Feist 

Screenplay: Seton I. Miller and Philip MacDonald

Minutes: 81

Year: 1950

Score: 7.87

Release: Flicker Alley

I try not to banter the word “great” around too much because any idea can be watered down if you say it too much, but The Man Who Cheated Himself is a great noir movie. I am a film noir fan, not a scholar, and this one ticks all the necessary boxes while, in places, excelling beyond what I have seen all too often.

From FlickerAlley.com:

Blinded by love, homicide lieutenant Ed Cullen (Lee J. Cobb, fresh off originating the role of Willy Loman on Broadway in Death of a Salesman) goes to great lengths to cover up a murder. His coquettish girlfriend Lois (Jane Wyatt, best known as the mother in Father Knows Best) has killed her scheming husband before he could bump her off. John Dall (Gun Crazy) co-stars as Ed’s kid brother Andy, a rookie on the force who is determined to break his first big case. These accomplished actors are nearly eclipsed by the incandescent star power of San Francisco and especially the world’s most photographed bridge, the Golden Gate.

In the hard-boiled film noir tradition, reminiscent of the work of James M. Cain, greed, unstoppable sexual attraction, and betrayal set off a doomed course in which a femme fatale leads a once upstanding citizen down a dark path. The first independent production of Phoenix Films, the company run by Jack M. Warner, son of Warner Bros. Studios mogul Jack L., and a highlight in the lengthy career of director Felix E. Feist (Deluge), The Man Who Cheated Himself “goes all the way”.

It is entirely possible that why the film is hoisted above other genre films could be the result of the masterful cinematography by Russell Harlan (Hatari!, Rio Bravo, Red River). It could be notable character actor Lee J. Cobb as the films lead and heavy. It could be one of my mothers-by-proxy Jane Wyatt, who guided me regularly, through the television, via Nick-at-Night reruns of Father Knows Best. I am not sure I can put my finger on the exact reason, but I ask you to believe that the film feels like an outlier standing among the Howard Hawks and John Huston silver screen classics.

The film opens with a throwaway character opening a packet with a pistol, he then discards that packaging, but a ticket falls the to ground. He then jimmies the lock on their porch door and tells his wife that he is going on a fishing trip. I write this because it only takes the movie five minutes to set everything up and introduce the three main characters, the wife, the aging detective, and the young detective eager to make his name. While the movie is a bit formulaic I think it is a whole lot better than many of the other, frequently televised, noir examples.

There are two bits of the cinematography that I want to touch on. First, as mentioned above, the film is photographed so well that you are not able to see how rushed the shoot was or how many shots you will see again in another, much more famous, San Francisco movie. This leads to my next point, unlike many of the other noir films, you have probably seen, The Man Who Cheated Himself does not, to my recollection, use and of those dreadful soft-focus shots that seem to haunt me whenever I watch a classic Hollywood film. The film is sharp and has several shots with high contrast shadows, while simultaneously does not feel like a lit version of The Third Man. The closing (it’s a noir, you know it’s there, this is not a spoiler) chase scene has many great angles and interesting shadows.

I’ve said this before, but I am in whenever Flicker Alley announces a movie, but when they announce a release from their partnership with the Noir Foundation I will drop what I am doing. Their last noir releases, Too Late for Tears and Woman on the Run are great releases and I love how they are tying the design of this release in with them.

While I love the Revisited documentary, which gives a ton of great information, I am a huge fan of Brian Hollins’ location videos. I love the work he does matching locations with then and now imagery. He has a great website at reelsf.com.

So, should you buy it? That’s always the question, yeah? It isn’t the best noir movie and wouldn’t be a great entry point for folks new to the genre. But, for hardcore lovers of these old black and write crime flicks it deserves a place on your shelf, you will not be disappointed.

Special Features:

• “The Man Who Cheated Himself Revisited”: Produced by TVP Enterprises and the Film Noir Foundation, this mini-documentary offers a behind-the-scenes examination of the film’s original production.
• “The Man Who Cheated Himself Locations Then and Now”: City Sleuth (aka Brian Hollins) leads a virtual tour around San Francisco hunting down the many locations used during the production of The Man Who Cheated Himself.
• Restored Theatrical Trailer: Brand-new restoration of the original theatrical trailer
• Souvenir Booklet: Featuring rare photographs, poster art, original lobby cards, and an essay by the “Czar of Noir” Eddie Muller.

Director: 10 – Cinematography: 10 – Edit: 7 – Parity: 3 – Main performance: 9 – Else performance: 4 – Score: 8 – Sound: 6 – Story: 9 – Script: 7 – Effects: 7 – Design: 9 – Costumes: 9 – Keeps interest: 10 – Lasting: 10