In Miami, Chuck Scott (Robert Cummings), a decorated war veteran down on his luck, finds a wallet on the street and returns it to its owner, wealthy Eddie Roman (Steve Cochran). He’s offered a job on the spot as Roman’s live-in chauffeur but quickly learns that his benefactor is a murderous racketeer who keeps his beautiful wife, Lorna (Michele Morgan), a virtual prisoner in their lavish mansion. Scott and Lorna find themselves thrown together due to his duties and soon fall in love. The pair make their escape and sail to Cuba but any happiness is short-lived; Lorna is knifed in a nightclub and Scott is framed for her murder. He soon finds himself on the run from both the police and Roman’s ruthless henchman, Gino (Peter Lorre)…
Opinion is divided on this seldom-seen Film Noir based on Cornell Woolrich’s novel “The Black Path Of Fear”: Alain Silver in his “Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference To The American Style” feels, “THE PHANTOM LADY excepted, THE CHASE is the best cinematic equivalent of the dark, oppressive atmosphere that characterizes most of Cornell Woolrich’s best fiction” while Robert Ottoson in “The American Film Noir 1940-1958” opines, “It is tempting to review the Woolrich novel instead of the film”. Cornell Woolrich’s writing has been likened to “the woozy paranoia of a dream” and in THE CHASE’s Havana scenes that quality is successfully transferred to film. The city is a shadowy, sinister and claustrophobic place with seemingly no way out offset by a sunny Miami; this is due in no small part to the chiaroscuro cinematography of Franz F. Planer. The plot takes the premise of Fritz Lang’s WOMAN IN THE WINDOW and goes it one better with the final twist blurring the distinction between reality, dream and premonition. Although the story unfolds in linear time there are a number of surprising turns along with many of the themes/motifs present in the best Film Noir. A post-war cynicism and sense of irony are never very far from the surface of the story; right from the start, the returning of Roman’s wallet symbolizes the adage, “No good deed goes unpunished”. Chuck Scott is a traumatized war veteran who can’t afford a decent meal while the wicked live in sun-dappled splendor; when Roman tells Scott he deserves a medal for being so honest, Scott replies “I already have one”. Eddie Roman’s world is an ugly one and his tentacles are far-reaching -women are backhanded for minor infractions, a man’s courage is tested just for kicks, and anyone that gets in the way is either shot, stabbed, or ripped apart by dogs. Capably directed by Arthur Ripley from a screenplay by Phillip Yordan, the standout in the cast is young Steve Cochran; his Eddie Roman is a dangerous, glassy-eyed psychopath devoid of human emotion.
Overall, THE CHASE is less than the sum of its parts -but some parts of it are 10/10! Not knowing too much about the plot can add immensely to the enjoyment of the film -so don’t go seeking more info until after you see it. The public domain DVD I have promises “Guaranteed 100% Hollyweird!” and that’s the truth but the print does have some scratches, blips, and bubbles. Apparently, VCI’s “restored” DVD isn’t much better; a scroll at the beginning states it’s the best that could be done considering the deteriorated original elements. Pick it up any way you can as the quality is probably going to be about the same no matter the source.
