Day 22: The Most Underrated [Noir] Movie

This is getting tougher and tougher as I try not to reuse films. The Big Combo is definitely my first choice here. Many people don’t even know it. So I’ll pop for another rarely discussed noirish film and one of my favorites:

NO WAY OUT (1950)

Poster - No Way Out (1950)_01

I’ve written about this gem multiple times (here, for instance), and its focus on racism is as timely as ever. Sydney Poitier is brilliant as a young black doctor in a white hospital facing prejudice and the particularly vicious racism of the brother of a man who died under the doctor’s care. That vicious racist is played by none other than noir’s greatest villain, Richard Widmark. And Linda Darnell steals the show as the heart of the film, a poor young woman faced with changing long held views. It’s equal parts social problem film, suspense flick, and noir, but it’s definitely underappreciated and worth your time!