Take Shelter

SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

Take Shelter (2011, with a title that fits our current situation) deals with the mental status of its main character. In doing so, it addresses what it’s like to be an outsider who is a frightening presence for those in the social mainstream. The story notes that paranoia and experiencing hallucinations can be signs of schizophrenia. But, sometimes someone who has an odd, nonconformist view may actually be insightful enough to have a vision of future events, similar to that of a prophet. The movie also appears to be making a statement about the dangers of human-induced climate change. Director and writer Jeff Nichols said that he was married and happy, but had a feeling outside his little world bad things were happening, and he wanted to tell a story that reflected that perception. 

The first shot of the movie, which takes place in Ohio, focuses on trees blowing, suggesting that the wind may be bringing in a change in the weather. Curtis (Michael Shannon, in a terrific performance) stares at the sky from his working-class house driveway, looking concerned. From behind his head the camera pictures what he sees, which are ominous, dark, dense clouds moving in. The image almost looks like the scene in The Ten Commandments where Moses parts the sea, suggesting something almost divine is occurring here also. He hears thunder rumbling, like the sound of an approaching monster. There is lightning, and then it begins to rain. But the drops are discolored, and he later describes them as thick and looking like motor oil (pollution, or is the storm a reference to the flood in the biblical Book of Genesis?). 

Curtis sits down for a routine breakfast with his wife, Samantha (Jessica Chastain), daughter Hannah (Tova Stewart), and their dog, Red. One aspect of this family is not average, since the daughter is deaf. Curtis uses his hands to say, “I love you,” to Hannah. His ability to read “signs” may also take on symbolic importance. Curtis must get to his job where he and co-worker, Dewart (Shea Whigham), run a drilling rig in a field. Dewart is ready to end the day’s labor because clouds are rolling in, which means a downpour will put an end to their work. Curtis says they have to keep at their task until quitting time. But it starts to rain, and this time Curtis didn’t heed the warning about a coming storm. The scene is foreshadowing of what is to come. 

There is a switch to three wives talking at Samantha’s house, and one woman, Dewart’s wife, Nat (Katy Mixon), says she went to a museum and saw the evolution “from apes to men.” She says that she “saw the future.” We have a reference to seeing what’s to come here. Nat says that the other woman’s baby will be like their husbands when he grows up, “shuffling in a bar.” She then glimpses Hannah playing with a piece of wood with a nail protruding from it, and Samantha runs out to warn her. There seems to be danger lurking here, emphasized by the thunder in the background. (There are many wide scenic shots to take in what is happening to the surrounding environment in the film).

After drinking at the local bar, an inebriated Dewart says he and Nat have been thinking about having a threesome. Curtis just starts laughing, because it is an outrageous notion for these guys who ride down the middle of society’s road when it comes to the rules of behavior. Curtis says he and Samantha would never do anything like that. Dewart says Curtis has “a good life,” and there is both respect and maybe envy in the compliment. That is why when he disrupts his world later it is so surprising to those who know Curtis. When he goes home, Curtis looks in on Hannah and Samantha joins him. She says that their daughter still doesn’t play with the other children because her outsider status makes it difficult to “connect.” He says that it’s strange that he still takes off his boots so he won’t wake her, and Samantha confesses that she still whispers, even though their daughter can’t hear anything. Their words imply that Hannah was able to hear at one time. But, these comments also show how people must fight their complacency and adapt to alternative ways of responding to reality as it changes.

Curtis has a nightmare of a threatening storm approaching as he tries to clean up the pile of trash with the dangerous piece of wood in it. A funnel cloud forms and Curtis is frightened. Their dog growls, breaks the rope that tethers him to the doghouse, and bites Curtis on the arm. Is the dream another warning? Later, Curtis can’t eat his breakfast and doesn’t want Hannah playing with the dog. He snaps angrily at Samantha when she questions his actions. After the nightmarish vision, the seams of that “good life” begin to unravel. There is a Steven Spielberg element here about ordinary people trying to deal with extraordinary circumstances.

Curtis’s boss Jim (Robert Longstreet) tells him that despite the weather, Curtis has to get the job done at the site. His order sounds like an example of arrogant humans trying to enforce their will onto nature. Curtis is distracted, rubbing his arm where he dreamed the dog bit him. His out-of-the-ordinary perceptions are distancing him from his usual everyday life. Despite the tight schedule to get their work duties completed, Curtis makes a stop at a home improvement store to buy supplies to confine the dog. Dewart gives him a look that shows he feels his friend's behavior is strange. (Actor Shea Whigham stated that the character of Curtis is like a storm himself, a “vortex,” who sucks everybody around him into his whirlwind and changes their lives). Curtis again looks at the sky at the work site and sees swarms of birds flying in odd patterns. When he mentions it to Dewart, his fellow worker doesn’t know what he is talking about. Curtis is on the path to becoming an outsider. 

Curtis gets home late from work, and his clothes are dirty and he needs a shower. But he and Samantha have to go to a school meeting for parents of deaf children. They joke about how badly he smells, but it is another example of how he is not fitting in even with those people who are different because of their children’s disability. 

Curtis has another nightmare that has him driving in (what else?) a storm with Hannah. He hits someone. Then there are footsteps on the roof of the car followed by men in hospital gowns (mental patients?) breaking the windows and dragging him and his daughter out. After he wakes up gasping, Samantha finds Curtis soaking wet from his dream. The dampness reflects what happened in his nightmare, so reality and illusion mix together. 

Curtis sets up a fence around Red’s doghouse, and puts the clueless animal inside. He checks out the storm cellar that has not been used for a long time, which shows he is thinking about the need to “take shelter,” both physically and mentally. Samantha wants her husband to explain why he confined Red. He has no logical explanation to give her which raises concern on her part and thus causes Curtis to become alienated even from his family. While she questions his action, Curtis is interested in a news story on the TV which reports on the deaths of some people due to a train wreck that caused a chlorine gas leak. Here is another example of the film inserting the theme of how negligent humans can be dangerous to the environment and, by extension, other people. Curtis is starting to become aware that individual disasters, or signs, may point to bigger catastrophes. Samantha, responding the way a majority of people would react, says in an unemotional voice about the deaths, “it’s awful.” The movie implies the horror of so many separate events becomes too taxing to fully enlist one’s empathy, so the individual usually develops an emotionally numbing defense mechanism to cope.

There is another storm outside the house. The audience at this point assumes it's a nightmare again. Curtis approaches his daughter who is kneeling on the couch while staring at the rain pelting the living room windows. As thunder crashes, there is a man outside staring into the window. He looks like one of the patient specters in his prior dream. There is a crashing sound, and then the furniture in the house seems to be rising in slow motion into the air before slamming back down onto the floor. The scene may remind one of what would happen if a tornado lifted the house up before releasing it, like in The Wizard of Oz, whose story was also supposed to be a dream. Curtis again wakes up struggling for air, which may allude to a demon succubus sitting on his chest, impairing his breathing. He has wet the bed, and is embarrassed, so when Samantha comes into the bedroom he yells at her to not get near him and just go to church. She is now upset by his “attitude” as she angrily leaves. His peculiar behavior is isolating him. He does admit to his usually stoical self that he needs to see a doctor since there is definitely something a bit scary going on with him. 

Curtis takes a ride to the library with Hannah while Samantha is at religious services, and checks out books on mental health. Even though he is looking for a reasonable, although upsetting reason for what is happening to him, Curtis also is worried about the omens he has been experiencing. So, he goes into survivor mode (we know about that) as he stops at the grocery store and stocks up on food and other supplies. He is late getting back for the Sunday family dinner. The meal begins without him with a prayer. When he does arrive home, Samantha’s father chastises Curtis for missing the church service. It’s possible Curtis might be having a unique religious experience of his own. He casually mentions how he wants to fix up the old storm cellar.

Curtis begins to clean up the shelter and stock it with canned food. He works into the night and is losing sleep. He is of two minds here, as he prepares for a disaster but also reads about psychological problems. He visits his family physician, Dr. Shannan (Ken Strunk), and reluctantly tells him that he can’t sleep because of bad dreams. He says after the one where the dog bit him he had pain in his arm all day. He also is honest about his urinating in the bed. The doctor asks if Curtis has seen his mother lately. It is here that we get the hint that his mother has a mental condition, and therefore, the doctor and Curtis are concerned about the disease being hereditary. Shannan gives him a sedative but wants Curtis to see a psychiatrist. 

Samantha gets the help of an insurance agent (Maryanne Nagel) to find a doctor who will accept her husband's health coverage to pay for a cochlear implant for Hannah. Samantha later says that she has been trying to call for aid for weeks. The woman notes that Curtis has very good insurance through his job, which will become an issue later. Even with the coverage, Curtis has an expensive co-payment for his medicine. The movie comments here on the plight of low-income people trying to deal with medical costs. 

Samantha is happy to give Curtis the news about the implant. The family seems cheerful and playful at dinner as they use Hannah’s crayons as makeup. Samantha has found a nice place for their vacation, and the smiles continue as Curtis takes his medicine and has a restful sleep, feeling better in the morning. But at work, Curtis asks Dewart about how much food someone needs to last a week, so he is still fixated on preparing for the destructive storm of his dreams. There is a loud crash of thunder that makes Curtis cringe, while Dewart doesn’t hear anything. The sky is clear, yet he still hears the thunderous sound, and Dewart looks at him suspiciously. Curtis runs off and vomits, and then he drives away. He pulls his pickup truck over because of a panic attack that makes him struggle to breathe again. Since all of what’s happening is shown from Curtis’s point of view, the audience starts to see what it must be like to question one’s sanity.

Given that questioning, Curtis visits his mother, Sarah (Kathy Baker), who resides in an apartment in an assisted living facility. Curtis wants to know what she experienced before she was diagnosed when he was only ten years old. She had the feeling of panic that her son is now experiencing, but she didn't have bad dreams. While talking in a whisper, she does admit that she thought others were spying on her, which suggests that she still feels that others are listening. 

Curtis calls Dr. Shannan for the name of a local person to see instead of the psychiatrist whose practice is a long distance away. He is calculating costs for his shelter renovation, so he probably doesn’t want to spend more funds on an expensive doctor. Also, he can’t afford to miss work and would have to divulge he was seeking help for mental problems if he had to travel far. Without telling Samantha, he takes out a risky loan with his house as collateral to finance his project. His obsession is becoming deceptive and reckless.

Curtis apologizes to Dewart at the drill site for running off, but his co-worker covered for him. They talk of mundane things like preparing food for a Lions Club supper, which contrasts with the extraordinary plight of Curtis. He tells Dewart he could use some help building his tornado shelter. He says he’ll work on a Saturday and borrow a backhoe and hauler from the company. Dewart has reservations as to whether Curtis should be using equipment that is owned by the company without permission. Curtis’s questionable behavior is now putting his friend’s job at risk. But, Dewart agrees to help his pal, although he asks him if he is feeling okay since he doesn’t want Curtis’s altered behavior to ruin that working-class “good life” he has. 

Curtis sees Kendra (LisaGay Hamilton), a local mental health counselor. He brought one of the library books with him and says he only has a couple of the symptoms for schizophrenia, and feels he doesn’t meet the diagnostic criteria. Based on his reading he thinks he’s having an acute psychotic episode. He wants to put it all behind him quickly and feels he can fix his problem with a pill. Kendra tells him she can’t prescribe medication, but she can help him talk about his problem and recommend where to go if he needs to see someone else. His mother was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in her thirties, and Curtis is just a little older than his mother was when she developed the condition. So, there is a strong likelihood that he may have inherited the disease despite Curtis’s resistance to the idea. He says his mother just left him in a car when he was ten. She was found eating out of a dumpster in another state. She has been in assisted living since then and his father, who recently passed away, raised him and his brother. Kendra wants to hear about the dreams, and supposedly that is what they continue to talk about.

While driving home at night, Curtis pulls over because he sees a lightning storm occurring. Cars whiz by as Samantha sleeps in the back seat. Curtis asks what we too are wondering when he says, “Is anybody seeing this?” His feeling of alienation increases when Samantha comes home with Hannah and finds Curtis, Dewart and a backhoe along with a large hole on the property. She and Dewart exchange puzzled expressions. When Curtis tries to calm her, Samantha walks away with the question we all are thinking, “Are you out of your mind?” Later when he confesses that he took out a home equity loan to pay for some of the cost, she is outraged that he didn’t consult her. She wants to understand all of this bizarre behavior, but he knows if he tells her the reason he thinks he is protecting them she might have him put away like his mother.

Curtis thinks that more sedatives will help, but he takes too many. He has a seizure during the night and bites the inside of his mouth, causing him to bleed. Samantha, scared, calls an ambulance. After he recovers, Curtis, trying to maintain a hold on his normal life and his sanity, tells the ambulance team that he’s fine and will follow-up with his doctor. The drive to not be looked upon as someone who can’t deal with individual problems is strong in the heartland of America. However, he feels he must be honest with his wife. He finally tells Samantha about his recent nightmares. The one that night involved Dewart looking different, with strange eyes, and the two of them fighting. Dewart swung a pickax which went through Curtis’s leg. He tries to explain that he has a feeling that something terrible is coming, and he promised himself that he would not leave his family, which is a reference to what his mother did. 

Curtis seems upset when his daughter’s ear operation isn’t for six weeks, probably because he thinks whatever catastrophe is approaching will be sooner than that. He is distracted at work as he watches Dewart. He asks Jim if he would reassign Dewart, because after his most recent dream he is having the same feeling about him that he had with Red. He continues to cover up his problem when he lies to Jim, saying it’s difficult being a boss to such a close friend. Jim also points out that Curtis has missed a lot of work, and Curtis again dodges the reason, saying it’s because of Hannah’s doctor visits.

As Curtis lowers the storage container he bought to extend the shelter, Nat tells Samantha that Dewart told her how strange Curtis has been acting. Samantha, also not wanting to admit any weaknesses in her home life, and trying to protect her husband from being ostracized by the community, says they are “fine.” She just wants to appear normal by dealing with everyday events, such as the Lions Club supper menu.

Curtis proceeds with his project, buying gas masks, and installing a ventilation system, a toilet, and water and sewage lines. While he is working, his older brother, Kyle (Ray McKinnon) comes by because Samantha wanted him to check up on Curtis. Ray mentions their mother, maybe thinking about how her mental illness is now possibly surfacing in Curtis. He asks Ray to take the dog because he is so afraid of what he saw in his dream. He won’t share with Ray what has been happening to him, distancing himself from his own brother, He does hug him and shakes his hand, and it almost looks like he might be saying goodbye if what he has seen comes true.

There is another storm vision, with a silent, staring Samantha, dripping wet in the kitchen. There is a fly buzzing (insects are never a good sign in scary movies) and she stares at a knife. Curtis looks back at her and slowly shakes his head, trying to tell her not to do anything violent. The next scene shows how Curtis is in a sort of trance at breakfast and jumps in fear when Samantha touches the arm where the dog bit him in the dream. His reaction connects his wife to Red and shows how the nightmares are doing a Freddy Krueger job on him. 

Jim shows up at Curtis’s house and fires him for using company equipment without permission. Dewart told Jim about the machinery after Curtis wanted his friend off his crew. Jim suspended Dewart for two weeks with no pay. Dewart probably felt betrayed since he was supposed to be Curtis’s friend and even helped him with his shelter. Curtis has sacrificed his income and medical coverage, threatening his daughter’s ear operation. When he tells Samantha he was fired, she smacks him and walks away with Hannah. His maniacal desire to protect his family has ironically put them in a precarious position. Curtis shows up with an appointment with Kendra who he has been seeing, and finds out she transferred to another job. There is a man taking her place and the new counselor wants to start all over again despite saying he looked over Curtis’s file. Curtis just shakes his head and walks out without saying anything. He must feel abandoned and truly on his own now since he lost the one objective person who tried to help him. 

Curtis can’t even look people in the face because he knows how odd his behavior has been and how he no longer fits in with those around him. He asks his wife if she is going to leave him. Samantha realizes he “flinched” when she touched him because she was a threatening presence in one of his dreams. But, despite his fear, he reaches his hand out to her to show he doesn’t want to lose her. She decides to stick by him, saying they’ll try to move Hannah's surgery up since they have two weeks of health insurance left. She says they won’t take their vacation, she’ll get a job, and he’ll get a new one. She wants him to see a psychiatrist, no matter the cost. But the film’s point here is that they have to worry about money to take care of their health. She says, despite his feeling that he doesn’t belong, that she wants him to go to the Lions Club supper because she wants to feel “normal” for a change. There’s that urge to fit in, to feel comforted by belonging to a community, even though some of the members may judge those who present nonconformist behavior.

Samantha does not get her wish. At the supper, Dewart confronts Curtis, asking him why he is there. Curtis’s revealing statement is, “I’m not here,” which shows he is, to use a variation on a Coen brothers’ title, the man who isn’t there, a ghost of his prior self, an outcast. Dewart is angry for how Curtis removed him from his team and starts to hit Curtis. After they fight, Curtis lets out all the bottled-up fear and pressure inside him and explodes like a raving prophet. He sounds like an evangelist preacher as he turns over one of the dinner tables and yells that there is a storm coming, “like nothing you've ever seen, and not a one of you is prepared for it.” He warns that it will end them. The fierceness of his outburst frightens everyone there, including Hannah. Curtis cries when he sees that he even scared his daughter. The people there now must think his unbalanced mind is a threat to the town’s equilibrium.

Curtis has another nightmare which has thunder in the background while those black birds appear again and swarm in the sky and then descend and zip around him as he holds Hannah. There are sirens blasting in the background. But the dream blends into reality here since the warning sounds are real. Samantha wakes up Curtis and they get Hannah and head for the storm shelter. Once inside he turns on a lantern and locks the doors. He has gas masks (probably remembering the news story about the chlorine gas) for him and Samantha, and an oxygen tank with a mask that fits Hannah. They sleep on cots he acquired. Is this the danger that Curtis anticipated?

When Curtis wakes up he is upset that his wife and daughter don't have masks on. Samantha says the air is fine and he has to open the doors since the storm is over. He is terrified, and his fear is palpable as he worries that the danger still exists. He seems paranoid and looks suspiciously at Samantha, not believing her, and imagines that he still hears the storm. She has to continually reassure him that the threat has ended. Unconvinced, he even asks Hannah if she feels the thunder, which she doesn’t. Curtis wants Samantha to open the doors, as he hands her the key with a trembling hand. But she tells him he has to do it so he “can stay” with them. That is, he can still belong to something else, something real, and not exist alone in his own fears. He finally opens the doors and the weather is now fine. Repairmen are fixing an electric pole and neighbors pick up overturned patio furniture. But that is it, and Curtis finally admits that “it’s fine.” 

Curtis, accompanied by Samantha, seeks treatment from the psychiatrist (Jeffrey Grover) that his family doctor recommended. He says Curtis should get away from the shelter for a while. It is sort of a way of stopping him from returning to the womb of his fear of what’s outside. To that end, Samantha suggests that they go on their annual vacation to Myrtle Beach. The psychiatrist also prescribes inpatient therapy when Curtis returns. 

At the seashore, the seagulls are flying and the calming waves are washing up on the shore. As Samantha cooks dinner inside their rented condo, Curtis plays in the sand with Hannah. It is interesting that they are building a sandcastle with a moat around it. It’s possible Curtis is still thinking about the need for a safe place in case danger approaches. Hannah gets up and stares off into the distance. She signs that there is something out there. Curtis instinctively picks up Hannah to protect her and stares off into the ocean. As Samantha slowly, possibly with dread, walks out of the condo, the gathering black clouds are reflected in the glass of the patio doors and there are multiple tornadoes approaching. Outside, the polluted rain that Curtis pictured now falls onto Samantha’s hands. Curtis looks at his wife to confirm the terrible truth that what is happening is real, not a manifestation of mental illness. She nods, which vindicates her husband’s prophetic visions, but that confirmation means an even more horrible truth is upon them. It is ironic that in an attempt to save himself and his family from his supposedly exaggerated fears, Curtis left the safety of his home just at the time when he needed to take shelter.

The next film is The Third Man.

The Asphalt Jungle

SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

Turner Classic Movies had a Sterling Hayden night, so after last week’s The Killing, I’m following up with another crime movie starring the actor. The Asphalt Jungle (1950), was directed by John Huston, who also co-wrote the screenplay. The title of the film obviously implies that the supposedly civilized paved environment of a U. S. city contains all of the wild dangers that lurk in a remote forested locale. The titles appear over the brick-laden ground of a dingy, rundown city which shows how the hardness of the topography mirrors life there. 

A police car appears which shows the need to guard this environment. The cops are looking for an armed man. Dix Handley (Hayden) evades the cops as he goes to a dive restaurant run by a man with a deformed back, Gus Minissi (James Whitmore), who hides Dix’s revolver in the cash register drawer. The image suggests that there is the threat of violence hidden beneath the surface of life here. The policemen come in and search Dix as Gus adds to the ruse by acting as if he doesn’t know his old friend, Dix. Gus is knowledgeable enough to demand a search warrant before the cops go over his place. They arrest Dix on the charge of vagrancy, which is just an invented reason to bring him in, since the man was simply sitting at the counter.

The arresting cops tell Lt. Ditrich (Barry Kelley) that Dix served time for dealing in illegal firearms and escaped prison once. They put Dix in a lineup before other cops and a witness to a robbery with two other men who do not fit in with society. One who was suspected of murder and the other for attempting suicide. The men don’t look alike and one is short. Ditrich pressures the witness to pick Dix, saying the man said he saw a tall fellow with a brown suit and a wide-brimmed hat. The lineup is obviously rigged to get the witness to identify Dix, but the man looks afraid and won’t go along with the sham. Dix reveals a sly smile, knowing he’ll get off, since fear is a potent weapon. Ditrich is then told to report to Police Commissioner Hardy (John McIntire). 

Hardy comes down hard on Ditrich because of all the crimes committed in the area under the man’s jurisdiction. Ditrich says that they believe Dix is behind a great deal of the larceny, but the witness backed down. Hardy, who doesn't care about following the rule of law to get desired results, angrily tells his lieutenant to lock up the witness until he gives them what they want. He tells Ditrich to destroy the places that conduct small-time gambling operations, although Ditrich implies that the betting is a harmless vice. Hardy points out that Ditrich’s men failed to tail a dangerous convict, Doc Erwin Ridenschneider (Sam Jaffe), after he was released from prison that day. (The Coen Brothers pay homage to this film by giving the same last name to Tony Shalhoub’s lawyer in The Man Who Wasn’t There). Harsh Hardy continues his intimidation by threatening Ditrich with demotion or being brought up on charges if he doesn’t do better dealing with the criminals. We have here the first examples of the fine line between legal and illegal behavior.

A taxicab brings Doc to a neighborhood that the driver, Charles Wright (Benny Burt) warns is so scary a person could get killed just for a “clean shirt.” The menacing jungle metaphor of the film title definitely works here. Doc wants to see Cobby (Marc Lawrence), who is very respectful when he realizes who his visitor is. Doc, who has a German accent (could the film be invoking left-over WWII animosity here?), says he has a job that can net at least a half a million dollars. Doc needs fifty thousand dollars to bankroll the operation and wants Cobby to connect him to Alonzo Emmerich (Louis Calhern) for the funding. While Cobby makes a call, Doc, who appears prim and proper in his appearance, is really sleazy underneath that facade, as he looks at the sexy, scantily dressed women depicted on Cobby’s wall calendar. Dix, who doesn’t pretend to be anyone but his raw self, walks in at that moment. When Cobby returns, Dix wants to place a bet on a horse race. Cobby tells Dix he is reaching the limit he owes, and Dix is intimidating as he won’t take any of Cobby’s dismissive attitude. After he walks out, Doc asks about Dix, apparently interested in Dix’s toughness. Cobby tells Doc he can meet Emmerich later.

Dix is back at the restaurant, and Gus is feeding a cat. A customer who drives a truck is combative with Gus, saying how he hates cats and runs them over when he sees them. After he calls Gus “Humpty Dumpty,” Gus gets off good, tough lines when he says, “You’re just passing through, only not fast enough. If I ever see you running over a cat, I’ll kick your teeth out.” Gus then physically throws the man out. Despite his toughness, Gus at least has a soft spot for animals, showing a humane side to him. Gus also shows concern for his friend as he says he won’t give Dix back his gun because he’s trying to protect him since the police are cracking down on people like Dix. Dix trusts his old friend and lets his pal hold onto the gun. He does ask him for the $2,300 he owes Cobby, because he says he would lose self-respect if he looked like he was welching on the bookie. Dix, too, has a certain code, as many of the dark characters in film noir films do. Gus tells Dix to go home for his own safety. He tells him he’ll get him the money and encourages Dix, in stylized film noir language, “don’t get your flag at half-mast.” 

After Dix leaves, Gus makes a call to Louis Ciavelli (Anthony Caruso) and bullies the man into trying to help acquire the money Dix needs. Louis is upset by being pressured and tells Gus he is, “a low-down, dirty scum, to talk to me like that!” It is the first of several uses of the word “dirty” or anything that is filthy to refer to the city and its inhabitants. Louis appears troubled as he looks at his half-asleep wife, Maria (Teresa Celli) rocking their crying baby. The scene shows the pressure on average people with families who go back and forth over the no-man’s-land between the criminals and the cops to survive.

Doll Conovan (Jean Hagen), her first name sounding like a plaything or a condescending term which men called women, shows up at Dix’s place. She is upset because the police closed the club where she worked. She begins to cry as she points out the unfortunate coincidence that she lost her job on her payday. She shows up with a suitcase and offers many apologies for coming over so late. She seems vulnerable and it looks like she wants Dix to help her out. She finally asks in a halting manner if she can stay for a bit, and he agrees. But he tells her not to “get any ideas,” making sure she doesn’t think she can entangle him in any romantic commitment.

Doc meets with Emmerich, who turns out to be a corrupt lawyer who defends criminals. He is the film’s prime example of a crook with a legitimate cover. Doc says the actual merchandise, precious jewels, will amount to one million dollars, for which they will be able to clear half a million through a fence. Doc says he needs financing, men, and a way to dispose of the take. Cobby recommends Louis as the “box” man (a safecracker), but they also require a driver, and a “hooligan,” a violent person who will provide the muscle. Doc wants to fence the stolen goods in the Midwest, but Emmerich offers to contact people he knows who would be interested in the merchandise. He calls them very “respectable” men. The discrepancy between outer legitimacy and inner corruption is again stressed. Doc doesn't seem to like this first deviation from his plan, but the quickness of acquiring the money probably appeals to him. Doc’s preoccupation with women comes out once more when he says he will go to Mexico after the caper and chase after females there. This fantasy illustrates Doc’s version of the paradise he wants to escape to. Doc is a career criminal whose motive is to have cash, but he wants to use it for sexual gratification.

After the men leave, Emmerich approaches the sleeping Angela (an early role for Marilyn Monroe), whose heavenly name may be inappropriate since she is having an affair with Emmerich. She calls him “Uncle,” probably because it was part of an act to present the respectable appearance of a family relationship. He calls her “some sweet kid,” but she moves like quite an adult woman. She kisses him before going to her bedroom, and looks seductively at him as she closes the door. Emmerich then calls Bob Brannom (Brad Dexter) while he lasciviously fondles Angela’s high heel shoe. Emmerich wants Brannom, a private investigator, to collect debts from people who owe Emmerich money so he can finance the robbery.

Gus calls Dix in the morning to say he has something for him, which is obviously the money for the betting debts. Doll heard Dix talk in his sleep, and he said, “Corn Cracker,” which Dix says was the name of a horse his family owned, “a tall black colt.” He dreamt that he stuck with riding the animal even though it banged him around, and his family was proud of the way he rode. He says, in reality, the horse threw him, and his father was disappointed in him, which shows how life doesn’t always live up to the expectations viewed in one’s dreams. It may also indicate why Dix set out to show he can be tough. What follows also shows how an idyllic existence can turn into a tragic one. Dix is nostalgic about how he grew up on a large farm with many horses, and the property was part of a rich family history. Then things went badly quickly. His father died, they lost the corn crop, and the colt broke his leg and was put down. When he and his brother had to leave their home, he swore he would get his old life back by making enough money to buy back the land. But, instead of riding horses, he bet on them, and lost what he saved. He keeps thinking his luck has to change (just like in last week’s The Killing, plans have a tendency to go wrong). He says he would like to return to the farm and wash off the “city dirt,” (Another instance of the word used to describe the unsavory life here). His story fits into the American myth that idealizes the frontier as a new Garden of Eden and paints the city as an evil place. So we have Dix’s motivation for committing crime, as he has fallen out of paradise and is trying to buy his way back in. He keeps ignoring Doll, dismissing her concerns, as she mentions how she, unlike him, didn’t even have an upbringing worth remembering. 

Dix throws the cash he owes at Cobby, saying he doesn’t like being humiliated in front of a stranger as before. His actions and attitude demonstrate that Dix carries the scars of being criticized as a youth and losing his family’s reputable standing. Cobby is probably afraid of the volatile Dix and is quite congenial now. He tells Dix that he should hold onto his money and then Cobby will tip him off when to bet on a fixed race. Corruption is fairly pervasive here, as in other film noir stories. Doc arrives just as Dix is leaving. When Cobby says he wishes Dix wasn’t so angry about his debt, Doc rightly assesses that paying a debt may be a matter of pride for Dix, who, as we know, lost his farm because of being debt-ridden. Doc discovered that Emmerich, despite those misleading appearances, actually did not have much money, so Doc is naturally concerned. Ditrich shows up and we see that he is also in league with the bookies, as the line between the law and the outlaw has become blurred. Ditrich says he was never officially there at Cobby’s place and therefore didn’t see Doc. He tells Cobby that for purposes of appearances (that word again) he must do a raid on Cobby’s locale to satisfy his boss. Cobby slips him a bribe and talks Ditrich out of the plan. Doc tells Cobby after the cop leaves that he doesn’t trust policemen because one never knows when they will return to being “legit.” Here is another reference to the tendency to easily stray over that legal line.

Just as Brannom shows up at Emmerich’s place, the butler says that Mrs. Emmerich is not feeling well. The philandering Emmerich shows that he is not a very caring husband, and says he’ll check in on her later. Brannom tells Emmerich that only a few people were willing to repay some of the debt owed. Emmerich is desperate to be part of the heist because he is actually broke. His agitation makes it seem that he is out of his league as a crook. But when he admits to Brannom he is bankrupt, he then reveals his plot to rob the jewels, and how he will try to get all of the loot for himself. He will say that by being the person to contact the fences, he can hold onto the stolen goods. He will then leave the country with the jewels, platinum, and gold. Even Brannom compliments him on his double-crossing skills. But Emmerich needs the fifty thousand dollars to buy in. Emmerich is willing to split the take fifty-fifty with Brannom, who has a plan (everybody has a plan, but as we have heard they often “go awry”) to get the money out of Cobby. There is no honor among thieves here. 

Doc and Cobby interview Louis, who is an accomplished safecracker. As Cobby counts out the upfront cash for Louis, he starts to perspire. Cobby says that money makes him “sweat.” His lack of cool steadiness in a situation that is stressful does not bode well for the robbery. Louis says there is only one man who is worth hiring as a driver and that is his friend, Gus. As for the “hooligan,” Doc thinks Dix is a “determined man” who is also smart. Since Dix is a friend of Gus, Doc wishes to hire Dix. Louis talks tough, but he cares about his family and wants to get back home because his baby has another cold. He is one of those individuals who goes back and forth over that line that separates respectable people from social transgressors. He is proud to show family pictures. He said he told his wife not to take the sick child outside because, “if you want fresh air, don’t look for it in this town.” His remarks mirror Dix’s statement about wanting to wash the “city dirt” off of him, and fits in with the city versus the country theme mentioned earlier. The intelligent Doc figures out that it is Cobby’s money being used to finance the job and Cobby admits that it is. Brannom lied to Cobby, saying that Emmerich didn’t want the transaction to show up on his records, and promised to pay him back later, after they scored the jewels. Here we have a deception, the covering up of Emmerich’s lack of funds, hiding another deception, Emmerich and Brannom’s plot to re-steal the robbed jewels. When Doc asks Cobby if he’s worried about Emmerich, Cobby hesitates and gives a tepid “No” for an answer. It’s another indication that there are cracks in the foundation of this operation.

Doll is packed and tells Dix a friend of hers will let her stay at her apartment since she is leaving town. Dix looks like he now will actually miss Doll. He offers her some money, but Doll says he has done enough. All she asks for is a kiss goodbye. As she heads down the stairs he calls out to her. Doll’s face lights up, as if she hopes Dix will ask her to stay. He says he wants her address so he can contact her (which will occur later under unfortunate circumstances). Her disappointment chases the smile off of her face and she leaves. Cobby calls Dix and sets up a meeting. Doc tells Dix, Louis, and Gus his plan, then meets with Dix alone afterwards. Doc’s instincts are accurate again as he tells Dix he doesn’t trust Emmerich. He wants to ensure that when they deliver the goods to Emmerich to be fenced that they receive their payout right then, suggesting that he doesn’t want Emmerich to take off with the jewels. But despite his perceptiveness, Doc continues to keep Emmerich in the game instead of cutting him out since Cobby is now doing the financing. This decision is a fatal flaw in Doc’s otherwise thoroughly devised plan.

Emmerich prepares to escape, not only from his financial worries but also from his ailing wife, May (Dorothy Tree). She calls to him from her bed, wanting attention, but he just wants to leave, telling her she can call the help if she needs anything. But, she wants affection and caring, and the selfish Emmerich provides neither. He won’t even stay to play cards with her, stating that business takes precedence.

Louis goes through a manhole to an underground passage to gain access to the site where the robbery will take place. The subterranean image is another example of how the true nature of what is happening hides below the outward appearance of things. Louis breaks through a wall and opens the building door to let the other men in. They avoid the electric safety beam protecting the vault. Louis blows up the heavy metal outer door and gets to work on the inner safe. But, despite Doc’s meticulous foresight, there are unforeseen events that result from the crew’s actions. The explosion causes alarms to go off in other nearby establishments, which is then followed by the sound of police sirens approaching. The crooks gain some time since the police must check out the locations where the alarms went off. After taking the jewels, they head out, but there is someone at the door. Dix grabs the guard and knocks him out. But, the man’s gun hits the floor, goes off, and the bullet hits Louis. They go out through the hole in the wall, enter the underground passage, and exit through the manhole, carrying Louis. Gus wants to take Louis to a doctor, but Louis, the family man, wants to go home.

Emmerich and Brannom wait for the others to arrive. Emmerich, a nervous money man like Cobby, frets over the tardiness of the robbers. Brannom is like the thieves, a man taking risks while those that hire them wait in the background. Brannom says that he used to lack confidence until he realized those with the money had “front, nothing but front.” In other words, behind the facade of these wealthy types there is no real strength to rely on once those supposedly strong appearances start to crumble. 

Doc and Dix arrive. Both of them don’t like the surprise appearance of Brannom. Emmerich, following his own scheme, says that he needs a couple of days to secure the cash from his contacts. Doc complains that it is dangerous for him to carry around the large bag of jewels. His statement leads right into Emmerich saying his house is a safe place to stash the goods, but he knows enough not to insist, saying it’s up to Doc to decide what to do. Both Doc and Dix are wary, and Brannom decides to jump the gun by pulling one out. Emmerich is upset, because now his plot, too, is not going according to plan. In a good film noir line, Brannom says that if Dix makes a move, “he’ll never pitch another fork full of manure,” a condescending comment about Dix’s past. Dix tries to throw Brannom off guard by saying the man has the upper hand. When Doc tosses the bag to Brannom, he and Dix exchange shots. The bullet that hits Brannom is instantly fatal while Dix takes one in the side. Emmerich demonstrates that lack of internal fortitude Brannom mentioned by whimpering. Dix yells at Emmerich, saying he has no “guts” for the double-cross he tried. Dix asks him, “what’s inside, what’s keeping you alive?” Doc stops Dix from shooting Emmerich, because he has a proposition for Emmerich. He wants him to approach the company that insures the jewels and ask for 25% of their worth so that the company can save paying out the entire amount. Emmerich agrees, which again shows that corruption occurs on both sides of the line separating the forthright illegal world and the hypocritical for-appearances-only legal one.

But the illegal actions of the criminals also spill over into the lives of the innocent. At Louis’s apartment, Maria lashes out at Gus as she rejects the man’s attempt to cheer her up about Louis’s chances of survival. When Gus gets near her baby boy, Maria yells at him to stay away, suggesting that the danger in his presence is infectious. Gus told her that her husband was in a fight, but Maria sees through this latest lie. She accuses Gus as the one who always gets Louis into trouble, and makes a reference to his deformed back, suggesting that it is an outer indication of internal corruption. She apologizes afterwards, and Gus says he was born with the humpback, “I didn’t grow it myself.” His deformity becomes a symbol for the burdens some inherit due to forces beyond their control, such as poverty, death, or illness, which is what occurred in the situations involving Dix and Louis. There are sirens in the background, and Maria equates the sounds with what would emerge from “a soul in hell.” The wailing seems to be a lament for what is happening and a warning signal for the bad times that will occur. 

Emmerich dumps Brannom’s body off a waterfront. While Dix tends to his bullet wound, the distraught Cobby wonders, “How can things go so wrong?” It's the futility in trying to master the many variables which are beyond one’s control that can lead to chaos that is at the heart of this film, and last week’s The Killing. Gus calls Dix and warns him that the cops are combing the area so they should hide out at the store owned by Eddie Donato (Alberto Morin) because that man’s neighborhood seems like a nice area and the police won’t bother them there. Here is another attempt to hide behind reputed respectability. 

At Donato’s place, Doc gets a call from Cobby saying Emmerich was able to make a deal with the insurance company. Emmerich now plays cards with his grateful wife. He probably has been shaken by events and is retreating emotionally to that which he can rely upon. However, his feeling of security does not last long as two policemen, Andrews (Don Haggerty) and Janocek (James Seay) arrive. Brannom’s body was found in the river with a bullet hole through his “pumper,” (a good noir word). The police found blood at the jewelry establishment and since Brannom was found dead shortly thereafter, the cops suspect a connection. They also found on Brannom a list of names on Emmerich’s stationary. Emmerich is able to explain how Brannom was attempting to collect debts for him and assures the cops that Brannom wouldn’t get involved in a robbery as Emmerich attempts to distance himself from the heist. For his alibi, Emmerich says he was with Angela the night before. After the policemen depart, Emmerich calls Angela to make sure she backs up his story, saying it has to do with “good old dirty politics.” The figurative filth of the city is noted again here. Emmerich returns to his wife’s bed, but she notes he looks upset. He tells her about the shooting death of an employee. She says she worries about him because he has defended so many criminals. He tells her those who commit unlawful acts are not that different from the rest of the population. He says, “Crime is only a left-handed form of human endeavor.” Earlier, Louis said he didn’t like Dix because he was like a left-handed baseball pitcher, having “a screw loose.” The Latin word for left is “sinister,” which has come to indicate something dangerous. So, the film is saying that there are two parts to each individual, the good and the bad, the lawful and the unlawful, just as there are two hands attached to the same body. And, there is the potential for anybody to cross over from the Dr. Jekyll side to the Mr. Hyde one. 

Doc is again ruminating about those beautiful women in Mexico. He wants to buy his way back into the good life there. He notes the altitude as being eight thousand feet. It’s as if he wants to rise above everything by having descended into crime to do it. He asks Dix if he wants to go there. Dix, as he said earlier, just wants to go home to be on the farm again. Doc says there’s “nothing” there. Doc, who looks elegant on the outside, has an emptiness inside. Dix the “hooligan” is the one who has something still pure at his center, the desire to return to the paradise he was expelled from despite how far he has traveled away from it. Eddie brings a newspaper that has Doc’s picture on it and a story that says that they are offering a bounty for the convict. Dix warns Eddie to keep his mouth shut about knowing them, but it is noteworthy that Dix and Doc leave to keep their host safe. Doc expects to be able to unload the jewels the next day. However, there are a number of people trying to see the police commissioner who have said they saw Doc, looking to cash in on the reward money, and revealing how greedy everyone can be.

Doc and Dix try to stay at a railroad yard, but there is a cop there who recognizes Doc. There is a struggle, and Dix knocks the man out, but not before he hits Doc on the head. Dix has to drag Doc away. Dix and Doc go to where Doll is staying (a lot of D names here). Even Doc now complains about how odd things, like the burglar alarms going off and the gun firing when it hit the floor, messed up his hours of trying to plan the robbery down to the last detail. He calls them “blind accidents,” things that can’t be foreseen. But, he admits he knew that dealing with Emmerich was wrong, but “greed blinded” him. In this case his selfishness eclipsed the power of his reason. So we have those negative external factors over which there is no control (like Gus’s deformity, Louis’s child’s illness, and those listed by Doc), and those of our own making. Doll asks Dix if there is a reward out for Doc, to which Dix says, “Mind your own business,” since he doesn’t want Doll to get any ideas about turning the man in. The implication is greed can be anywhere. 

Lt. Andrews tells Commissioner Hardy that Angela vouched for Emmerich. Hardy is disgusted by the married Emmerich getting involved with such a young woman. But he says that he expects such disreputable behavior from Emmerich, an “educated man who uses his brains to circumvent the law.” Hardy’s observation here mirrors what Emmerich already observed about how admirable and contemptible behavior can go hand-in-hand. The cab driver who picked up Doc is brought in and he tells Hardy he dropped the crook off at Cobby’s place. He identifies Doc when Hardy hands him a photo. One of the men in Hardy’s office recognizes the address the cabby stated and says that it was the location of a bookie. Hardy calls Lt. Ditrich to get a search warrant for Cobby’s address (one that the crooked Dietrich already knows). Officer Janocek now informs Hardy about the policeman who was injured when he recognized Doc at the railroad barn. Hardy says they’ll close in on the area where Doc was seen.

Ditrich works the politics of the situation and figures that he’ll be recognized for breaking the case if he finds Doc. He tries to get information on Doc’s whereabouts from Cobby, who pleads ignorance about the robbery and the location of Doc. Ditrich says he can make a deal where Cobby will get a short jail sentence if he testifies, but Cobby counters by saying he’ll inform the police that Ditrich was accepting bribes. The weak Cobby breaks down after some slapping around inflicted by the cop. The scene reveals how these two men have only one concern in mind, their own self-interest. 

Emmerich asks Angela if she would like to get away to some exotic locale, and she excitedly picks Cuba. Emmerich wants her out of town to, what else, protect his own skin so the cops won’t try to get the truth out of her about his phony alibi. But, the wish to leave is another example in the film of the desire to escape the metaphorical dirt of the city. Hardy shows up with Andrews and other cops to arrest Emmerich since Cobby gave Ditrich a confession. Angela, using her beauty as a tool for her selfish needs, tries to seduce Andrews, but the policeman urges her to tell the truth about Emmerich’s false alibi. Emmerich shows some generosity when he urges Angela to tell the truth, and afterwards comforts her by saying she’ll have many trips in her future. He says he would like to get in touch with his wife. He starts to write a suicide note to her, and realizes the futility of trying to apologize for his actions. He takes a gun out of a desk drawer and chooses suicide as the punishment for his crimes.

The fallout from the operation blowing up in the perpetrators’ faces continues. The police bring Gus into the jail where Cobby already resides. Gus reaches for Cobby through the cell bars for being a “fink,” threatening him with death once the word gets out that he betrayed his fellow crooks, which is a sort of code of law among the lawbreakers. The deal with the insurance company fell through with Emmerich’s death. Doc asks for some cash from Dix to get out of town after Dix declines the offer to go with him. Dix has plans to return to Kentucky, to escape the city that has been part of his moral downfall. Dix won’t even take any of the stolen gems since he has no connections to fence the merchandise. He even refuses the five grand that would be part of the money acquired when Doc sells the goods. Despite what has happened, he’s still making plans. Even Doll refuses a single stone, as if contact with it may contaminate her with the greed disease. 

Doc gets a cab and luck is with him as the driver is from Germany. He persuades the man with a big tip to take him all the way to Cleveland, saying they can stop along the way for a nice meal. In contrast to that pleasurable getaway, Dix’s wound has started bleeding again as he plans on driving out of town in a car that Doll has acquired despite all the policemen in the area. She sees he is in no condition to drive, and insists that she go with him. He says he doesn’t “get it,” as to why she would risk being with him. He has been on his own for so long, just looking out for himself that he has difficulty understanding that love involves self-sacrifice. 

At the restaurant where Doc has stopped, he sees a very young, pretty girl, the object of his lustful obsession, complaining that her date doesn’t have enough money to show her a good time. The young man doesn’t have change to play the jukebox so she can dance. The lascivious Doc sees a monetary opening to watch the girl dance suggestively. Afterwards, there are cops outside who stop him and find the jewels hidden in his coat. When Doc asks how long they have been out there, one of the policemen says two to three minutes, which Doc notes is the length of a song on a record. He realizes he lingered there too long to indulge himself, as his weakness for sexual indulgence (just like his greed) betrayed him.

Dix passes out in the car at a railroad crossing. Doll finds a local doctor, who sees that Dix suffered from a gunshot wound. The physician calls the local sheriff, but Dix regains consciousness and hears the phone conversation. He grabs Doll and gets back to the car and they drive off. Meanwhile, Hardy holds a press conference, where he notes that Lt. Ditrich’s complicity in illegal activity has been exposed. Hardy uses the movie’s metaphor for crime in the city when he says of some corrupt cops, “the dirt they’re trying to clean up is bound to rub off on some of them.” Hardy turns on the police radio’s various channels that report crimes. He says the communications are “cries for help.” He says people are “being cheated, robbed, murdered, raped,” and it is happening 24/7. He says, “It’s the same in every city in the modern world.” He describes a dystopian present, not future, and suggests that they must tolerate the existence of bad cops since if they give up on those that do try to fight society’s predators, then, “the jungle wins.” Hardy says that only one man remains to be caught, “a man without human feeling or human mercy.” But, Hardy doesn’t allow for the pervasiveness of the corruption of the so-called legitimate lawbreakers who hide their crimes. And, as we have seen, Dix has many sides to his personality, and is not the “hardened killer” Hardy described, as he shot Brannom in self-defense.

Dix is delirious now as he drives through the Kentucky farmland, and he says that if his father would just hold onto the “black colt” (which we know died a long time ago) everything will be okay. He reaches the ranch where he grew up, wanders onto the fields, but collapses and dies. Two horses, appropriately, come up to him, nuzzling Dix, as if tucking him in for his eternal sleep. He tried to return to his American Eden. But as F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote about another fallen criminal wanting to reclaim the idealized past at the end of The Great Gatsby, “his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it, He did not know that it was already behind him, somewhere in that vast obscurity beyond the city. Where the dark fields of the republic rolled on under the night.”

The next film is Take Shelter.