Tuesday's Forgotten Films: The Big Heat

This 1953 cop film directed by the stylish Fritz Lang is considered one of the heavyweights in the film noir genre for good reason. It is very well done. The film is based on the 1952 William P. McGivern cop novel which I have not read but should. I've read a few of McGivern's other titles like Rogue Cop and his later title Night Of The Juggler and liked them. The Big Heat stars Glenn Ford as the hard-nosed, relentless Det. Sgt. Dave Bannion who investigates a fellow cop's alleged suicide due to a serious illness. Ford is also a family man, so we get to see the human side of the cop which gives his character more depth. Also of great interest is the young Lee Marvin as the sadistic thug Vince Stone. The talented Gloria Grahame plays his gun moll and girlfriend. There is a surprising amount of violence (but pretty tame by today's standards) for a 1953 picture. Glenn Ford (d. 2006) was an underrated actor from Hollywood's Golden Age. IMDb.com rates The Big Heat as 8.0/10.0 which strikes me as an even-handed assessment.