☆ ☆ ☆ ½
T-Men (1947) – A. Mann
John Alton was one
of noir’s great cinematographers and his work on T-Men for director Anthony
Mann is a good example. Shadows are everywhere here, with some scenes nearly
pitch black. The film falls into the category of noirs that aimed to tell “true
stories” under the auspices of U. S. Government agencies, often the FBI but
here the Treasury Department (the “T” in T-Men). We begin with a brief introduction
by an official before launching into a procedural look at an attempt to
infiltrate a counterfeiting ring (complete with matter-of-fact narration;
Dragnet was not far off). Dennis O’Keefe and Alfred Ryder play the title
characters who go undercover, first in Detroit and then in L. A., to find out
who is making new bills on impossibly good paper (discovered to come from
Shanghai, eventually). They have access
to some high-quality engraved plates, retrieved from another counterfeiter now
in prison, to give them credibility and to help them to get access to the big
boss of the ring. Of course, things don’t always go to plan. A solid outing for Mann and Alton who made a run
of noirs together (and separately) in the late Forties.
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