MamaGravity good back-story, and good acting

Teringer An Exercise In Nonsense

Dirtylogy It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Matylda Swan It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

writers_reign Just as Jacques Tourneur and Val Lewton gave us a horror film without any horror in Cat People so we have a thriller without any thrills in Pitfall. What it does have is a highly believable married couple in Dick Powell and Jane Wyatt, a Machiavellian villain in Raymond Burr and the cliché 'bad' girl with a heart in Lizbeth Scott. Had he seen Double Indemnity and had the sense he was born with Dick Powell would have run a mile from the insurance business in Los Angeles cause it's dollars to donuts you're bound to run into a Barbara Stanwyck or, as in this case, Lizbeth Scott and wind up behind the eight ball. In this case we have two adults- Powell and Scott - dealing maturely with the situation but the psychotic Burr keeps frustrating them. Excellent 'B' picture.

MisterWhiplash It's strange to think that Dick Powell, who was in many light comedies over the years and movies that you could take anyone age 2 to 82 to, was a fairly good fit for film noir. Was he Robert Mitchum or Sterling Hayden? No (but then who is), and he needed to be right for the project. He somehow made for an entertaining and surprisingly fun to watch Marlowe in Murder, My Sweet, and in Pitfall he takes on the role of an insurance investigator and does his own bit the same way Fred MacMurray did his in Double Indemnity. Like that film there is 'hanky panky' and deceit and murder, but there are different stakes and the tone is less constantly jokey and more based in a subdued, almost sad reality.Powell's insurance man is just down about his life in general, not that he doesn't love his wife and son but he has to go to the same job every day and do the same dreary things. There's some snappy dialog (though delivered in a more casual tone, think more Alan Rickman if he was American), and it's mostly in the first twenty minutes as we get the set up: John Forbes has to look at the money situation of Miss Mona Stevens (Lizbeth Scott in a voice that basically breathes smoke, if that makes sense), and the two sort of hit it off (it helps when one of them, guess who, has a boat that she's trying not to tell anyone about). The rub comes with two things: a private eye who was once a cop (Raymond Burr cuts an imposing figure, mostly it's the broad shoulders I think) who is really hot for Mona and won't take no too easily for an answer; also Mona's man, who caused a lot of grief for Mona through his own embezzlement and who is in jail... for only so much longer.This is noir that's more about the personal stakes - some of the characters are criminals, or do things like trespassing or beating someone up or (of course) brandishing a gun that he (or she) may use - and it comes down to an affair. Of course we don't see that much of it, it's the 1940's (I'm almost surprised they even allowed a shot of Powell leaving Scott's house at night, I wonder what he was doing there, hmm), and yet it's one of those wonderful, down-ward spiral kind of stories dealing with an honest, adult question of morality. Though this is the 40's and it's an "all ages" kind of flick, slightly dated by its view of comic books in a couple of scenes (yes, that happens), it's really a mature look at infidelity and the lies we tell ourselves in bad situations.And while I don't know if it would be on the top shelf of moody noirs like Double Indemnity, it doesn't mean that it doesn't cut its own impression: Scott is am impressive actress for this role, and what I liked is that she may seem like a femme fatale, but she's more down to earth, less intentionally cunning. She can handle herself if she has to, but she's more vulnerable than I'm used to seeing. Her character's in the thick of it too, and when a scene like when Burr comes to, ahem, pay her a visit at her job (she wears clothes to show off to prospective buyers, and he comes to, well, look at her) it's intense but in a slower, more menacing way. You feel trapped with Scott as she has to stand and show off to him, and it's an example of De Toth being a good director as far as timing for every little beat.It may lead to some places you might expect - it's the Hayes code era so, you know, some people will get theirs by proxy of the Code - but for the most part this delivers on being a drama first and thriller second, and Powell is able to play that conflict as he just walks around on the street or sits there in bed by his wife extremely well. It's less about the criminal underworld element than the s*** that the "Average Joe" can get himself in, with some (dark) humor sprinkled realistically throughout.

zardoz-13 Initially, while I was watching "Day of the Outlaw" director André De Toth's vintage film noir "Pitfall," I didn't think that it amounted to much. Nevertheless, this gritty Dick Powell thriller about a nice-guy insurance agent who finds himself enamored with the girlfriend of an embezzler improved and ended with a slam-bang ending. Of course, we all know that most Hollywood movies whitewash the stars because it just wouldn't be cricket for a star either to do something wrong or play a loathsome character. Dick Powell doesn't let himself off that easily in this atmospheric melodrama. By the end of "Pitfall," we know that he qualifies as a sort of villain despite his protagonist status. Powell plays Olympic Insurance agent John Forbes. At the outset of this adaptation of Jay Dratler's novel (I know not how faithful the film is to the novel.), Forbes complains about the daily grind of his life. He communicates his dissatisfaction with his wife, Sue Forbes (Jane Wyatt of "Criminal Lawyer"), as she is driving him into the city to his office. Later, at his office, he meets with a sleazy private eye, J.B. MacDonald (Raymond Burr of "Rear Window"), who has just completed an assignment for him involving a lady, Mona Stevens (Lizabeth Scott of "Dead Reckoning"), whose boyfriend Bill Smiley (Bryon Barr of "Covered Wagon Raid") who embezzled some money that Olympic had bonded him for before he went to prison. MacDonald uncovers some of the evidence in the form of booty that Smiley gave Stevens. MacDonald became infatuated with Mona and wants to develop a relationship with her, but Forbes tells him to stop. Forbes pays Mona a visit, and all those complaints about his rut of a life finally get him in deep trouble. He takes Mona out for drinks and they take a ride in a speed boat. Although we never see the two of them coupling or in the aftermath of sex, we know that Forbes has crossed the point of no return. Incidentally, Forbes doesn't tell Mona about his wife and son and their happily ever after home in suburbia. Eventually, things come to a boil, and MacDonald assaults Forbes outside his home. Mona complains that MacDonald is stalking her. When he has no luck with either Mona or Forbes, MacDonald decides to visit Mona's boyfriend in jail and he fills him with stories about Forbes' relationship with Mona, and Smiley is incensed with jealousy. Indeed, MacDonald hopes that if he can stoke those fires of jealousy that the two men with clash and he will emerge as the survivor. Near the end, Smiley visits Forbes' house. Naturally, MacDonald drove him out to where Forbes lived, and Smiley tangles with Forbes. The first time that they encounter each other, Forbes sends Smiley packing, but the jealous Smiley comes back, smashes a window, and Forbes guns him down as he breaks into his house. Of course, the district attorney (John Litel) classifies the shooting as justifiable homicide, but he berates Forbes for not calling the police. The conversation that the D.A. and Forbes have at the end of "Pitfall" paints our hero in an ambiguous light. He gets off scot-free, but he didn't do the right thing. Meanwhile, Mona shoots the amorous MacDonald and she winds up in jail. The chief drawback to "Pitfall" concerns its lack of closure, we never know what happens to Mona. Did MacDonald die as a result of his gunshot wounds? Did Mona do time. All we know is that Forbes is grateful that he didn't land behind bars as the D.A. wished that he had. All in all, "Pitfall" is a nifty piece of film noir. Raymond Burr is ideally cast as the sinister ex-cop turned gumshoe.

seymourblack-1 The need for middle-class families to keep up appearances leads to certain tensions, anxieties and atmospheres being a normal feature of their lives and in this type of environment, it's often the children who suffer most. In one of the most poignant scenes in "Pitfall", a little boy has a terrifying nightmare which his father immediately rationalises by blaming the comic book that the boy had been reading immediately before going to sleep. The father is totally unaware of how profoundly his day to day behaviour has affected his son and that he's the real cause of his son's insecurities and fears.Despite having a family, a good job and a home in the suburbs, John Forbes (Dick Powell) is deeply dissatisfied and bitter about the suffocating routine that his daily life has become. He's irritable at home because he feels he's "in a rut six feet deep" and his patient wife responds to his sarcasm by reassuring him that what he does is worthwhile because he and others like him are "the backbone of the country".At the Olympic Mutual Insurance Company, Forbes is in charge of recovering a list of items that were bought with stolen money by an embezzler called Bill Smiley (Byron Barr) who's currently in prison. After private investigator "Mac" MacDonald (Raymond Burr), who also works for the company, discovers that Smiley had bought his girlfriend a number of expensive gifts, Forbes decides to visit Mona Stevens (Lizabeth Scott) to find out more. Mona is a glamorous fashion model and co-operates fully with Forbes' investigation. He's disappointed that she sees him as merely "a little man with a briefcase" and is easily persuaded to go with her for a ride in the speedboat she'd been given by Smiley. Dinner etc follows and Forbes doesn't get home until the early hours of the next morning.When MacDonald, who'd become infatuated by Mona, sees Forbes leaving her home, he becomes insanely jealous and savagely beats him up. Forbes' injuries prevent him from going to work and when Mona finds out, she goes to see him but is shocked to discover that he's married and so ends their affair. MacDonald threatens to tell Sue Forbes (Jane Wyatt) about the affair and after Forbes beats him up and Smiley is released from prison, MacDonald retaliates by telling Smiley everything, giving him a gun and encouraging him to take his revenge on Forbes. MacDonald then tries to force Mona into going away with him but understandably, she has other ideas. The mayhem that follows then leads to two of the main characters being gunned down and the others facing a very bleak future.Dick Powell brings real bite to Forbes' cynical outbursts and constant complaining as he displays the weakness and selfishness that leads his character to deceive Mona, betray his wife and his employers and damage his son's emotional and psychological development before ending up in a far worse situation than he started in. Raymond Burr is very intimidating as the manipulative villain of the piece who's unctuous, corrupt and extremely jealous and Lizabeth Scott is perfect in her role as the vulnerable blonde who, through no fault of her own, is treated very badly by Forbes, MacDonald and Smiley. Jane Wyatt and Jimmy Hunt also provide good supporting performances as Forbes' wife and son."Pitfall" is set in the period immediately after World War 11 and at the time of its release must've resonated strongly with many people who, for various reasons, would've been finding it difficult to adjust to the standards and expectations of suburban life at that time. It's a cautionary tale that warns of what can happen to anyone who doesn't conform and is also a very well made film that packs a lot of drama and incident into its relatively short running time.