The Dark Corner

Brad Galt (Mark Stevens) is a bitter ex-con, turned private eye, who depends upon his faithful secretary Kathleen (Lucille Ball) to keep his life in order. Hardy Cathcart (Clifton Webb) -- upon learning that his wife Mari (Cathy Downs) is having an affair with Galt's crooked former partner, Tony (Kurt Kreuger) -- has his henchman kill Tony and frame Brad for the murder. Suspected by the police and on the run, Brad is helped to clear himself by Kathleen. The ending of the film has an interesting twist as Brad confronts Cathcart in his art museum, and Cathcart confesses to being responsible for the murder of Tony. Expertly directed by Henry Hathaway, and with characteristically excellent performances by Clifton Webb and William Bendix, the tense mood of the film is greatly aided by the superb, dark photography of Joe MacDonald, grim darkness becoming the pervasive motif of Brad's predicament. The ending, nicely melodramatic, is a fitting finale for this enjoyable, extremely watchable mystery.