Where the Sidewalk Ends

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Where the Sidewalk Ends

1950,

1h 35m,

Crime/

Drama

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Watchlist

100%

16 Reviews

Tomatometer

88%

1,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

100%

Tomatometer

16 Reviews

88%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

Ashamed that his father lived a life of crime, hard-boiled New York City cop Mark Dixon has a reputation for being too tough on criminals. So when Dixon unintentionally kills a murder suspect during a routine questioning, he hides the fact from the department and tries to pin the killing on his nemesis, notorious gangster Scalise. The snag in the cop's plan comes when his boss wrongly accuses the father of Dixon's love interest, Morgan, of the murder.

Variety Staff

Variety

Oct 23, 2007

Otto Preminger, director, does an excellent job of pacing the story and of building sympathy for Andrews.

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Bosley Crowther

New York Times

Mar 25, 2006

3.5/5

Fox may not have plumbed the depths of realism this time, but it still looks interesting, even two-thirds of the way down.

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Nick Schager

Slant Magazine

Dec 21, 2005

3/4

An efficient, bleak noir with an Oedipal twist.

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Diana Tuova

Spotlight on Film

Dec 1, 2024

4/5

Though Where the Sidewalk Ends wanes in its intrigue and believability in the second half, its thrillingly clever beginning, palpably gritty nature, and the galvanising acting still make it a memorable viewing experience.

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Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

May 4, 2024

[Dana Andrews'] chiseled face made him convincing as both a working class cop and a master of industry and paired nicely with [Gene] Tierney’s sculptured features: scar tissue and smooth glamour brought together by violence.

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Ian Thomas Malone

ianthomasmalone.com

Nov 30, 2021

Preminger's slick noir gem presents a damning indictment of the criminal justice system's perpetual rot and the kinds of cops who take the law into their own hands.

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Hermione L

Aug 26, 2018

A taut little cops-and-crime-lords vehicle for Dana Andrews, who stars as a hot-headed New York City detective called in to investigate a murder at a floating crap game, kills a witness to the crime in self-defense, and tries to cover it up. Andrews, tight-lipped and haunted, is fine; Gene Tierney is beautiful and subtle as his paramour; and Gary Merrill is quietly creepy as the mob boss. With Karl Malden as the newly-minted police lieutenant following the wrong trail on both murders. Enough slanted fedoras and hardboiled dialogue to make Philip Marlowe blush with pride. Nicely directed by Otto Preminger, and beautifully shot in moody black-and-white by Joseph LaShelle. The somewhat sappy ending defies credibility (ah, the yearnings of the human heart!), but an entertaining ride until then.

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Han W

Aug 22, 2017

A police detective keeps getting chewed out by his captain for being too rough with perps. So when he beats a murder suspect to death later that night, he figures he ought to cover it up or he'll be in big trouble with his boss.

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Rey R

May 14, 2017

How the title relates is difficult ot comprehend. But it's a terrific cop yarn, a love story where the romance is the noir, and another great vehicle for Andrews & Tierney - and packs some good twists in the last reel. Surely a classic from The Studio era.

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Abraham W

Apr 16, 2017

Gripping from start to finish. Every character fleshed out, even the old lady witness. Detective Dixon is a powerhouse of internal torment striving to break away from his violent father's legacy. A strong, character propelled film noir to cherish. This BFI film collection has yet to put a foot wrong.

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Kylo S

Aug 10, 2013

A unique noir. Preminger delivers.

Theodore G

May 29, 2009

Despite being directed by Otto Preminger and a strong cast, the movie is very tame. Its very low key, it doesn't have a lot of thrills or anything too exciting. I've seen way better noir films.

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Otto Preminger

Director

Dana Andrews

Det. Mark Dixon

Gene Tierney

Morgan Taylor

Gary Merrill

Tommy Scalise

Bert Freed

Det. Paul Klein

Tom Tully

Jiggs Taylor

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Synopsis

Ashamed that his father lived a life of crime, hard-boiled New York City cop Mark Dixon has a reputation for being too tough on criminals. So when Dixon unintentionally kills a murder suspect during a routine questioning, he hides the fact from the department and tries to pin the killing on his nemesis, notorious gangster Scalise. The snag in the cop's plan comes when his boss wrongly accuses the father of Dixon's love interest, Morgan, of the murder.

Director: Otto Preminger
Producer: Otto Preminger
Screenwriter: Ben Hecht
Production Co: Twentieth Century Fox
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 26, 1950, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 10, 2017
Runtime: 1h 35m

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