{"id":37514,"date":"2016-09-15T08:47:14","date_gmt":"2016-09-15T15:47:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=37514"},"modified":"2021-12-23T15:26:42","modified_gmt":"2021-12-23T22:26:42","slug":"undercover-man-the-1949","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=37514","title":{"rendered":"Undercover Man, The (1949)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;It&#8217;s never too late for a trade.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Poster-300x234.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"234\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-37515\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Poster-300x234.jpg 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Poster-128x100.jpg 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Poster-768x598.jpg 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Poster.jpg 953w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA <a href=\"http:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/T%E2%80%93man\">T-man<\/a> (Glenn Ford) and his partner (James Whitmore) are tasked with hunting down a notorious gangster who owes $3 million in taxes, but quickly find that all witnesses are too scared to talk. Meanwhile, a big-time mob attorney (Barry Kelley) foils the T-men&#8217;s attempts to get accountants arrested, and when the safety of Ford&#8217;s wife (Nina Foch) is threatened, Ford reconsiders his career goals.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Corruption<\/li>\n<li>Glenn Ford Films<\/li>\n<li>James Whitmore Films<\/li>\n<li>Joseph H. Lewis Films<\/li>\n<li>Mafia<\/li>\n<li>Undercover Cops and Agents<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nThis semi-documentary look at T-Men (federal Treasury agents) determined to collect on back-taxes from an Al Capone-like gangster is primarily notable for being directed by Joseph H. Lewis of <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=24946\"><em>Gun Crazy<\/em> (1949)<\/a> fame, who, assisted by DP Burnett Guffey, brings flashes of cinematic ingenuity to an otherwise unexceptional story. Too much emphasis is put on Ford&#8217;s &#8220;career crisis&#8221; (no doubt, messing with the Mafia is dangerous), and certain pivotal scenes &#8212; i.e., when a young girl (Joan Lazer) whose father (Anthony Caruso) has been murdered by The Big Fellow&#8217;s men translates her Italian grandmother&#8217;s (Esther Minciotti&#8217;s) pleas for Ford to continue his hunt &#8212; are milked too hard for emotion. With that said, Ford gives a surprisingly affecting performance; but Foch &#8212; leading lady in Lewis&#8217;s <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=50\"><em>My Name is Julia Ross<\/em> (1945)<\/a> &#8212; is wasted in a pro-forma role as his concerned wife sent off to the country to wait for him, and Whitmore, a consummate supporting actor, is also surprisingly unmemorable. More time should have been spent following Ford&#8217;s nemesis, a hopelessly smug attorney (Barry Kelley) who plays a pivotal role in the denouement. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Glenn Ford as Frank Warren<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Ford.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Ford.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"704\" height=\"544\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-37533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Ford.png 704w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Ford-128x99.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Ford-300x232.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Barry Kelley as O&#8217;Rourke<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Kelley.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Kelley.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"704\" height=\"544\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-37538\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Kelley.png 704w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Kelley-128x99.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Kelley-300x232.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Burnett Guffey&#8217;s cinematography and Lewis&#8217;s direction<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"704\" height=\"544\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-37534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography.png 704w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography-128x99.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography-300x232.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"704\" height=\"544\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-37536\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography3.png 704w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography3-128x99.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography3-300x232.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography4.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography4.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"704\" height=\"544\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-37537\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography4.png 704w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography4-128x99.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Undercover-Man-Cinematography4-300x232.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nNo, though it&#8217;s recommended for one-time viewing. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0042006\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1949\/04\/21\/archives\/the-undercover-man-with-glenn-ford-as-federal-agent-opens-at-the.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/27986\/the-undercover-man#articles-reviews?articleId=241036\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.timeout.com\/us\/film\/the-undercover-man-1949\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s never too late for a trade.&#8221; Synopsis: A T-man (Glenn Ford) and his partner (James Whitmore) are tasked with hunting down a notorious gangster who owes $3 million in taxes, but quickly find that all witnesses are too scared to talk. Meanwhile, a big-time mob attorney (Barry Kelley) foils the T-men&#8217;s attempts to get accountants arrested, and when the safety of Ford&#8217;s wife (Nina Foch) is threatened, Ford reconsiders his career goals. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Corruption Glenn&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=37514\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-37514","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37514","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=37514"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37514\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":79061,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37514\/revisions\/79061"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=37514"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=37514"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=37514"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}