Lysa Radoff: “Lou likes jokes. He’ll like you. You’re amusing, Mr. Connelly. . . and hard.”
Steve Connelly: “It’s a hard world.”
Sometimes, even the best laid plans for your future, discussed and organized for years, Backfire (1950). A post World War II, Los Angeles set film noir directed by Vincent Sherman proves that in life, nothing is a guarantee.
Set over Christmas and New Years 1948, even though we are three years on from the conclusion of the War, soldier Bob Corey (Gordon McRae) is still convalescing at an army hospital after undergoing numerous back surgeries. Relying on fellow military tank buddy Steve Connelly (Edmond O’Brien – D.O.A.; The Hitch-Hiker) to do all the legwork (and military paperwork) to fulfil their long talked about plan. . . that is, to find a ranch property that they can go oil hunting on, they finally think “we’re out of the jungle now”. . . alas, they’re far from it.
Yet mysteriously, Steve disappears, the only clue – a seemingly illusory woman with a foreign accent (Viveca Lindfors) appears to Bob (who is in a drug infused state) after his final back surgery. . . warning that his best friend has been seriously injured. Though the doctors shrug it off as ranting and raving due to the timing of it all, nurse Julie Benson (Virginia Mayo), who there is no denying is hot for her patient, is more than happy to help follow the fugue-like lead with him.
Journeying through the seedy side of the City of Angels, it doesn’t take long for the cops to pick him up, with Police Capt. Garcia (Ed Begley – On Dangerous Ground; 12 Angry Men) claiming that his friend Steve is wanted for the murder of Solly Blayne (Richard Rober – Dial 1119) – a slick gambler who loves to dabble in the illegal underbelly of L.A.
An original U.S. one sheet movie poster of Backfire used to promote the movie in 1950
Upon hearing the news, Bob decides to become an amateur sleuth, Julie his Dr. Watson (I guess it would be Nurse Watson). Taking them on a meandering path that leads to numerous unexpected locales, including Steve’s seedy hotel room, Solly’s house – meeting his widow (Frances Robinson), a funeral home. . . that just so happens to be the relatively new business of fellow army vet and longtime friend Bob Arno (Dane Clark), the home of several nightclub dames including Bonnie Willis (Sheila MacRae), and several other places, little clues that the cops didn’t get seem to keep adding up to something sinister and corrupt.
As bodies start piling up (always shot from behind through a window – mirroring the way mobster Bugsy Siegel was killed in 1947) and things build to a tense climax, will Bob track down the lilting lady that appeared in his dream-like vision? Perhaps more importantly, can the pair also find Steve before it’s too late? And, might love prevail for the patient and his nurse?
Capturing the nihilism, bitterness, resentment, and unrequited love of post-war America, the narrative flits back and forth between Bob’s present investigation and the flashbacks of stories being told abut Steve. Though it seems quite clear that Julie is the good girl, the mystifying foreign dame that ensnares the senses seems much harder to pin down.
Chock full of shadowy silhouettes and barring from cinematographer Carl E. Guthrie, Backfire is a serviceable crime-filled mystery thriller. Originally shelved for two years, Warner Brothers didn’t think too much of it (hence the shelving) until some of their cast members hit it big in other roles – think of O’Brien and Mayo in 1949’s White Heat. . . which means it became a worthwhile release for them circa 1950 – using every possible White Heat reference and a Virginia Mayo femme fatale like pose in the promotional advertising, despite being quite misleading. Though not a gem of the noir era, its maze-like narrative and quality cast make for a fun watch. So, don’t hit the brakes, instead use the throttle and rescue this one from the dark jungle that is L.A.