Twilightfa Watch something else. There are very few redeeming qualities to this film.

Roy Hart If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Calum Hutton It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

GManfred Robert Siodmak never failed when it came to Film Noir ("Criss Cross", "Phantom Lady", etc) and doesn't disappoint here with "Cry Of The City", which is as tough and as gritty a noir as you will find. Tense and taut from beginning to finish, this picture has no dead spots and no 'down' time as Siodmak keeps the story moving at breakneck speed. The plot centers on two Hollywood second-stringers in Victor Mature and Richard Conte, who give excellent performances and put the story over in a convincing manner.Mature is the cop, Conte the hoodlum, who has murdered a cop and escapes from a hospital. Mature and his partner, Fred Clark, must find him before he leaves the country. Also in the cast are Berry Kroeger as a slimy lawyer, Shelley Winters as (what else?) a bimbo/ floozy and Hope Emerson as a 'contact' to help Conte in his getaway. Emerson was terrific, and her sinister presence makes you think she should have made more movies.They don't make 'em like this anymore, movies or directors. I thought Victor Mature was perfect as a straight cop with a sensitive side, better even than he was in "I Wake Up Screaming" or "Kiss Of Death". I would put this one right behind "Out Of The Past", which is my favorite of the noir genre.

RanchoTuVu A familiar story of a cop (Victor Mature) and a criminal (Richard Conte) who grew up in the same tough New York City neighborhood, in the same culture, but chose different paths in life, and end up facing off against each other. Mature's part as the detective could almost put him in the role of the bad cop out to bring down the neighborhood hero, though the story, with some excellent lines for Mature, leads us to the truth, that Conte was playing the part of a fairly ruthless con man, especially with the people closest to him. The essential conflict between the two primary roles gives the film a strong focus, but other characters elevate the movie to unexpected heights. Betty Garde, Barry Kroeger and Hope Emerson each have great parts in this film. Garde's part looks like it's going to be brief, but she reappears later in the film and adds another dimension to the story. The story is already hitting its stride when Hope Emerson makes a memorable appearance as a deadly masseuse who takes Conte into her parlor/apartment. Their lines are some of the best in the movie. Lloyd Ahern, the cinematographer captures the essence of a crime drama in the great night scenes.

bkoganbing Had Cry Of The City been done at Warner Brothers in the Thirties this would have been perfect material for a James Cagney/Pat O'Brien film with the story of two childhood friends, one who goes into the police force and one who goes into a life of crime. Of course they would have to have been Irish because neither Cagney or O'Brien would have made convincing Italian protagonists as Cry Of The City has in its leads.And the leads are Victor Mature and Richard Conte. Mature is good as the upright cop who makes it personal to go after Richard Conte who has now committed the ultimate sin, he's killed a cop. But like a film a year earlier for Mature, Kiss Of Death, the film is dominated by Richard Conte who plays a charismatic and fascinating villain just as Richard Widmark did in Kiss Of Death.Unlike Widmark who is a loner, Conte is charming and is ruthless in his use of that charm. The film opens with him seriously wounded after shooting a police officer. But he recovers and is in a prison hospital awaiting trial. It's the death penalty for sure, but Conte does in fact charm his way into an escape (I won't say how) and from then on because of his wound has to rely on a lot of help including his own family.Some other standout performances including an old girl friend, Shelley Winters whom he has obtain an unlicensed physician to tend him. Hope Emerson who is as evil as she was as the prison matron in Caged, plays a masseuse who Conte uses to obtain traveling money as the woman is quite mobbed up. Tommy Cook plays Conte's hero worshiping younger brother who realizes just how much he and the family were being used in the climax.Most of all there's Berry Kroeger who plays one of his usual slime ball characters as a criminal attorney who indulges in a bit of criminality himself most discreetly behind the scenes. Kroeger split parts like that with George MacReady back in the day and is always fascinating to watch.Most of all there is Richard Conte who should have merited Oscar consideration in one of his best screen performances.

MartinHafer This is a rather simple film with a rather simple plot, though it shows that even given a rather noncomplex story, you can still have an exceptional film--thanks mostly to the direct and no-nonsense style of the movie. In many ways, this film is reminiscent of Noir films like DRAGNET, THE NAKED CITY and T-MEN--movies that focus more on the normal day-to-day police work involved in catching the bad guys. The unglamorous style actually was a major plus here--no cops working people over in the back room, no bullet-proof good guys and these cops were basically honest yet human.The film begins with Richard Conte in the hospital after having killed a policeman. Victor Mature and Fred Clark (in a real departure from his other roles) are lieutenants assigned to the case. However, despite having the injured Conte in custody, this slick crook escapes and the rest of the film involves his recapture. During the course of his time at large, Conte uses practically everyone around him and shows that despite his assertion that he's really a nice guy, he's really just a thug.There are plenty of twists and turns in the film and despite Victor Mature's saying off-screen on many occasions that he was a lousy actor, he was a major asset to the film. Other performances were also uniformly excellent. About the only problem, and it was very minor, was the ending. It was exciting but also seemed a tad tough to believe with all that "machismo". Still, it's a heck of a good film and one you should see if you love police dramas and Noir films.By the way, I do agree with spompermayer who also reviewed the film and particularly liked Ms. Emerson's performance--she was indeed an unforgettable character and greatly enhanced the film! What a dame!!