Raw Deal

If there’s a mainstay in the structure of a film noir, it might be the tension between the protagonist --- the gee, the mug, the sucker --- and the femme fatale. The male led around by his nose, or his whatever, down the road to his doom, or his prison cell, or to a long walk down a deserted, dark highway. She inevitably does him wrong --- sometimes willfully, at other times simply because she wants --- freedom, or money, or to get away and up from under. The femme employs her wiles, if I may use that term in the 21st Century (but it was totally relevant in the 1940s and 50s) to maneuver the guy into whatever she desires, whether he’s successful at obtaining it or not. We devoted an entire pod in the second season to the idea of the femme fatale and detailing the careers of some of the top actors who fit the role within the noir genre. 

 For most femmes, that’s as complex as the noir story demands --- exert some of those wiles! They skip off with the dough or the goods, free as a bird usually, leaving the gee to hold the bag. Occasionally, very occasionally, you may encounter a film noir that delves more deeply into the character of the femme, a film in which she is just as decimated or defeated at the curtain as the gee. Let’s take a look this month at such a film, crafted by three of the best --- one of the femmes fatale we highlighted in season two, due to her long and deep impression on noir, and a director and cinematographer who left a huge mark on noir in their time. It’s also a cast threesome, to increase the tension, if you will. From many – time noir supporters Eagle-Lion Films, it’s the 1948 production of Raw Deal. And no, Schwarzenegger is not in it…

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