Fresh and Exciting

As Good As It Gets

A Masterpiece!

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Very satisfying American Noir shot in Denmark in the late 1950s. Many of the exteriors were clearly shot on location and make very good, atmospheric use of the city. The interior set pieces, however, are where the film really separates itself from the standard "Noir look". Noir had always been influenced, one might even say descended from, German Expressionism, but the set pieces and lighting here are almost Caligari like, the characters moving through dark rooms like wraiths. The film culminates with a spectacular chase scene that makes extensive and impressive use of helicopter shots, perhaps the most ambitious use of such angles since Nick Ray's innovative "They Live by Night", released only a few short years before this film. This movie strikes me as almost unwittingly feminist. The much slapped around and manipulated female characters might be "bad women", but unlike true femme fatales they're not pulling any strings. These are active, if not entirely willing, participants in an amoral, patriarchal game.

John Payne plays a rough and tough American detective in Andre de Toth's atmospheric thriller "Hidden Fear" who struggles to clear his sister of murder in Denmark with the help of the Danish authorities. No matter what you think about this gritty crime melodrama about counterfeiters, this black & white epic doesn't wear out its welcome with its trim 80-minute length. Moreover, de Toth keeps things going at such a breakneck pace that you wonder if they weren't consistently several days behind schedule. Speaking about its concise running time, "Hidden Fear" moves along at such a rapid clip that you may have trouble keeping up with it. Despite the scenic Copenhagen locales, this movie makes a point of showing off a Mercedes sedan that features wing-tip doors as well as actress Ann Neyland's abundant cleavage. Alexander Knox is on hand as the mastermind behind the counterfeiting scheme and he has no qualms about double-crossing his own partners if it will enable him to escape from the clutches of justice. Payne wears the same suit and tie through and swaps blows with a variety of Danes. Unfortunately, all the characters are strictly one-dimensional. Everything about this modest melodrama reeks of professionalism, but the whole package lacks the ingenuity of Payne's best crime thrillers "The Crooked Way" and "Kansas City Confidential."

Hidden Fear (1957) * 1/2 (out of 4) An American cop (John Payne) arrives in Denmark after his sister is arrested for murdering her boyfriend. It doesn't take long for the cop to realize that there's something more going on and that his sister wasn't behind it. One could argue that I watch way too many movies but what can I say? It's a passion of mine and something that I really love. I alway say my favorite genre is horror and that my favorite kind of movies are those with great acting (those two favorites really never go together) but I think I've seen more mystery, noir or crime films, whatever you want to call them. Each time one is on Turner Classic Movies, it get recorded and watched. Each time one gets thrown on Netflix, it gets watched. HIDDEN FEAR is exactly what you'd expect from a crime film as it features a tough good guy, an evil bad guy and the girl who is part good and part bad. HIDDEN FEAR is without question one of the worst films I've seen from the genre as it features one bad moment after another and in the end it never adds up to anything interesting. One could argue that you should never put logic into a film like this and I usually don't but I simply couldn't get around the fact that this American comes to Denmark and their police just start giving him all sorts of information about the case. This isn't believable for a number of reasons not to mention the fact that he's the brother to a murderer so why would they just release anything to him? Payne seems absolutely bored by everything going on as his performance has no energy and it's hard to tell that he's even alive. His line delivery makes it seem as if he's falling asleep and the supporting players, including Conrad Nagel, add very little. The entire plot is just one big bore and director Andre De Toth adds very little excitement or energy to the material.

I haver never seen an American film noir shot in Danemark before. That's really the first time.The story itself offers no great surprises. Payne plays an American cop who tries to clear his sister of a murder charge. He has to fight against counterfeiters. I must admit that we have already seen this before, a thousand times. Especially Payne who is as hard boiled as ever.But it's a tough thriller, no boring at all with, at the end, a good chase through the country side around Copenhagen.A rare Andre de Toth movie that deserves to be discovered.