The defence The Big-Idea Head
“Form is the argument.”
Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.
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The Big Steal
Crime · Thriller · 1949
Army Lieutenant Halliday, accused of stealing the Army payroll, pursues the real thief on a frantic chase through Mexico aided by the thief's ex-girlfriend and is in turn being chased by his accuser, Capt. Blake.
Movie details
The Big Steal
“Mitchum is HOT! - HOT...off location in the heart of Mexico...HOT...after a girl with a million-dollar figure!...HOT...at the nation's boxoffices...HOT...in his newest picture!”
1949 Crime · Thriller 1h 11m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.6 / 10
Community rating
Army Lieutenant Halliday, accused of stealing the Army payroll, pursues the real thief on a frantic chase through Mexico aided by the thief's ex-girlfriend and is in turn being chased by his accuser, Capt. Blake.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over The Big Steal?
For the defence
The Big-Idea Head
“You watch with your brain, not your gut.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Sentimental Softie
“You came to feel something, and you will.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
Criss Cross
Crime · 1949
An armored-car guard must join a robbery after being caught with his ex-wife by her gangster husband.
He Ran All the Way
Thriller · 1951
A crook on the run hides out in an innocent girl's apartment.
Family Plot
Comedy · 1976
Spiritualist Blanche Tyler and her cab-driving boyfriend encounter a pair of serial kidnappers while trailing a missing heir in California.
Killer's Kiss
Thriller · 1955
Davey Gordon, a New York City boxer at the end of his career, falls for dancer Gloria Price. However, their budding relationship is interrupted by Gloria's violent boss, Vincent Rapallo, who has eyes for Gloria. The two decide to skip town, but before they can, Vincent and his thugs abduct Gloria, and Davey is forced to search for her among the most squalid corners of the city, with his enemy hiding in the shadows.
Pushover
Crime · 1954
A police detective falls for the bank robber's girlfriend he is supposed to be tailing.
Robbery
Crime · 1967
In this fictionalised account of the Great Train Robbery, career criminal Paul Clifton plans an audacious crime: the robbery of a mail train carrying millions in cash.
Nightmare Alley
Drama · 1947
A roustabout joins a traveling carny and schemes to figure out the mind-reading act of Mademoiselle Zeena and her alcoholic husband.
Brute Force
Crime · 1947
Timeworn Joe Collins and his fellow inmates live under the heavy thumb of the sadistic, power-tripping guard Captain Munsey. Only Collins' dreams of escape keep him going, but how can he possibly bust out of Munsey's chains?
Thick as Thieves
Action · 2009
A master thief recruits a notorious thief to help him steal two famous Faberge eggs from an impenetrable vault in an effort to pull off one final job and repay his debt to the Russian mob.
The Lady from Shanghai
Mystery · 1947
A romantic drifter gets caught between a corrupt tycoon and his voluptuous wife.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Don Siegel
Written by
Daniel Mainwaring · Gerald Drayson Adams · Richard Wormser
Robert Mitchum
Lt. Duke Halliday
Jane Greer
Joan 'Chiquita' Graham
William Bendix
Capt. Vincent Blake
Patric Knowles
Jim Fiske
Ramon Novarro
Inspector General Ortega
Don Alvarado
Lt. Ruiz
John Qualen
Julius Seton
Court is in session
Put The Big Steal on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Sentimental Softie
“Technique in search of a pulse.”
Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.