Hey! Thanks for dropping in and checking out this week’s installment of Review Stew! Buckle up as we try to leave the past where it belongs in… Out of the Past (1947).
Title: Out of the Past
Director: Jacques Tourneur
Released: November 27, 1947 (United States)
Runtime: 1 hour 37 minutes
Available to stream on: HBO
Jeff Bailey (Robert Mitchum) lives a simple life. He runs a gas station and loves his girlfriend, Ann (Virginia Huston). However, Jeff’s picturesque life is about to come crashing down around him.
One day, a gentleman by the name of Joe (Paul Valentine) comes by Jeff’s gas station looking for him. Joe informs him that his former employer, Whit (Kirk Douglas) would like to have a word with him.
Ann drives Jeff up to Whit’s place and during the drive, Jeff decides to come clean. His real name is Jeff Markham and he’s a former private investigator. Markham was once hired by Whit to track down his girlfriend, Kathie (Jane Greer), who not only took off but took off with $40,000 of Whit’s money as well after shooting him.
At the time, Markham tracked Kathie to Mexico and the two started an affair. Though, through it all, she insists that she never took the money. The two escape from Whit and his crew in Mexico and settle in San Francisco. It’s not long before they’re tracked down again, this time by Markham’s former partner who now works for Whit, Jack Fisher (Steve Brodie). Fisher gets into a fight with Markham and Kathie shoots and kills Fisher. Kathie flees one way while Markham cleans up the mess before fleeing himself.
Markham successfully gets Ann all up to date on his past just as she pulls up to Whit’s place.
While at Whit’s, Markham is informed that Kathie is still in the fold. Although, this time, she isn’t the mark. Instead, Whit wants Markham to get some dirt on one of his lawyers he feels is blackmailing him.
Jeff Markham has worked long and hard to become Jeff Bailey while leaving his past behind him.
But is the temptation to go back to his old life simply too much to resist?
Out of the Past (1947) is one that had been on my watchlist for some time now. Luckily, it was recently added to HBO just in time for Noirvember. I say luckily because this was an absolute delight to take in.
There’s a lot to appreciate but I’ll start with touching on the writing. Daniel Mainwaring delivers one heck of a script. We’ve got twists and turns galore, all mixed into blended timelines. If that wasn’t enough, each character has their fair share of quippy and witty one-liners sprinkled into their dialogue. The script is lean, mean, and refuses to hold your hand along the way.
The cinematography from Nicholas Musuraca is also a thing of beauty. Every single shot manages to feel crucial yet restrained. Musuraca also wasn’t afraid to play with lighting, shadows, or even how a character is filmed entering or exiting a room either.
Now, you can have a film that has a great script and that looks great, but you still need the performances to back it up. No need to worry though as everyone delivered in spades.
While I have admittedly only seen a handful of Robert Mitchum films, I’ve yet to come across one where I wasn’t impressed by his performance. That rings true here as well. His mannerisms, line delivery, and facial expressions go above and beyond in elevating his performance. The way he portrays his character’s vulnerabilities make it nearly impossible to root against our anti-hero.
Though he isn’t the only one turning in great performances in Out of the Past (1947). Jane Greer, as our ruthless femme fatale Kathie, puts on an absolute clinic. From the moment she shoots Fisher, her transformation is a thing of beauty. As she slips deeper into the dark side, her clothing gets progressively darker to match her actions. She’s powerful, she’s deadly, and she knows it.
If you have yet to see Out of the Past (1947), please fix that as soon as possible.
I thoroughly enjoyed every single minute and can’t wait to go back and rewatch it.
So, if you have seen Out of the Past (1947), now it’s your turn.
Leave a comment below or reach out on Bluesky to tell me your thoughts on it!
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