Dark Passage (1947)

Humphrey Bogart plays Vincent Parry, an escaped prisoner convicted of killing his wife, while Lauren Bacall plays Irene Jansen, who works with Perry to prove his innocence. 

The first act provides us with an incredibly innovative first person POV as we see things from Vincent Parry’s perspective having just escaped from San Quentin. While we the audience can’t see Bogart, we do see things as Bogart with the camera angles changing based on his movements. It also doesn’t hurt to have it seem like Bacall is looking into your eyes and speaking directly to you. 

Eventually we do get to see Bogart…for the most part. While recovering from facial reconstruction surgery, Vincent Parry has his face wrapped in bandages and per the doctor’s orders is not to speak. To the surprise of no one Bogart is able to keep us fully engaged without speaking a single word. 

The final act gives us a payoff in the form of finally seeing and hearing Humphrey Bogart as Vincent Parry. He really takes the movie on his back and carries us home as he continues to pursue his freedom. And though her time on-screen is limited, Bacall shines and her chemistry with Bogart is impossible to ignore. 

While yes, a good portion of this hinges on characters bumping into other characters by happenstance, there was so much else that was done right. A tense slow burn with a satisfying payoff. No one does noir like Humphrey Bogart. 4/5