Dick Powell

Balancing plot and character must be a complex feat to pull off. It seems that, on a weekly basis, especially with the plethora of blogs and websites dedicated to film reviews, articles and podcasts discount various movies for their lack of character development, presenting overly convoluted plots and many similar faux pas. Carrying the precarious pressures of both screenwriting and directing can easily make the exercise of filmmaking all the more demanding, save perhaps for the few masters of both art forms (even then they would surely confess to experiencing some troubled waters). Robert Rossen, who would go on to direct All The King’s Men to Oscar victory in 1949, worked on a much smaller scale for 1947’s Johnny O’Clock.

Cry Danger Written by William Bowers Directed by Robert Parish USA, 1951 The road that ultimately leads creative people in the filmmaking business to the highly coveted director’s chair is rarely the same from one candidate to the next.  Some are fortunate enough to direct a feature from the get-go. The number of directorial debuts …

The Conqueror Written by Oscar Millard Directed by Dick Powell USA, 1956 How bad a film is Howard Hughes notorious disaster, well it only managed to kill John Wayne is all.  No not Wayne’s career, Wayne himself.  The film was shot on location near St. George, Utah (obviously for its uncanny resemblance to that of …

Cornered Directed by Edward Dmytryk Screenplay by John Paxton, story by John Wexly U.S.A., 1945 Of all the villains to have in a film, among the most popular are the Nazis. Cinema has always depicted the Nazis for what they were: very nasty people. Granted, some movies embellish the villainy of the organization to exaggerated …