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Where the Sidewalk Ends (film)

Where the Sidewalk Ends
Whereidewalkposter101.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Otto Preminger
Produced by Otto Preminger
Screenplay by Ben Hecht
Story by
Based on Night Cry
1948 novel
by William L. Stuart
Starring Dana Andrews
Gene Tierney
Music by Cyril Mockridge
Cinematography Joseph LaShelle
Edited by Louis Loeffler
Distributed by 20th Century Fox
Release date
  • June 26, 1950 (1950-06-26) (United States)
Running time
95 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Box office $1 million

Where the Sidewalk Ends is a 1950 American film noir directed and produced by Otto Preminger. The screenplay for the film was written by Ben Hecht, and adapted by Robert E. Kent, Frank P. Rosenberg, and Victor Trivas. The screenplay and adaptations were based on the novel Night Cry by William L. Stuart. The film stars Dana Andrews and Gene Tierney.

The film narrative concerns ruthless and cynical Mark Dixon (Dana Andrews), a metropolitan police detective, who despises all criminals because his father had been one. Considered a classic of the film noir genre, the brand of violence shown in the film, "lurking below urban society", is an important noir motif.

New York City 16th Precinct Police Detective Dixon (Dana Andrews), who has been demoted by his superiors for his heavy-handed tactics, subjects murder suspect and gambler Ken Paine (Craig Stevens) to the third degree – he strikes the drunken Paine in self-defense and accidentally kills him. Paine, however, had a silver plate in his head, a fine war record, and newspaper friends. Dixon then dumps Paine's body in the river, and is later assigned to find his killer.

Dixon tries to place the blame on an old gangster enemy, Tommy Scalise (Gary Merrill), but inadvertently puts cab driver Jiggs Taylor (Tom Tully) under suspicion instead. Having fallen in love with Jiggs' daughter and Paine's estranged wife, Morgan Taylor-Paine (Gene Tierney), Dixon tries to clear the cabbie without implicating himself, but ultimately becomes tangled in a web of his own creation. The 16th Precinct commander and Dixon's boss, newly promoted Detective Lt. Thomas (Karl Malden), are convinced that Morgan's father is the killer.

Dixon continues to find a way to stop Jiggs from being found guilty of murdering Paine, and also tries to redeem himself. In an attempt to move the evidence away from Morgan's father and blame Scalise, Dixon comes face to face with the gangster and his cronies. A shoot-out leaves Dixon wounded, but the police arrive to arrest Scalise and his mob. Jiggs is finally cleared of the charges. At the end Dixon reassesses his life and decides to confess. He is satisfied that Morgan believes in him regardless of the outcome.


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