jotix100 An amusement arcade is the scene where a man is killed. Eddie Kelvaney, who sees the murderer running away from the scene, identifies the man as a hired assassin working for the powerful Dan Beaumonte. Little does Eddie realize, but his brother Chris is deeply involved with the criminal behind the killing. The squad detectives that work with Chris have all figured that Chris is a man on the take.Beaumonte calls Chris to try to convince his brother to change his testimony in exchange for fifteen thousand dollars, something that appalls Eddie. When Eddie is found murdered, Chris makes a decision that will put him against the big boss. Meeting his brother's girlfriend, Karen, brings him back to the moment when he was seeing her. The inner turmoil within Chris will ultimately let him do the right thing as he avenges the death of his brother, thus redeeming him from the bad choices he had made."Rogue Cop" an MGM release of 1954 was a surprise. Directed by Roy Rowland, a veteran with a long career in movies, the film proved to be much better than we had expected thanks to the tight screenplay by Sydney Boehm. The idea that an enforcement officer, in this case a detective that loved the kind of life he could not afford, working for the other side, was a change of pace for the way audiences accepted them, which was always a gamble on the part of the big studios.The film works because of the right elements came together to make this story credible and the appearance of Robert Taylor, who excels as Chris Kelvaney. The actor was always a great presence on the screen, as he proves in here. In spite of playing the bad guy, the viewer does not feel repulsed by what he is trying to do. One keeps hoping for some goodness in the man, and that is what happens after he sees how expendable he was. George Raft finally had a role that fitted his public image. He had been in a series of flops after his tough guy career at Warner Bros. Janet Leigh plays the sweet Karen Stephanson, who never really got over of what she felt about Chris, only to hook up with his brother. Others in the cast included Anne Francis, Robert Ellenstein, Steve Forrest and Alan Hale Jr. doing good ensemble work. Richard Deacon shows up in an uncredited cameo.Recommended for fans of the genre.

sol1218 **SOME SPOILERS** Being on the scene of a murder by giving the escaped killer "Wrinkels" Fallon, Peter Brcco, a parking ticket policeman Eddie Kelvaney, Steve Forrest,has him picked out of a lineup and put in jail to be tried at a later date, What Eddie doesn't know is that "Wrinkles" got the goods on big time mobsters Beumonte and Ackerman, George Raft & Robert F. Simon, whom he's been blackmailing for over 10 years. The two hoods are now literally scared to death with what Wrinkles' got on them that he'll make a deal with the D.A for a lighter sentence to turn states evidence on them.Beaument and Ackerman do have an ace up their sleeve in having Eddie recant his testimony and that's non-other then his big brother Det. Chis Kelvaney, Robert Taylor, who's been taking payoff from them for years. Chris Kelvaney is giving the task to keep his kid brother's mouth shut with a $15,000.00 payoff himself for doing it. It just turns out that Eddie is an incorruptible good and honest cop like his and Chris late and highly decorated father and in trying to do the right thing. The right thing ends up landing him right on a cold slab in the city morgue.Robert Taylor playing a corrupt cop is at his handsome and devilish best as Det. Kalvaney as he goes through a change of life realizing what a creep he was all these years and a disgrace to not only the police department but to brother Eddie and late hero cop dad. Kalvaney dealing with crumbs like Beaumonte & Ackerman in the end redeems himself by getting blasted and left bleeding to death in a violent shootout with them.Trying to get Eddie's girl Karen, Janet Leigh, to talk him out of testifying against Wrinkle's Det. Kelvaney blackmails her. Threatening to exposed Karen of not only being, well let's just say,both used and damaged merchandise but also being notorious Miami gangster Farnkie Nemo's #1 moll. Karen at first outraged at Eddie's big brothers disgusting and underhanded tactics finally goes along with him only if it would save Eddie's life. Det. Kelvaney given by his bosses, Beaumonte & Ackerman, 48 hours to turn Eddie around is instead double cross. The two hoods have Eddie gunned down that evening in full sight of his terrified girl Karen even before she has a chance to get Eddie to change his mind in testifying.It's during these stressful and heart wrenching times that Det. Kelvaney finally sees what a disgrace he was to both his brother dad and finally to himself and has a complete break with his sleazy past. The rogue cop goes full out, even if it cost him his life, to get Beaumonte & Ackerman not only to clear his guilty conscience but also bring his brothers killers to justice.Also in the movie is a pre-Ben Casey Vince Edwards playing hit-man Joey Langly who's brought in from out of town to knock off Eddie. Langly later gets the living hell beaten out of him by Det. Kelvany and never gets to see the inside of a prison cell. With him being gunned down himself in a shootout between Kelvany, and unlike himself, straight laced and honest cop Det Myers, Robert Ellenstein, and gangsters Beaomonte & Ackerman.There's also a very young Anne Francis as Beaumonte's live-in moll Nancy whom he keep drunk all the time,to keep her mind off his business. Later after she got on Beaumonte's nerves by pouring a bucket of ice cubes over his head after an outraged, Det. Kelvaney worked him over and broke it, which has her being kicked out of his penthouse and into, as an act of unholy revenge, one of Beaumonte's sleazy illegal business establishments Fonzo's whorehouse. That lead Nancy to reveal, to Det. Kelvaney, just what exactly Wrinkles got on him and his partner Ackerman that the two hoodlums would go as far as murdering a policeman to keep from seeing the light of day.

verbusen I caught this on TCM Middle East the other night. First thought was in regard to the opening, my the titles are very sparse and with no soundtrack music it really added to a gritty feel. Then we get to see one hell of a gritty city with a women who looked 50 but was probably in her 30's buying a narcotic from a dealer in the penny arcade (boy I'm lucky enough to have seen one of must be the arcades with penny films in it at Grand Central Station NYC in the 1970's, pretty cool gone by times). So I'm wondering what this womens role is in the film when she slips away after getting her fix, than the dealer gets knifed by a rival dealer. WOW! This is one seedy town! Then the killer drives away but not before the good cop brother stops him because he's overparked by 15 minutes (oh brother!). Cut to the next scene and a detective is walking into the police station and I could have sworn he was the same guy as the killer (of course I'm watching this on a 20" TV so it's probably an easy mistake). Well I wont go on anymore about personal observations other than to say this is a great 1/2 of a movie and Taylor is looking really rogueish and bad, even saying if you cross me again "I'll break both your legs", thats pretty tough talk! But in the second half we get the polished MGM treatment and there is some pretty lame action and a lot of dialog, and Taylor turning a new leaf to be a good cop after all. Two things I noticed that had to be spoofed in the TV show "Police Squad" with Leslie Neilson, the stooly at the newspaper store and the final gunfight where they are shooting in between trash cans and no one is getting hit! Remember "Police Squad"? I was kinda grinning watch this movie thinking about it. Two TV personalities I noticed The Skipper Alan Hale Jr, as a heavy and The guy who was the Sheriff in Bonanza (musta chose him based on his flatfoot character here). Anyway 6/10 because its a crime thriller (which are my favorites next to good war flicks) and Taylor talks the good talk, he just doesn't walk the walk. Damn you'se lousy rogue cop you'se!

Neil Doyle Robert Taylor puts an even harder edge on his 'Johnny Eager' type of role with another hard-boiled, even tougher characterization as a man steeped in underworld crime until his brother (Steve Forrest) is killed by mosbsters. Crisply directed, nice all-around performances from an attractive cast--Janet Leigh, Steve Forrest, George Raft, Alan Hale, Jr.--with Taylor highly convincing in the tough central role.Not the kind of gritty film noir one would suspect coming from the MGM studios--but well worth it with its Raymond Chandler type of dialogue and a climactic gun fight that is extremely well handled.Crime buffs should enjoy this one--as will Robert Taylor's fans.