Leofwine_draca THE TURNING POINT is a typical film noir-styled crime thriller in which a couple of crusading guys attempt to clean up the city's criminal element but find themselves bogged down instead in corruption and ruthless slayings. William Holden is on fine form as the reporter with the bit between his teeth while Edmond O'Brien is even better as the prosecutor determined to bring down a kingpin. Surprisingly, this is a far from exciting little picture, too much bogged down in lengthy courtroom scenes and lacking suspense, particularly early in the picture. It dies pick up later on with Neville Brand perfectly cast as an assassin, but overall it's quite average.

Michael O'Keefe THE TURNING POINT is a crime drama based on Horace McCoy's novel Storm in the City. Crusading district attorney John Conroy(Edmond O'Brien)is tabbed to crack down on a powerful crime syndicate that is believed to have control of many of the city's leading citizens and officials. Conroy wants his father Matt(Tom Tully), a veteran cop,to be his lead investigator. Friend and hard nosed newspaper man, Jerry McKibbon(William Holden)has doubts John is the right choice for the assignment and during his own investigation discovers that Matt Conroy has been running around with local mobsters. Neil Eichelberger(Ed Begley)is believed to be the syndicate's kingpin and it will be a tall order to prove such. This film is directed by William Dieterle and has a supporting cast featuring: Alexis Smith, Don Porter, Ted de Corsia, Ray Teal and Neville Brand.

bkoganbing The Kefauver crime hearings in the US Senate were the inspiration for several films of which The Turning Point is one. It's neither the best or the worst of that group.Idealistic young attorney Edmond O'Brien is put in charge of a local Kefauver like group with prosecutorial powers to go after the syndicate that operates in this unnamed midwest American city. He's the son of veteran police detective Tom Tully and he asks his father to help him in his investigation. Also helping out are Alexis Smith functioning as the commission secretary and a cynical William Holden who is a long time friend of O'Brien's and newspaper reporter.The syndicate is headed by Ed Begley, his number two is his enforcer Ted DeCorsia and he's got a hotheaded torpedo on the payroll in Danny Dayton. This crime syndicate has its hooks in pretty deep and watching the film you see why they are always one step ahead of the investigating commission. The Turning Point fits right in with Bill Holden's post Sunset Boulevard tough and cynical image. That would reach its apogee when next year Holden would win an Oscar for the ultimate cynic in Stalag 17.The rest of the cast performs well in roles that fit them admirably. Some you will remember are Neville Brand as an out of town torpedo who has few words, but an aura of menace, Carolyn Jones in her film debut as a Virginia Hill type witness who performs on stand the way Judy Holliday did in the House Un-American Activities Committee as the dumb moll. But the performance that really stands out is that of Adele Longmire who is the wife of another torpedo who was doublecrossed and killed after a hit he performed. She is really a standout in her scenes as a frightened witness trying to flee the mob.The Turning Point is a good noir drama that holds up very well today and is even relevant with some of the big name prosecutions of more recent vintage.

dbdumonteil Robert Wise's "the captive city" was released the same year and it's roughly the same subject .William Dieterle's work is not as absorbing because his directing is too static and academic in spite of a good cast.Melodramatic elements interfere with the film noir treatment -the father trying to redeem himself after behaving very bad,but he did it in order to pay his son 's studies etc etc -.Fortunately,the last sequence avoids pathos .Wise's film was more interesting because the enemy was almost invisible and the stranglehold it had on the town was complete though.In Dieterle's movie ,in spite of a lot of violence,we never really feel a threatening atmosphere.