What makes this film so gritty and sinister is the fact that the actors outside of John Forsythe in the lead (a newcomer at the time) are extremely obscure, basically unknowns. The town of Kennington (no state mentioned from my recollection) is filled with corruption, and as the newspaper editor, Forsythe gets wind of it through an informer who is quickly murdered, although the local law calls it an accidental hit and run. The man's widow recalls him talking about a car with Florida license plates in the area, and sure enough, when Forsythe begins his investigation, the same car is seen following him too.
The risk of danger to Forsythe and herself doesn't scare his wife, Joan Camden, who encourages him to do what's right. Another witness is Marjorie Crosland who comes to Forsythe for help, fearing thar her ex-husband is involved. Another death, marked as suicide, indicates that the corruption of vice goes way up high, and many people in town turn their back on Forsythe, mainly out of fear, but some on guilt.
This goes into the sub noir category of corrupt towns under the thumb of racketeers, certainly not as glamorous as mob epics like "The Godfather", but closer to "Goodfellas" where the crooks lived moderate suburban lives and not in gated communities. It's aided by the scenes at night where something sinister is certain to happen, subtle in insinuation but pretty obvious as to who's hiding involvement as they're questioned by the very courageous Forsythe. Quite good with a different point of view than most crime dramas of the time, another triumph for director Robert Wise.
The risk of danger to Forsythe and herself doesn't scare his wife, Joan Camden, who encourages him to do what's right. Another witness is Marjorie Crosland who comes to Forsythe for help, fearing thar her ex-husband is involved. Another death, marked as suicide, indicates that the corruption of vice goes way up high, and many people in town turn their back on Forsythe, mainly out of fear, but some on guilt.
This goes into the sub noir category of corrupt towns under the thumb of racketeers, certainly not as glamorous as mob epics like "The Godfather", but closer to "Goodfellas" where the crooks lived moderate suburban lives and not in gated communities. It's aided by the scenes at night where something sinister is certain to happen, subtle in insinuation but pretty obvious as to who's hiding involvement as they're questioned by the very courageous Forsythe. Quite good with a different point of view than most crime dramas of the time, another triumph for director Robert Wise.