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Dark Passage (1947) - a Film Review


Imagine you are being convicted for killing your wife and you end up in San Francisco's most notorious prison. Everyone has let you down and you don’t make many new friends in San Quentin because they don’t like inmates who keep insisting they’re innocent. The only way to prove your innocence is to escape. You hide in a barrel that is on the laundry truck so you can start your search for the person who killed your wife. As easy as pie…. But like in any good film noir, you're running a lot of trouble.


We hear the famous voice of Humphrey Bogart, who plays Vincent the escaped prisoner. When I hear his voice I know for sure; this must be good film. Five minutes after the start of the film Vincent meets Irene, played by Lauren Bacall. For an inexplicable reason, which will become apparent later, she helps him escape. As soon as I see Bacall I think; This is going to be a great movie. At least I have not seen a bad movie with these two great actors yet.


The first 35 minutes of the film I find intriguing. We do not see Vincent and only hear him thinking and talking. That everyone talks to the camera suggests that we, the viewers, are Vincent. Vincent has a major handicap in the search for his wife's murderer; his gallows face that is now in every newspaper. Accidentally he meets a nice taxi driver, who can see by looking at his face that he’s innocent, who helps him to set up an appointment with a plastic surgeon. Where were all those nice people when you were convicted Vincent?


The rest of the film is made up of coincidences that are explained with statements later on in the film. It also seems that some things go too easy for Vincent. The bad guys can make it difficult for him, but Vincent seems to have luck on his side and gets out of trouble anyway. The strangest of all is that no one recognizes Vincent by his characteristic voice. I do not even have to see Humphrey Bogart, I can recognise him by his voice because there’s no one like it in the world.


But Bogart and Bacall are not to blame. These two are always a pleasure to watch. And it is a film noir so the film techniques are also very good.

Dark Passage (1927) Trailer
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