ILLEGAL ENTRY Howard Duff

ILLEGAL ENTRY. Universal, 1949. Howard Duff, Märta Torén, George Brent, Gar Moore, Tom Tully, Paul Stewart. Director: Frederick De Cordova.

   Director Frederick De Cordova is, of course, far better known for his work producing and directing on TV than in the movies, and even then more for his work in comedy (Jack Benny, Johnny Carson) than for fare of a more criminous nature. This semi-documentary near-noir film about illegal immigration into California in the late 1940s was never his usual stock in trade, by far.

ILLEGAL ENTRY Howard Duff

   Nor is anything more than average all the way around, even with a host of recognizable names and faces for movies of this type, including star Howard Duff, he with the voice of Sam Spade and the quizzically uplifted eyebrows.

   As a former Air Force pilot Bert Powers, Duff is asked to work undercover to get the goods on a ruthless gang of illegal alien importers — so ruthless are they as to drop their freight out of an open door if they feel the feds are getting too close.

   The reason he’s brought in is because Märta Torén, the widow of a good buddy of Powers, is somehow connected with the gang. And indeed she is, but not willingly, which gives Powers all kinds of false signals, to his complete frustration.

   There’s nothing deep involved in this tale, which is competently told, but unless you’re a fan of any of the players, you’ll forget it almost as soon as the bad guys have been caught. Forgive me for giving the ending away just now, but as you well know, you’d be much more surprised if they weren’t.

ILLEGAL ENTRY Howard Duff