This is a film about a man who cannot seem to escape the system that he is stuck in. He is a criminal who is misunderstood and only commits crime out of necessity. It is an excellent film, very well made, and easy to get involved in. This film has a low, ambient sound track, with a sort of dissonance that really adds to the mise-en-scene that it is a gritty Film Noir. There are many establishing shots of trees and the cloudy sky that gives the film a very creepy, unsettling vibe. Reinforcing that it is not a happy film. The film has a lot of long cuts, shot in an extremely dark environment. It is true to its genre of Film Noir. There are some quick cuts of over the shoulder shots, but for the most part the film is shot with long stationary shots. The light is extremely low to show how the world is a dark place. The only thing that is consistently lit up is the faces of the actors. I believe that this is to show the strong emotions in the face of the two women, and lack of emotion in Joe. The general feeling that this film gives you is that there is no hope, and the death in the end is inevitable.

"Raw Deal" from 1958 is directed by Anthony Mann and stars Dennis O'Keefe, Claire Trevor, Marsha Hunt, Raymond Burr, and John Ireland.The film is narrated by Pat (Trevor), who is the girlfriend of escaped convict Joe (O'Keefe). Joe took the rap for a mob boss, Rick Coyle (Burr) who is supposed to pay him $50,000. Pat helps him escape, but their car breaks down, and the two head for the apartment of a social worker (Hunt) who has visited him in prison. Ann is horrified to see Joe and nearly calls the police. He and Pat take her hostage, with Joe not admitting that he is very attracted to Ann. Pat picks up on it, and is jealous.Meanwhile, Rick sends his henchman (John Ireland) and others out to make sure Joe is murdered so he won't have to see him.This is a very good noir and a stereotypical one. The narration and dialogue as spoken by Claire Trevor has the sound of something you'd see on In Living Color and the old Carol Burnett Show. Now, in a noir, they fit the style beautifully - later, of course, this type of dialogue was used for comedy. Tough dialogue like: "It's the daily fight that everyone has. To get food and an education, to land a job and keep it. And some self-respect. 'Safe'? I never asked for anything safe. All I want is... just a little decency, that's all!" Perfect.Anthony Mann's excellent direction moves this film right along and builds suspense. It's a violent film, yet most of the violence is in our imagination. Mann kept moving up the director ladder, but in his early days directed some terrific noirs.The cast is excellent, with Trevor's aging floosie, desperately in love with Joe, a standout. Hunt is lovely in a sincere performance as a naive woman. I saw her a couple of years ago at Paramount's 100th anniversary and at 95, she looks wonderful and was delightful. Raymond Burr is mean as dirt, and Ireland is an effective associate. O'Keefe wasn't an exciting actor, though he holds his own in this. Though he's the lead, it's not the showiest role. He was attractive and at his best in light comedy, though he evidently loved this type of film and did a few that were successful.Very good noir with interesting photography and a real edge to it.

"Raw Deal" is one of the best film noirs I've seen, with seedy production values that enhance the seediness of the story.Dennis O'Keefe plays a man who escapes from prison with the help of his girlfriend, Claire Trevor in a fabulous performance. He and Trevor end up taking his social worker, played by Marsha Hunt, hostage to keep her from alerting the authorities. He then sets off on a plan to get vengeance against the crime boss (Raymond Burr) that landed him in prison in the first place.This is as cynical, brutal and jaded as noirs get, reminding me in its nearly total absence of moral considerations and its lack of redemption for just about any of its characters of another supremely cynical noir, "Detour." One of the most interesting things to me about "Raw Deal" is how much it's actually about the women around our main character, almost more than it's about the main character himself. It's as if the women can't help but be dragged down by the criminal world they've attached themselves to -- the social worker ironically becomes a killer, while the gangster moll is the one who faces the film's primary moral dilemma.Terrific off-kilter compositions and camera work by John Alton (a surreal scene late in the movie filmed through fog is a stand out) heighten the sense of decay and sleaze. Movies like "Raw Deal" are what got me hooked on film noir in the first place.Grade: A

Raw Deal is directed by Anthony Mann and adapted by Leopold Atlas & John C. Higgins from a suggested story by Arnold B. Armstrong & Audrey Ashley. It stars Dennis O'Keefe, Claire Trevor, Marsha Hunt, John Ireland & Raymond Burr. Paul Sawtell scores the music and John Alton is the cinematographer.Convict Joe Sullivan (O'Keefe), incarcerated after taking a fall, breaks out of jail with the help of his girl, Pat Cameron (Trevor). But something is amiss, brutish mobster Rick Coyle (Burr) is influencing proceedings behind the scenes, he needs to because he owes Joe big time. Kidnapping Joe's social worker, Ann Martin (Hunt), Joe & Pat hit the road, it's a road that will lead to desperate consequences for many.A raw fatalistic film noir that sees the ace pairing of director Mann and photographer Alton. They, along with O'Keefe, had made T-Men the year previously, itself a tough piece of film making. Raw Deal is the lesser known movie of the two, but that's not in any way indicative of the quality of Raw Deal, for it's most assuredly the real deal for sure. What unfolds over the 80 minutes running time is a plot full of characters destined for disappointments or even worse; rarely has the title for a film been as apt as it is here! Mann & Alton move the tight screenplay thru a shadowy world of half-lit images and high contrast brutality. Jittery cameras are supplemented by unbalanced angles, which in turn are boosted by Sawtell's music compositions. One of the best decisions made by Mann and Sawtell is that of the narration by Trevor, in itself unusual for a woman of noir to narrate, it's sorrowful and mournful in tone anyway, but with Sawtell scoring it with the theremin it plays out as part of a nightmarish dream-state.O'Keefe was not the leading man type, but that's perfect for this film, he offers a credibility to a man whose life has taken a down turn, where his only comfort is being a thorn between two roses, but with that comes more problems as he seeks to only breathe the fresh air of freedom. Trevor (loyal and knowing moll) and Hunt (dainty with whiffs of goodness seeping from every pore) play off each other very well, offering up a sort of devil and angel on Joe's shoulders motif. Burr is shot from the waist up, giving his character even more emphasise as a hulking, sadistic brute, and rounding out the good performances is Ireland as a sly hit-man type who revels in getting a rise out of his paymaster. But no doubt about it, the real star of the show is Alton's photography, itself the critical character. Mann's film would have been great and got through on his direction and script anyway, but with Alton's camera it ends up being essential for the film noir faithful.From the opening, where the credits show up on the background of prison bar shadows, to the no cop out-classic noir-ending, Raw Deal hits the mark. A film that's bleak and at times brutal, yet rich in emotional depth. A must see for like minded cinephiles. 9/10