Movie Review: Port of New York (1949)

Greetings, all!

I like to be "organized" by reviewing books or movies on special occasions. Birthdays are one of those special times! Today, July 11th, would have been the 100th birthday of actor Yul Brynner! Because of this I watched a new movie of his (his first, actually), and am going to review it for you now. Enjoy!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. This is spoiler free!


Port of New York (1949):

A narrator opens telling about the port of New York, and how all the people who work there have to check for contraband items. This film is about one of the hardest cases where a very dangerous supply went missing. Detectives Flannery and Walters have to figure out who did it and find the goods before it is too late. With a crime empire rising, will they be able to stop who is in charge?
"We're really starting from scratch on this one, finding a guy that looks like ten thousand other guys."
Genre: Fiction, Film Noir, Crime.
Length: approx. 81 minutes.
Costumes: 7, no comment from me here, as they are just standard.
Script: 10, no bad words.
"You're also developing the irritating habit of not minding your own business."
Crew: Directed by: László Benedek. Written by: Eugene Ling, Arthur A. Ross, & Bert Murray.
Starring:
Richard Rober as Jim Flannery.
Scott Brady as Mickey Waters.
Yul Brynner as Paul Vicola.
K.T. Stevens as Miss Toni Cardell.
Arthur Blake as Dolly Carney.
Lynne Carter as Lili Long.
Chet Huntley as the narrator.
John Kellogg as Lenny.
William Challee as Leo Stasser.
Cinematography: 7, Film Noir is famous for its outstanding cinematography, but this one didn't have anything that caught my eye.
Cinematography by: George E. Diskant.
Music: 7, it was the usual intense in places, but nothing remarkable.
Music by: Sol Kaplan.
Quotes: N/A, as I just watched it today and don't know how much I'll quote it in the future. I'm guessing about a 7 here.
Content: 8, there is murder, fighting, and drug dealing, but all of it is shown as bad, and they are trying to stop the people who did it. There is also some smoking.
Originality: 6, I don't watch a lot of Noir because I don't often get the chance, but there wasn't anything new and exciting in this one. I just felt neutral the whole way through.
Good For: Noir fans, Yul Brynner fans.
Age Range: Though I mentioned the killing and fighting, it isn't gruesome, so any age could watch this. I will bet you that most would be bored with it, though, unless they really like the genre.
Overall Score: 7.
Bonus thoughts:
Well, as you can see, this movie didn't enthrall me, to say the least. I actually watched it while doing the dishes. A part that I thought was really relevant to today is that the smuggled items were some drugs and bacteria that was going to a hospital. When it got into the wrong hands it was said, "Bacteria to start a plague of violence and misery..." Right now we are going through a plague, and I was surprised to see it in there.

His first time!

But, I am glad that I watched it! Why? Yul Brynner! I've only seen a few of his movies, but I really liked his performance in it! I'm not used to seeing him as the antagonist, but he did such a good job, and in his first film, too! It was very strange to see him without his trademark shaved head, because he hadn't started doing that yet.

Yul in The Magnificent Seven (1960)

Why did I choose this film for today, his 100th birthday? At first I wanted to talk about The Magnificent Seven (1960), which is my favorite role of his, but I decided to save that for another day. When planning this month's blogging schedule out I realized that it is #CleanMovieMonth2020, hosted by Pure Entertainment Preservation Society!

I talked more about how I'm doing it HERE, but the quick run down is this: The challenge is to only watch American movies made from 1934-1954 in July. This film is the only one that Yul Brynner made in those years, so that is why I chose it! Once again, his performance was really great, just like all the other films that I've seen him in. I look forward to all the ones that I haven't seen yet!


There you have it! Even though Mr. Brynner isn't alive anymore, I wish him a happy birthday!

Thanks for reading! Tell me your favorite Yul Brynner movie, or if you've seen any Film Noir!

MovieCritic