- Directed by Phil Karlson and based on a short story by George Zuckerman, 99 River Street features one of the most enjoyably implausible plots in any film noir I've seen. One fateful evening, washed-up boxer Ernie Driscoll (John Payne) sits down to relive his loss of the championship title via a television rebroadcast while his unloving wife Pauline (Peggie Castle) rails at him for being such a loser. Later that same night, he spots Pauline in the arms of a crook named Rawlins (Brad Dexter). And then his friend Linda (Evelyn Keyes) pretends that she's murdered somebody and accidentally lands Ernie in trouble with the law. But that's before Ernie gets in even deeper trouble when he discovers Pauline's dead body in the back of his cab.
- In keeping with his enthusiasm for boxing, Ernie tends to employ violence when confronting adversity. His most brutal fistfight is with a goon named Mickey (Jack Lambert), although Linda's theater friends and Ernie's reliable pal Stan (Frank Faylen) are subjected to a few surprise rounds, too. And then there's that intentional car crash that takes care of a jewel fence (Jay Adler). Naturally, the film ends with another fistfight, this time with Rawlins. The film's chocolate syrup budget must have been enormous, considering all of the fake blood streaking across everyone's faces. In the film's occasional nonviolent moments, Linda steps in to fake a murder or seduce a stranger, just to keep things interesting. Even the film's title, 99 River Street, doesn't make a ton of sense, but at least it's fun to watch
