Panic in the Streets

Directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Elia Kazan, this 1950 drama turns a murder mystery into an unusual film-noir thriller, as the hunt for the killers assumes deadly urgency after the victim, an illegal alien, is found to be infected with a virulent strain of the bubonic plague. Richard Widmark stars as Lt. Cmdr. Clint Reed, a public health official who takes on the investigation when the police show little interest, and he has a 48-hour deadline before the murderers will become infectious and possibly unleash an epidemic. Kazan makes great use of the New Orleans locations and atmosphere, taking the viewer into seedier parts of the city than were usually seen in Hollywood productions. Widmark is well cast as the tenacious hero trying to stave off a potential disaster, and Kazan coaxes excellent performances from Jack Palance and Zero Mostel as Blackie and Ray, the sweaty small-time crooks on the run. Paul Douglas co-stars as gruff police captain Tom Warren, who grudgingly helps in the search. Re-releasing on DVD and bowing on Blu-ray with a sharp black-and-white transfer, extras include audio commentary by film historians Alain Silver and James Ursini, and A&E Biography profiles of Widmark and Palance. Recommended. (S. Axmaker)