One of the early “visual” noirs, This Gun For Hire
This pre-noir clearly influenced French director, Jean-Pierre Melville, in his 1967 homage to film noir, Le Samourai, with Alain Delon, who shares not only Alan Ladd’s first name but an uncanny resemblance, in a similar story of a hit-man on the run. Le Samourai has a pet canary, while Ladd’s Raven has a pet cat. Even a dramatic rail bridge chase is copied by Mellville.
This Gun For Hire, is an interesting melodrama, which tries to explain the origins of Raven’s pychosis in a scene where he opens up after responding to the gentle concern of the Veronica Lake character. While to a degree dated and despite a weak supporting cast, this picture leaves you with serious questions to ponder.
Highly recommended.
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Besides being an excellent early exercise in the noir style, This film was also a huge influence on 60′s spy flicks, most notably the James Bond pictures. Many of the set-ups and scenarios are directly mimicked in Bond. Top-notch film.