THIS GUN FOR HIRE

Alan Ladd, who had already appeared in bit parts in several films (including CITIZEN KANE (1941)), became a bonafide movie star with his role as hired killer Raven in THIS GUN FOR HIRE (1942). Although short and skinny, Ladd brought a simmering intensity to this and many other roles that followed. Although best known for the immortal SHANE (1953), Ladd starred in several classic film noirs including THE GLASS KEY (1942), THE BLUE DAHLIA (1946), APPOINTMENT WITH DANGER (1951) and HELL ON FRISCO BAY (1955).

In GUN, Ladd was teamed for the first time with Paramount studios' "It" girl of the 1940s, blond bombshell Veronica Lake. Ladd and Lake strike genuine sparks in GUN and they worked together in several subsequent films including THE GLASS KEY, THE BLUE DAHLIA and SAIGON (1948). 

Based on a novel by Graham Greene, THIS GUN FOR HIRE opens with contract killer Raven (who has a soft spot for cats), gunning down not one, but two people. Can't leave any witnesses, you know. He's paid off by slimy Willard Gates ( Laird Cregar), in marked money, which means that as soon as Raven tries to spend any of the bills, he'll be spotted. 

Raven goes on the run to track down Gates who works two jobs. By day, he's an executive with Nitro Chemical Corporation in Los Angeles while by night, he's the impresario of The Neptune Club. He's hired Ellen Graham (Lake), a sexy, singing, sleight of hand magician for his nightclub. Ellen, it turns out, is the girlfriend of police detective Michael Crane (Robert Preston) who is on Raven's trail. And she's also been asked by a U.S. Senator to find out the inner workings of Gates and his boss, Alvin Brewster (Tullly Marshall), both of whom are planning to sell a formula for poison gas to the Japanese. 

All of these various plot threads eventually weave together with Ellen, first taken hostage by Raven, then rescued by him and ultimately aiding him in his quest for revenge. There's a well staged action set piece in a Los Angeles rail yard before the climax in the headquarters of Nitro Chemical. 

Part film noir, part wartime spy thriller, THIS GUN FOR HIRE is a first rate film all the way. Ladd and Lake are both top notch but it's Laird Cregar who steals the show. Creger, who died incredibly young at the age of 31 in 1944, comes across as the illegitimate love child of Sidney Greenstreet and Raymond Burr with Charles Laughton serving as the midwife. The rotund, oleaginous actor oozes plummy menace in every scene he's in. Cregar was a standout in other film noirs: I WAKE UP SCREAMING (1941), THE LODGER (1944) and HANGOVER SQUARE (1945).

With a screenplay by  Albert Maltz and the legendary W.R. Burnett and ace direction by Frank Tuttle, THIS GUN FOR HIRE is a winner. 

Recommended.