Characters live in residential hotels or above tattoo parlors. Candy searches Skip's waterfront shack that night while he is out. This 1080P has a very high bitrate looks a bit darker than the SDs, show more information on the left and top edge and a shade less on the right and bottom. (1953). The second time she visits, she is puzzled when he calls her a "commie" and demands $25,000 for the film. Crime. Joey has told her that it contains stolen business secrets and she believed him, unaware that Joey is actually a communist spy. "[12], The Academy Film Archive preserved Pickup on South Street in 2002.[13]. PICKUP ON SOUTH STREET. 113 of 124 people found this review helpful. He beats Candy in an attempt to get Skip's address, then shoots her as she tries to leave. Among his take, although he does not know it at the time, is a piece of top-secret microfilm that was being passed by Candy's consort, a Communist agent. McCoy, now goaded into action, confronts the agent in a particularly brutal fight in a subway. Candy was delivering an envelope as a final favor to her ex-boyfriend, Joey (Richard Kiley). Pickup on South Street was made at 20th Century Fox under the sympathetic eye of producer Darryl F Zanuck during Fuller’s only time as a well-paid contract director. Moe goes home, and finds Joey waiting for her. View production, box office, & company info. alfiehitchie. Hoover objected to Widmark's unpatriotic character especially his line "Are you waving the flag at me? But Candy lives, as she must, in a flourish that speaks to Fuller’s remarkable blend of sensationalism with sentimentality. 20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA. Although perhaps not his finest film, Pickup on South Street may be the most representative entry in Samuel Fuller’s filmography. Pickup on South Street is a 1953 Cold War spy film noir written and directed by Samuel Fuller, and released by the 20th Century Fox studio. Candy finally realizes the truth. Was this review helpful to you? Austin’s food scene is not for the faint of heart. In her purse, Joey finds Skip's address. The staff at Variety magazine said of the film, If Pickup on South Street makes any point at all, it's that there is nothing really wrong with pickpockets, even when they are given to violence, as long as they don't play footsie with Communist spies ... Film's assets are partly its photography, which creates an occasional tense atmosphere, and partly the performance of Thelma Ritter, the only halfway convincing figure in an otherwise unconvincing cast ... Widmark is given a chance to repeat on his snarling menace characterization followed by a look-what-love-can-do-to-a-bad-boy act as Widmark's hard-boiled soul melts before Peters' romancing. When the film was released, reviews were somewhat mixed. Peters was restored.[6]. In August 1952, the script was deemed unacceptable by the Production Code, by reasons of "excessive brutality and sadistic beatings, of both men and women". Candy discovers the whereabouts of the film through Moe Williams, a police informer. McCoy, now goaded into action, confronts the agent in a particularly brutal fight in a subway. Twentieth Century Fox: A Corporate and Financial History (The Scarecrow Filmmakers Series). Moe tries, but fails, to convince Skip to give the film to the government. Rick Thompson suggests that Pickup may have been the basis of Robert Bresson's Pickpocket (1959), with which it shares many themes, ... including the death of the mother-figure; the hero's problem making commitment to the potential lover; a series of philosophical dialogues between the hero and his police antagonist; the interlinking of pickpocketing and sexuality; and the construction of the pickpocket hero as an extreme and deliberate outsider. It's better than a studio archive print. Meanwhile, Joey persuades a reluctant Candy to track down the thief using her underworld connections. "Pickup On South Street" is also one of the few movies where, even though the characters aren't perfect, you do care about them -- perhaps because they have been somewhat branded by their pasts in ways that are hard to escape: Skip as a "three-time loser" and Candy as a youngish woman who has "knocked around" a lot. When these people behave a little more badly than you'd expect, it's in sort of novel ways that make it seem you're looking in at people you'd never otherwise imagine -- and yet you know that they are possible because the actors make them so recognizably human. The desperate agent exterminates Moe and savagely beats Candy. Certificate: Passed PICKUP ON SOUTH STREET (director/writer: Samuel Fuller; screenwriter: based on the story Blaze of Glory by Dwight Taylor; cinematographer: Joe MacDonald; editor: Nick De Maggio; music: Leigh Harline; cast: Richard Widmark (Skip McCoy), Jean Peters (Candy), Thelma Ritter (Moe), Murvyn Vye (Capt. FBI director J. Edgar Hoover had lunch with Fuller and Zanuck, and said how much he detested Fuller's work and especially Pickup on South Street. Start your morning right with On a crowded subway, Skip McCoy picks the purse of Candy. Bosley Crowther wrote, It looks very much as though someone is trying to out-bulldoze Mickey Spillane in Twentieth Century-Fox's Pickup on South Street, ... this highly embroidered presentation of a slice of life in the New York underworld not only returns Richard Widmark to a savage, arrogant role, but also uses Jean Peters blandly as an all-comers' human punching-bag. Original title: Pickup on South Street. Pickup on South Street is a 1953 Cold War spy film noir written and directed by Samuel Fuller, and released by the 20th Century Fox studio. She blames herself for Moe's death, but to her dismay, Skip is still willing to deal with Joey. The next morning, Skip returns home to find Candy there. Within the South Congress neighborhood, you’ll find culinary tourism at its most delicious. Synopsis: On a crowded subway, Skip McCoy picks the purse of Candy. Fuller met Detective Dan Campion of the New York Police Department to research the background material of his story to add realism, with Fuller basing the role of Tiger the police detective on Campion who had been suspended without salary for six months for manhandling a suspect. Even the genial Thelma Ritter plays a stool pigeon who gets her head blown off ... Sensations he has in abundance and, in the delivery of them, Mr. Widmark, Miss Peters, Miss Ritter and all the others in the cast do very well. Candy does, but Joey notices that there is a frame missing. Government agent Zara (Willis Bouchey) had Candy under surveillance, hoping she would lead him to the top man in the spy ring. Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? When Betty Grable insisted on being in the film and threatened to cause problems, Fuller promised to walk off the film. Among his take, although he does not know it at the time, is a piece of top-secret microfilm that was being passed by Candy's consort, a Communist agent. Police Captain Dan Tiger (Murvyn Vye) has professional informant Moe Williams (Thelma Ritter) brought in. The film stars Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, and Thelma Ritter. Solomon, Aubrey. She attempts to seduce McCoy to recover the film. Pickup on South Street (1953) Skip McCoy is a sleazy, thieving, smart-ass. In 2018, Pickup on South Street was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.". The managers of 20th Century Fox thought that the theme of communist spies was too controversial in a country where the Communist Party was an influential and legitimate part of public life. When he returns, he spots her flashlight, sneaks in and knocks her out. Pickup on South Street (1953) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. “I was attracted to the underworld, the kind of movies I’d seen on late night TV or in film noir: PICKUP ON SOUTH STREET, other Sam Fuller films, THE NAKED CITY. Violence bursts in every sequence, and the conversation is slangy and corrupt. Bent on winning a Pulitzer Prize, a journalist commits himself to a mental institution to solve a strange and unclear murder. The … With only a week to go before the film started production, Fuller saw Peters walk into the studio's commissary while having lunch. A pickpocket unwittingly lifts a message destined for enemy agents and becomes a target for a Communist spy ring. Candy discovers the whereabouts of the film through Moe Williams, a police informer. Pickup on South Street. Pickup on South Street The trail leads to Moe, who is delighted to be able to sell the same information a second time, knowing that her good friend Skip will not mind. The film stars Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, and Thelma Ritter. Criterion's DVD of Pickup on South Street is the first older title in their new arrangement with Fox, the deal that's already given us Naked Lunch and is promising dream titles like Robert Altman's exquisite Three Women.The transfer is gorgeous, a mint element given additional digital cleanup. On a crowded subway, Skip McCoy picks the purse of Candy. In 2018, Pickup on South Street was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." Fuller noticed Peters walked with a slightly bow-legged style that many prostitutes also had. She is being closely watched by FBI Agent Zara (Willis Bouchey) and another agent. The Pickup on South Street Community Note includes chapter-by-chapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and … She attempts to seduce McCoy to recover the film. Pickup on South Street Petty crook Skip McCoy (Richard Widmark) has his eyes fixed on the big score. Hit men kill an unresisting victim, and investigator Reardon uncovers his past involvement with beautiful, deadly Kitty Collins. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 1989. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pickup_on_South_Street&oldid=1019733072, United States National Film Registry films, Wikipedia articles with BIBSYS identifiers, Wikipedia articles with WorldCat-VIAF identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 25 April 2021, at 03:02. Pickup on South Street is a film directed by Samuel Fuller with Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, Thelma Ritter, Richard Kiley, Murvyn Vye .... Year: 1953. 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