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Thieves' Highway

"You Need a Friend, Strong Man, - And I'm Friendly!"

1949-09-20 Drama 1hr 34m

Nick Garcos comes back from his tour of duty in World War II planning to settle down with his girlfriend, Polly Faber. He learns, however, that his father was recently beaten and burglarized by mob-connected trucker Mike Figlia, and Nick resolves to get even. He partners with prostitute Rica, and together they go after Mike, all the while getting pulled further into the local crime underworld.

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Thieves' Highway

Storyline

Nick Garcos comes back from his tour of duty in World War II planning to settle down with his girlfriend, Polly Faber. He learns, however, that his father was recently beaten and burglarized by mob-connected trucker Mike Figlia, and Nick resolves to get even. He partners with prostitute Rica, and together they go after Mike, all the while getting pulled further into the local crime underworld.

  • Released
    1949-09-20
  • Revenue
    n/a
  • Budget
    n/a
  • Runtime
    1hr 34m
  • Genre
    Drama, Crime, Thriller
  • Status
    Released
  • Language
    English, Italiano
  • imdb-logo
    7.5
  • Production
    20th Century Fox

Crew

Jules Dassin
Director
A.I. Bezzerides
Novel
Robert Bassler
Producer
Keywords:
san francisco, california film noir truck driver produce truck crash apple picking

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Cast

Richard Conte

Richard Conte
Nick Garcos
Valentina Cortese

Valentina Cortese
Rica
Lee J. Cobb

Lee J. Cobb
Mike Figlia
Barbara Lawrence

Barbara Lawrence
Polly Faber
Jack Oakie

Jack Oakie
Slob
Millard Mitchell

Millard Mitchell
Ed Kinney
Joseph Pevney

Joseph Pevney
Pete
Morris Carnovsky

Morris Carnovsky
Yanko Garcos
Tamara Shayne

Tamara Shayne
Parthena Garcos
Kasia Orzazewski

Kasia Orzazewski
Mrs. Polansky
Norbert Schiller

Norbert Schiller
Mr. Polansky
Hope Emerson

Hope Emerson
Midge
Percy Helton

Percy Helton
Roadside Bar Manager (uncredited)
Walter Baldwin

Walter Baldwin
Officer Riley (uncredited)
Robert Bice

Robert Bice
Announcer (uncredited)
Howland Chamberlain

Howland Chamberlain
Mr. Faber (uncredited)
David Clarke

David Clarke
Mitch (uncredited)
Roy Damron

Roy Damron
Motor Policeman (uncredited)
Jules Dassin

Jules Dassin
Man in Freight Elevator (uncredited)
Al Eben

Al Eben
Newman (uncredited)
Robert Foulk

Robert Foulk
Taller Cop at Roadside Bar (uncredited)
Joe Haworth

Joe Haworth
Inspector (uncredited)
Ted Jordan

Ted Jordan
State Highway Policeman (uncredited)
Frank Kreig

Frank Kreig
Clerk (uncredited)
Saul Martell

Saul Martell
Stukas (uncredited)
Edwin Max

Edwin Max
Dave (uncredited)
John Merton

John Merton
State Highway Policeman (uncredited)
Ann Morrison

Ann Morrison
Mable (uncredited)
James Nolan

James Nolan
Smaller Cop at Roadside Bar (uncredited)
David Opatoshu

David Opatoshu
Frenchy (uncredited)
Frank Richards

Frank Richards
Cab Driver (uncredited)
Maurice Samuels

Maurice Samuels
Mario (uncredited)
Mario Siletti

Mario Siletti
Pietro (uncredited)
Irene Tedrow

Irene Tedrow
Mrs. Faber (uncredited)
George Tyne

George Tyne
Charles (uncredited)
Dick Wessel

Dick Wessel
Cab Driver (uncredited)
Harry Wilson

Harry Wilson
Fifth (uncredited)

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Thieves' Highway

Movie Reviews

Reviews for Thieves' Highway
reviewer avatar

A Review by John Chard 7.5

Written by John Chard on 2014-09-26

Everyone likes apples - Except doctors. Thieves' Highway is directed by Jules Dassin and adapted to screenplay by A. I. Bezzerides from h... read more

Everyone likes apples - Except doctors. Thieves' Highway is directed by Jules Dassin and adapted to screenplay by A. I. Bezzerides from his own novel Thieves' Market. It stars Richard Conte, Valentine Cortese, Lee J. Cobb, Barbara Lawrence, Jack Oakie and Millard Mitchell. Music is by Alfred Newman and cinematography by Norbert Brodine. A war-veteran returns to the family home to find his father has been left wheelchair bound by a amoral produce dealer in San Francisco. Swearing revenge he sets himself up as a truck driver and heads off to Frisco with a truck load of Golden Delicious apples... Revenge, hope and desperation drives Dassin's intelligently constructed noir forward. It's a film very much interested in its characterisations as it doles out a deconstruction of the American dream. The familiar noir theme of a returning war-veteran kicks things off, with Nico Garcos (Conte) finding a crippled father and a money hungry bride to be waiting for him; welcome home sailor! From there Dassin and Bezzerides push a revenge theme to the forefront whilst deftly inserting from the sides the devils of greed and corruption of the California produce business. The trucks journey is brilliantly captured by the makers, both exciting and exuding the menace of the hard slog for truckers. Once Nico and his partner, Ed Kinney (Mitchell), get to Frisco and encounter bully business boy Mike Figlia (Cobb), underhand tactics come seeping out and the appearance of prostitute Rica (Cortese) into Nico's life adds a morally grey area that pings with sharp dialogue exchanges. Real location photography adds to the authentic feel of the story, and cast performances are quite simply excellent across the board. The code appeasing ending hurts the film a touch, inserted against Dassin's wishes, and there's a feeling that it should have been more damning with the economic tropes; while the fact that Nico's father is more concerned about being robbed of money than losing the use of his legs - is a bit strange to say the least. However, from a graveyard of tumbling apples to the fact that more than money is stolen here, Thieves' Highway is sharp, smart and engrossing stuff. 7.5/10

reviewer avatar

A Review by Geronimo1967 7

Written by Geronimo1967 on 2025-01-07

I think this might be the best effort I've seen from Richard Conte as his "Nick" character comes back from the war eager to pick up his life... read more

I think this might be the best effort I've seen from Richard Conte as his "Nick" character comes back from the war eager to pick up his life again with his father and girlfriend "Polly" (Barbara Lawrence). The problem is that in his absence, his dad has had an accident that's robbed him of the use of his legs and given he was a truck driver, his livelihood too. "Yanko" (Morris Carnovsky) explains that he was cheated by local nasty "Figlia" (Lee J. Cobb) and so his boy sees red and sets about seeking his revenge. He goes into business with another down-at-heel driver "Ed" (Millard Mitchell) delivering apples but that just attracts the attention of his nemesis and his thugs who set out to sabotage their operation. He's not a brute, is old "Figlia" - he tries a more subtle approach by using local hooker "Rica" (Valentina Cortese) to try to lure "Nick", but well let's just say nothing quite goes to plan as we build to a denouement that's obvious, but still fairly valid. What helps a lot here is the quality of the script. It's respectful of his wartime experiences and family loyalties without going overboard with angry rhetoric, indeed there's quite a measured yet still gritty performance here from both Conte and the young Cortese who also manages to imbue here character with an engaging degree of conflict and meanness. Cobb is just Cobb, never changing whatever the role - but he acquits himself fine here as does Lawrence and as the story advances we see a sort of general pattern emerge for so many demob-happy soldiers who returned from one theatre of war to one altogether more intricate.

Read Full Review (The thoughts and opinions expressed here are solely those of the reviewer.)
A Review by John Chard

Everyone likes apples - Except doctors. Thieves' Highway is directed by Jules Dassin and adapted to screenplay by A. I. Bezzerides from his own novel Thieves' Market. It stars Richard Conte, Valentine Cortese, Lee J. Cobb, Barbara Lawren...

reviewer avatar

A Review by John Chard 7.5

Written by John Chard on 2014-09-26

Everyone likes apples - Except doctors. Thieves' Highway is directed by Jules Dassin and adapted to screenplay by A. I. Bezzerides from his own novel Thieves' Market. It stars Richard Conte, Valent...

read more
reviewer avatar

A Review by Geronimo1967 7

Written by Geronimo1967 on 2025-01-07

I think this might be the best effort I've seen from Richard Conte as his "Nick" character comes back from the war eager to pick up his life again with his father and girlfriend "Polly" (Barbara Lawre...

read more