The Naked City (1948)

Conventionally, this is classified as film noir, as befits pre-Rififi director Jules Dassin, but I think it pushes the bounds of that label. Most of the action takes place by day, for example, and the protagonists are hardly corrupt or morose. I'd call it just an old-time murder mystery -- a police procedural, even.

The most distinctive feature of the, ah, feature comes in the narration. Despite not identifying as a character within the story, the narrator conveys a fair amount of personality, more or less lightly mocking the concerned citizens of New York every step of the way. (Maybe Lemony Snicket should branch out accordingly.) It threatens to annoy rather than amuse viewers after a while, but hopefully, by that time, you'll be too engrossed to dwell on that.

The story wastes little time actually depicting the murder in question, tho we don't get to learn much of anything that the police don't determine early on. Some racy implications for the time come to the fore, as when they discover the deceased woman in a bathtub (hey, they had to do something for the title), followed by male pajamas in her apartment. In an admittedly noir-ish sense, we find quite a few non-angels involved in one way or another. The main villain, when he reemerges, is pretty intense.

The main police detectives are an old pro and a newcomer, the elder being played by Barry Fitzgerald, who as always must overplay his Irish heritage regardless of the serious subject. I could enjoy a choice line now and then, but their personalities don't bounce off each other all that dynamically. That said, I must give the filmmakers credit for daring to portray the detectives' work in a warts-and-all fashion, by which I mean it becomes an unenviable slog for information. Say what you will about the narrator; he does help prevent the audience from getting bored too.

I consider noir and its antique ilk rather consistently enjoyable, and TNC is no exception. It wouldn't be among my first recommendations to someone who's just getting into the genre(s), as it lacks the iconic splendor of some classics, but it is a worthy way to spend 96 minutes.