She's no good, but she's good for me! The Man Who Cheated Himself is directed by Felix E. Feist and written by Seton I. Miller and Phillip MacDonald. It stars Lee J. Cobb, Jane Wyatt, John Dall and Lisa Howard. Music is by Louis Forbes and cinematography by Russell Harlan. Ed Cullen (Cobb) is a cop who is having an affair with wealthy Lois Frazer (Wyatt). When Lois, in a fit of panic shoots dead her husband, it cause Cullen no end of grief. You see, he was there as well, a witness to the crime... Don't forget to change your will. This is a film noir entry that contains most of the elements that form that brand of film making. Something of an under seen - and undervalued - piece, it manages to rise above a few minor itches to play out as potent. Cullen (Cobb excellent) gets spun into a vortex of self inflicted trouble on account of his eye for a dame, essayed by a cast against type Wyatt. Both are unfaithful, she's unreliable and he's quick to break his own laws with dishonesty and a corruptible soul. Things spice up when Cullen's younger brother, Andy (Dall), himself a police officer, joins his brother in investigating the "now" mysterious murder case. So we have a family crisis brewing as the younger Cullen tries to crack the case, all while his elder brother tries to throw him off the scent of his own complicity. Wonderful, because like a few other great noirs (Scandal S…

This is quite a decent little crime noir with Lee J. Cobb as a veteran police officer called in to investigate a murder. Thing is, the murdered man just happens to be the young (soon to be ex) husband of his wealthy lover Jane Wyatt ("Lois"). It isn't long before we start to suspect some sort of cover up, and so does his partner and younger brother John Dall ("Andy"). It's a solid detective mystery with Cobb and Wyatt on good form. Dall always was a bit of an effort to appreciate - his looks did most of his acting for him, and here they don't really shine. The dialogue is quite sharp, the pace likewise and there are just about enough red herrings to keep the plot interesting, with quite an exciting last ten minutes. Worth a watch.

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