Between Midnight and Dawn

Even with a middle section that veers into romantic melodrama, Gordon Douglas’ Between Midnight and Dawn is a solidly entertaining and relatively unappreciated noir that some consider the first ever “buddy cop” movie. Edmond O’Brien and Mark Stevens play childhood friends and patrol partners Dan Purvis and Rocky Barnes, respectively, who compete playfully for the precinct’s pretty radio communicator Kate Mallory (Gale Storm) who attempts to rebuff their advances because her policeman father was killed in the line of duty (the risks of loving a cop comprise the film’s dramatic theme). As the romantic triangle unfolds, the partners are embroiled in an effort to bring down violent racketeer and nightclub owner Ritchie Garris (Donald Buka); when they finally arrest Garris, he manages to escape and swears vengeance against the duo. (Garris undoubtedly ranks in the upper echelon of noir’s evil villains, at one point even dangling a little girl out a high-rise window as a threat.) Gale Robbins plays Terry Romaine, Garris’ conflicted girlfriend who sings at his club and will later try to leave him at her own peril. It’s a well-crafted film by the under-remembered Douglas, a simple story that features nicely done gunfights and car chases, excellent chemistry among the lead performers, and at least one dramatic plot twist.