Robert Montgomery not only took the lead in "Ride the Pink Horse" but directed it as well. It's a good noirish thriller that takes place in the New Mexico border town of San Pablo, or at least the studio where said town is 'constructed', as Montgomery's Lucky Gagin seeks out mobster Frank Hugo, (an excellent Fred Clark), presumably with the intention of killing him or, as it turns out, blackmailing him. With a screenplay by Ben Hecht and Charles Lederer it's certainly intelligent and Montgomery handles the decent plot with real skill.
Unfortunately his performance doesn't quite measure up; he's just a little too laid back and perhaps just a tad too old for the part and it's left to the supporting cast, including an Oscar-nominated Thomas Gomez, to carry the picture. It's definitely got an unusual plot that never quite goes where you expect it to and while it's not a memorable picture it's sufficiently off-the-wall to be of more than passing interest. It's not much seen these days but it's still worth seeing.
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