Rent Ride the Pink Horse (1947)

Political Noir. - Ride the Pink Horse review by Steve

Cult film noir set in New Mexico after WWII. Robert Montgomery returns from the Pacific with his pal who gets rubbed out by a mafia boss (Fred Clark) for trying to put on the bite for a crooked Government contract. The ex-GI tracks the gangster south to San Pablo during the fiesta, while being tailed himself by an FBI agent (Art Smith).

There isn’t a strong expressionist look; this isn't a town of shadows. It is film noir because of its political cynicism. The promised postwar settlement fell through. Semi-legitimate gangs and crooked politicians got rich while a generation of young men fought in Europe and the East.

The traumatised hero lost his girl and his friend and his faith in his country. He can’t trust the law which let the killer go free. Criminality is normalised. But in San Pablo he meets honest citizens among the Mexican poor; the trusting, guileless Wanda Hendrix and an optimistic fairground worker (Oscar nominated Thomas Gomez). This challenges his racism and pessimism.

The enigmatic title hints at the socialist message stowed inside a low budget thriller. Perhaps it was this which attracted A list writers Ben Hecht and Charles Lederer, and Montgomery, to such a minor production. It was released in the year the Hollywood blacklist was introduced to prevent films like this being made. It works best as a woozy, dreamlike political allegory.