Review of Thieves' Highway

A lovely, richly nuanced tale of an edgy middle-age boy belatedly growing into manhood, Thieves' Highway features an understated star turn by Richard Conte as WWII combat vet Nick Garcos, against scene-chewing villainy by Lee J. Cobb as the corrupt produce wholesaler Mike Figlia. Among its numerous excellences, enjoy lapidary character development by Morris Carnovsky and Tamara Shayne as Nick's parents Yanko and Parthena; gruff and subtle supporting turns by Millard Mitchell as Ed Prentiss, his ill-fated partner in a spontaneous trucking venture, and Jack Oakie and Joseph Pevney as Slob and Pete, their ruthless, yet ultimately scrupulous competitors; and deceit and counterfeit by Valentina Cortese and Barbara Lawrence as Rica and Polly Faber, the whore and the madonna vying for Nick's favors at different times, in different ways, and for wildly different reasons. Jules Dassin's filmed version of Albert Isaac "Buzz" Bezzerides' socially responsive novel resonates with the allegory of a tough yet guileless prole losing his innocence and earning his place in the ruthless capitalist continuum between commerce and crime. The Criterion Collection DVD, short on extras, delivers on quality.