This novel crime film set entirely in Bellvue Hospital in NYC is more interesting for its picture of intern life at mid-century than for its farfetched premise of a police detective planted inside the institution as a physician to try to catch a murderer. Realistic location shooting enjoyed a vogue in the late 40's and early 50's, and undoubtedly Bellvue was well compensated for extending its hospitality to Hollywood. It's also a reminder of how much cigarette smoking was an accepted "relaxant" in those days, even for the medical profession. Among numerous tobacco moments, Nurse Coleen Gray urges undercover man Richrd Conte to step outside for "a cigarette and a breath of fresh air," as though one went hand in hand with the other. Although that kind of thing seems ridiculous now, in an age of idiotic comic book and video game movies, it's a pleasure to watch a film performed on an intimately human scale.
Review of The Sleeping City
