Pitfall - A Somber Film Noir
Pitfall stars Dick Powell as a bored insurance investigator. He has a lovely wife, Jane Wyatt and a great kid, Jimmy Hunt. His life is good but settled, too routine for his liking; I guess you'd say he's going through a mid-life crisis. Then he is put on the trail of a woman, Lizabeth Scott, who owns things paid for by a fraudster. The private eye who finks on her is a sleazy, shady, no-good creep played so well by Raymond Burr that you almost forget he was the justice eagle Perry Mason in the TV series. Powell meets the woman and asks that she return the ill-gotten gains. There is a spark between them and an affair soon starts. Things escalate so quickly you'll wonder if you've missed something. The creepy PI stalks the woman, beats up Powell - the fraudster is released from jail and, egged on by Burr, goes after Powell. I won't say anymore in case you want to see the end - just be forewarned - there is no sugar-coated finale. It's gritty, somber, and sad but
