A companion film to The Killers, perhaps even more visually exciting (shot by the great DP Franz Planer), also directed by German émigré Siodmak, and told through flashbacks. Lancaster plays a truck driver whose passion for his ex-wife (Yvonne De Carlo) drives him to the wrong side of the law. Lancaster is excellent, and Dan Duryea steals the show as his tormentor and rival—his final expression, the last image in the film, is one of the signature moments of film noir.

Images courtesy of UNIVERSAL / THE KOBAL COLLECTION