Pickup on South Street was produced and released in 1953. The film is indicative of the social and political climate of the United States during the mid to late 1900s. The plot is heavily centered upon the infiltration of communist spies on American soil, as well as the support of defectors to the communist cause. The characters in the movie are portrayed in a continuous struggle of determining where their personal loyalty lies. Nonetheless, the dominating theme of money and power is overwritten by the obligation to uphold and protect American values against those who oppose them. Additionally, due to the political climate of the mid to late 1950s, the French and German release removed any references or suggestions of spies and communism (Anthony 2018). The censorship of spies and the negative light of communism presented (good vs. bad) in the movie as would be censored because both those countries had ties to or were communists sympathizers.
Sam Fuller utilized his films to voice and display the less advantageous working class in environments where violence and death are unfiltered (Sanjek 1994). Fuller ‘s depiction of criminals and the police department, which is meant to uphold the laws and integrities of due process is skewed. Fuller is able to demonstrate the virtues and lack thereof in both the criminal and police sector by shining a light on the perceived notions of a criminal’s character and policemen’s character. He effortlessly emphasizes this message by highlighting the commonalities in both a policeman and a criminal. Thus, revealing that both policemen and criminals only distinction is the motives they are driven by. Furthermore, the film’s conclusion suggest that criminals have the potential to change if love is given.
Most of the reviews applauded the film and were driven to note that, Pickup on South Street is one of the best American films of all time. Another review stated that Fuller was completely preoccupied with a, “barrage of sensations than telling a story” (Crowther 1953). This statement only focuses on the emotions triggered by the violence of the film and does not consider the objective for the display of violence in the storyline. In the article,“Seeing Red” by Willie Osterweil describes both the plot and the caliber of each character. He believed the movie poorly portrayed Americans and fabricated the communists to be ambiguous characters in the shadows. Willie’s words lacked an optimistic outlook on the theme and portrayal of the film. One of the issues with his review is that it could potentially encourage readers to disregard the film.
Works Cited
Anthony, S. (2018, November 20). A FILM TO REMEMBER: “PICKUP ON SOUTH STREET” (1953). Retrieved from https://medium.com/@sadissinger/a-film-to-remember-pickup-on-south-street-1953-82917d8ac985
Crowther, B. (1953, June 18). Article 3 — No Title; Roxy’s ‘Pickup on South Street’ Mixes Underworld Goons With Communist Spies. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/1953/06/18/archives/article-3-no-title-roxys-pickup-on-south-street-mixes-underworld.html
Osterweil, W. (2015, June 02). Seeing Red. Retrieved from https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/06/02/seeing-red/
Sanjek, D. (1994). `Torment street between malicious and crude’: Sophisticated primitivism in the films of Samuel Fuller. Literature Film Quarterly,22(3), 187. doi:9503101747