Blue Gardenia, The

Taut noir thriller from Lang released in the same year as his classic The Big Heat and photographed by ace cameraman Musuraca in a shimmering haze of rain-streaked windows, shattered mirrors and moody lighting. Jilted by her boyfriend, Norah accepts a blind date with a man who calls to take her flatmate Crystal (Sothern) out. They meet at the Blue Gardenia, a nightspot where Norah becomes involved with playboy Prebble (Burr) and descends into a murky underworld of murder and deceit. Lang's edgy direction and long tracking shots emphasize the characters' sense of entrapment in circumstances and drives the action towards its compelling conclusion.