A Dangerous Profession (1949)

An ex-cop (George Raft) now works as a partner in a bail bonds firm. His latest client (Bill Williams) is the husband of a woman (Ella Raines) he was once (and still is) in love with. When the couple are unable to come up with the full $25,000 bond required, a mysterious benefactor comes up with the difference and therein lies the mystery of murder and betrayal. Directed by Ted Tetzlaff (THE WINDOW), the film was originally intended for Humphrey Bogart and later Fred MacMurray but it ended up starring Raft which is unfortunate. It's not a great film by a long shot but the movie could have used a better actor than Raft (quite a lazy actor coasting on the charisma he used to have) in the lead. Starting with this film, Raft's career began a long slow descent into box office failures until he was no longer leading man material (by 1954, he was getting third or fourth billing). This tidy little piece of film noir deserved a better fate. Good enough to be just a bit above average. With Pat O'Brien, Jim Backus and Robert Gist.