Although he ended his career in charge of epics like El Cid, Anthony Mann deserves to be remembered as a master of economy. In the ‘40s he made a string of film noirs that define the phrase ‘lean and mean’. Raw Deal is one of the best.

If the plot is unexceptional (a con escapes from prison only to find he is being set up by his former boss and seeks revenge with the help of two very different women), the execution is anything but. Mann does not waste a shot while the script speedily establishes motive and character and the brilliant voiceover only adds to the complexity and poignancy of the central love triangle.

What really stands out though is John Alton’s cinematography. No one did more to create the look of noir than Alton, and he did his best work with Mann. Together they take advantage of their meagre resources (darkness is cheap) and create a nightmare world of shadows, smoke and fog. Samuel Hoffmann’s early Theremin work on Paul Sawtell’s original score adds a beautiful layer of unease and menace.