Nocturne (1946)

Plot: Low budget Film Noir.  The Coroner says suicide, but a policeman believes a Composer was murdered by one of his many Girlfriends.
Stars: George Raft, Lynne Bari,  Virginia Huston
Best Quote: He was a ladykiller. But don't get any ideas. I ain't no lady.

George Raft has always been a mystery to me. How did such a seeming mediocrity end up as a big star at Warner Brothers, and then fade so fast. At his peak, the guy was so popular, he turned down the lead for Casablanca, Maltese Falcon, and High Sierra. And yet its hard to find any of the movies he made after 1941, on DVD or well, anywhere.

Nocturne continues the mystery. Raft plays the lead detective and dominates the movie, he's in every scene, but he's not value-added. While he's a good straight man,  looks tough and gets off a few good sardonic rejoinders,  he fails to add any passion or energy to the part. He always seems aloof,  waiting for the other actor to say their lines, so he can speak his.

Raft aside, Nocturne has some good dialogue and some excellent comedy relief by Mabel  Paige and Myrna Dell, not to mention some good scenes here and there (the opening, a fight that ends with a cup of coffee,  a talk on an RKO sound-stage). But too much of the plot is cop-film paint by the numbers ( We even get a "You're off the case" Police Chief) and the romance between Raft and Bari is perfunctory.

Summary: Some interesting scenes but overall a mediocre film-noir with a lackluster Raft. Felt longer than the 87 minute run time. 2 out of 4