Episode Details

Guest Host James Lott Jr  talks On Dangerous Ground (1951), directed by Nicholas Ray and starring Robert Ryan and Ida Lupino:

• Release year: 1951. 
• Runtime: 82 minutes. 
• Genre: Film noir / crime drama. 

✅ Critical & Audience Reception

• On Rotten Tomatoes, it has a Tomatometer rating of 89% (based on 19 Critics).
• On Metacritic, its score is listed as “Generally Favorable” with a score of 78. 
• The film is appreciated for its striking visuals, contrasting urban and snowy rural settings, and its score by Bernard Herrmann. 

📌 Notable Production & Artistic Details

• Produced by John Houseman for RKO Radio Pictures. 
• Screenplay by A. I. Bezzerides (based on the novel Mad with Much Heart by Gerald Butler). 
• Music composition by Bernard Herrmann, known for his evocative style that enhances the film’s emotional tone. 
• Cinematography by George E. Diskant.

🧮 Additional Notes

• The film’s structure: It begins in a gritty urban setting and transitions into a snowy countryside — a rare shift in classic noir for that era. 
• Though well-regarded now, contemporary reception was mixed; for example, critic Bosley Crowther of the New York Times gave it a less favorable review upon release.