They drive by night (1940)
This old noir has Humphrey Bogart in a supporting role. In fact towards the later part of the movie he goes missing.
This obscure film is the story of 2 brothers who struggle through life as truck drivers. Their job is tedious involving long hours fighting sleepy eyes, earning measly sum from truck companies from their goods, running away from creditors who were out to repossess their truck and generally feeling miserable. They have to meet short deadlines and on top of that have to bear the inconvenience of road accidents.
The early part of the shows one such trip where they swerve to avoid a speeding car and damaged their tyre.
The brothers, Joe and Paul Fibrini, each their own set of problems. Joe is single and wants to come up in life but the going is getting harder by the day. Paul is married and has to make do with leaving his lonely alone at home. They have decided to delay stating a family until things are stable. Of course, all cannot to wait to work regular hours and avoiding the danger stretches of highway and constantly endangering their lives.
They meet a waitress in one highway eatery. She later joins them on their trip after she absconded from her job when her boss made some improper advances on her.
Joe eventually falls for the waitress, Cassie.
During one of their trip, Paul sleeps at the wheel and they have a
nasty accident as their truck skids of the road. Joe escaped unscathed but Paul loses his arm. The truck is a complete write off.
Paul is depressed and Joe volunteers to pay for the medical expenses. Wandering aimlessly, Joe is offered to work for his friend, Mr Carlson who is a self made truck owner.
Trouble comes to Joe in the form of a young Mrs Carlson who once had the hots for Joe. Bored with her senile but naive husband, she tries to seduce Joe in vain.
One night at the spur of the moment, she intentionally leaves her stuporous husband in the car with a running engine in the confines of a closed garage. Mr Carlson's death is certified as accidental carbon monoxide poisoning. Joe is invited to be the partner of the company by the widow, Mrs Carlson. After repeating failures at wooing Joe, Mrs Carlson finally reveals to Joe her selfless efforts of murdering her husband just to be with him. It still did not work as Joe was already about to marry Cassie!
When the police comes to the picture, she changes her story - that she was the victim who was forced into the crime by Joe. Luckily, when the case comes to the courts, the pressure of the turn of events proved too overwhelming for Mrs Carlson. She cracked under pressure, talking irrationally to be labelled as raving lunatic. Joe goes scot free.
At the end, all ends well. Joe decides to continue working as the boss, get married and Paul becomes a father! A B-noir with a happy ending? If only life was so easy, with a happy ending and eternal bliss!
This old noir has Humphrey Bogart in a supporting role. In fact towards the later part of the movie he goes missing.
This obscure film is the story of 2 brothers who struggle through life as truck drivers. Their job is tedious involving long hours fighting sleepy eyes, earning measly sum from truck companies from their goods, running away from creditors who were out to repossess their truck and generally feeling miserable. They have to meet short deadlines and on top of that have to bear the inconvenience of road accidents.
The early part of the shows one such trip where they swerve to avoid a speeding car and damaged their tyre.

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The Widow, femme fatale! |
Joe eventually falls for the waitress, Cassie.
During one of their trip, Paul sleeps at the wheel and they have a
nasty accident as their truck skids of the road. Joe escaped unscathed but Paul loses his arm. The truck is a complete write off.
Paul is depressed and Joe volunteers to pay for the medical expenses. Wandering aimlessly, Joe is offered to work for his friend, Mr Carlson who is a self made truck owner.
Trouble comes to Joe in the form of a young Mrs Carlson who once had the hots for Joe. Bored with her senile but naive husband, she tries to seduce Joe in vain.

When the police comes to the picture, she changes her story - that she was the victim who was forced into the crime by Joe. Luckily, when the case comes to the courts, the pressure of the turn of events proved too overwhelming for Mrs Carlson. She cracked under pressure, talking irrationally to be labelled as raving lunatic. Joe goes scot free.
At the end, all ends well. Joe decides to continue working as the boss, get married and Paul becomes a father! A B-noir with a happy ending? If only life was so easy, with a happy ending and eternal bliss!
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