T-Men (1947)

tmenThe T-Men are agents of the US Treasury Department in this nice ‘n’ grimy low-budget crime film from director Anthony Mann. 1940s B-movie stalwart Dennis O’Keefe goes undercover to take down a counterfeiting ring and is forced to act like a brute himself in the process. One of the quintessential noir cinematographers, John Alton, drapes menacing shadows all over this one and offers some nice on-location photography on real city streets. It’s a hard-edged little story, best viewed late at night. It’s also the only film of the 40s in which a guy gets hot-watered to death in a Turkish bath.