Robert Montgomery directs and stars in this seldom seen piece of Film-Noir. A hard-boiled war vet(Montgomery)arrives in the small town of San Pablo as the community is preparing its annual fiesta. He gets the help of a carousel owner(Thomas Gomez)and an alluring young woman(Wanda Hendrix)to track down a profiteer to blackmail him as revenge for killing his buddy. At times it is hard to tell the good guys from the bad. Well directed and photographed. Hendrix is absolutely beautiful. Also in the cast are: Fred Clark and Art Smith.

Robert Montgomery has come to town for some blackmail. He's got a canceled check that mobster Fred Clark has sent to someone as a payoff and he intends to get rich from it. For himself and for a friend that Clark had rubbed out.

In the sleepy U.S./Mexican border town Montgomery falls in with the locals and makes some friends of Wanda Hendrix and Thomas Gomez who got an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. And he's got a pretty shrewd FBI agent in Art Smith trailing him. Smith is in the tradition of Regis Toomey, a pretty smart cop himself in The Big Sleep.

It's a good film, not a great one by any means. Montgomery was far better in such pre World War II items like The Earl of Chicago insofar as gangster roles are concerned. Fred Clark as the mobster is minus his slow burn routine which he does so well in comedies. Clark had the best slow burn in films next to Edgar Kennedy.

But the best performance in the film hands down has got to be Andrea King. She's Clark's mistress/moll and she sets the rather gullible Montgomery up, but good. You don't want this woman working against you by any means.

When a bus arrives in San Pablo, the mysterious American Lucky Gagin (Robert Montgomery) looks for the La Fonda Hotel and he meets the local Pila (Wanda Hendrix) that offers to take him there. Gagin is a tough man and army veteran and he seeks out a man called Frank Hugo (Fred Clark) and he learns that he will be back to his room only on the next day. Gagin stumbles upon FBI Agent Bill Retz (Art Smith),who is chasing the powerful mobster Frank Hugo, and he warns Gagin to forget his scheme for revenging his friend Shorty that was murdered by Frank. Then Gagin looks for a hotel room and he goes to the Bar Tres Violetas, where he befriends the owner of carousel called Pancho (Thomas Gomez) and he buys drinks for his friends in the bar. Pancho offers a place to Gagin to spend the night. On the next morning, Gagin goes to the hotel and meets Frank Hugo. He blackmails the mobster, asking for 30,000 dollars to give a check that incriminates him. Frank Hugo accepts the deal and tell that the money will be available only at 7:00 PM. Will Gagin succeed in his extortion of money from Frank?

"Ride the Pink Horse" is a different film-noir directed by Robert Montgomery, who is also the lead actor. His bitter and unpleasant character is well-developed as a war veteran disillusioned with the post-war life since his lover is unfaithful and his best friend was murdered by a mobster. Wanda Hendrix performs a weird character, maltreated by Gagin but following him like a puppy. But the plot is a good story of friendship. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Do Lodo Brotou Uma Flor" ("From the Mud Sprouted a Flower")