Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

The Turning Point Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 12, 2022

William Dieterle's "The Turning Point" (1952) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include new audio commentary by film noir expert Alan K. Rode and vintage trailer for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked.

Our man is in the building

It is unclear why the big midwestern city remains unnamed because it is extremely easy to conclude that it is Chicago. In the early 1950s, when William Dieterle directed The Turning Point, the mafia ran the place exactly as the film reveals -- pretty much everyone that was of some importance was on its payroll. So, the decision to shoot The Turning Point across Los Angeles is quite odd.

Determined to bring down the city’s biggest criminal organization, special prosecutor John Conroy (Edmond O’Brien) offers his father, Matt (Tom Tully), a veteran detective with an impeccable reputation, to head his investigative operation. However, much to Conroy’s surprise, his father immediately turns down the job and walks away. Later, after much soul-searching, he softens his stance and promises to think about it. Meanwhile, after learning about the job offer, Jerry McKibbon (William Holden), a childhood friend of Conroy and quite possibly one of the best reporters in the city, discovers that the old man has an excellent reason to avoid the work of his son -- for years, he has been on the payroll of Neil Eichelberger (Ed Begley), the man running the criminal organization. When McKibbon reveals to him that he knows about his shady past, the old man agrees to cooperate and acquire crucial documents that will help his son put Eichelberger behind bars and permanently close his shady business. Completely unaware of the arrangement between McKibbon and his father, Conroy begins prosecuting Eichelberger and gradually reveals how over the years he has corrupted the city. Initially, Eichelberger feels confident that the top lawyers representing him will clear his name, but when his goons inform him that the old man has double-crossed him, he panics and decides to take care of the drama the old-fashioned way. Shortly after, a famous mafia hitman arrives in the city.

The original material for The Turning Point came from Horace McCoy, whose short story "Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye" was made into a film by Gordon Douglas a few years earlier and features James Cagney’s final great gangster role. This material was then turned into a screenplay by writer and producer Warren Duff, who nearly two decades earlier worked on another famous film that had Cagney playing a gangster, Angels with Dirty Faces. However, the true inspiration behind The Turning Point was the work of the Kefauver Committee in the early 1950s, which put the spotlight on the mafia’s involvement with interstate commerce and gained unprecedented national attention.

The drama and politics of The Turning Point are nicely balanced but the messages that emerge from them do not feel even remotely significant because all rephrase what was already a well-known fact of life -- the mafia had become so powerful that it had started controlling the people that were supposed to fight it. The actions of McKibbon, Conroy, and his compromised father simply visualize how this fight would be staged in the real world and is most likely to affect the parties that are involved in it.

The acting is solid but does not excite. Holden’s cynicism occasionally charges the film with an authentic raw energy that should have shaped its identity, but it is not enough to erase the feeling that the drama is staged and tightly controlled. This is precisely why the crucial twists are rather underwhelming as well.

The film’s greatest strength is the excellent use of authentic locations from Los Angeles, like Bunker Hill and Sunset Boulevard. Director of photography Lionel Lindon does not overemphasize the personality of these locations and yet the film had a terrific period ambience. However, as mentioned above, referencing Los Angeles as a midwestern city feels more than a bit odd.

It is worth noting that the film does not have a traditional music score. It uses various organic sounds and noises to enhance the drama.

The Turning Point Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.37:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Turning Point arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from an exclusive new 4K master that was prepared by the folks at Paramount Pictures. It is a very solid organic master that makes enjoying the film extremely easy. However, it should be said that the film has not been meticulously restored. As a result, you will notice a few areas, and mostly darker ones, revealing minor blemishes and some surface unevenness, including extremely light weaving effects (examples can be seen in screencaptures #5, 23, and 24). Also, these exact same darker areas could have benefited from encoding optimizations on a dual-layer disc. The rest looks very good. The grayscale is very convincing. The blacks are solid but not boosted; there are terrific ranges of grays and whites. Image stability is very good. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

The Turning Point Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The dialog is very clear and easy to follow. Balance is very good as well. The upper register is good too, but there are a few segments where some extremely light background hiss makes its presence felt. I doubt most viewers will notice it even if the volume of their system is turned up quite a bit. Dynamic intensity is modest, but The Turning Point does not even have a conventional music soundtrack.

The Turning Point Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - this new audio commentary was recorded by film noir expert Alan K. Rode. It is a predictably very well-researched commentary with an overwhelming amount of information about the various locations in downtown Los Angeles where The Turning Point was shot, how some of these locations have changed, the findings of the Kefauver Committee in the early 1950s and their relation to the film, William Dieterle's career, the casting choices, etc.

• Trailer - a vintage trailer for The Turning Point. In English, without optional English subtitles. (2 min).

The Turning Point Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Turning Point exists for the exact same reason The Valachi Papers does. These films come from different eras and depict different events, but their main goal was to capitalize on the public's interest in the real drama that defined them. Both films are entertaining, but they are not time capsules with historical value. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from a good recent 4K master that was prepared by the folks at Paramount Pictures and features a predictably excellent new audio commentary by film noir expert Alan K. Rode. RECOMMENDED.