The Man Who Cheated Himself (1951)
A veteran homicide detective helps his wealthy lover cover up her husband's killing, only for his own younger brother, a rookie detective assigned to the case, to start closing in on the truth.
The Man Who Cheated Himself was shot on real San Francisco locations, its climax staged at Fort Point beneath the still-new Golden Gate Bridge, giving the picture a documentary-like sense of place unusual for a low-budget programmer; largely overlooked on release, it has been reclaimed by noir revivalists in recent decades as an unusually morally complicated entry, with Lee J. Cobb’s compromised detective more sympathetic villain than clean-cut hero.
Background
The Man Who Cheated Himself was directed by Felix E. Feist and stars Lee J. Cobb as a veteran San Francisco homicide detective, with Jane Wyatt and John Dall in supporting roles. It was shot on real San Francisco locations, and its climax was staged at Fort Point beneath the Golden Gate Bridge, which had been completed in 1937. The film was a low-budget release and was largely overlooked on its first run. In recent decades noir enthusiasts have revived interest in it, especially for its morally complicated central figure. No copyright renewal was filed, so the film is in the public domain.
What to watch for
Watch the way the film uses the city’s streets and waterfront to ground its story. Cobb’s detective helps his wealthy lover cover up her husband’s killing, and the narrative turns on his conflict with his younger brother, a rookie assigned to the same case. The local geography gives the investigation a documentary feel that is unusual for a programmer. Because the detective is compromised rather than heroic, the film’s moral pressure rests on Cobb’s performance, and the Fort Point climax gives the brothers’ conflict a dramatic setting at the edge of the bay.
