The Turning Point (1952) is an early and excellent entry in the Fifties cycle of corruption / exposé / reformers vs organized crime films. Although it supposedly takes place in a Midwestern city, it was shot on choice Los Angeles locations, including the Angels Flight funicular and other sites on Bunker Hill. Edmond O’Brien as the crusading investigator and William Holden as a cynical newsman lead the cast (and it is interesting that they could easily have switched roles and been equally effective).

The smaller roles are sharply taken: Tom Tully as a corrupt cop handles his self-justification scene with aplomb, and the little-known Adele Longmire (who was married to Arthur Franz at the time) makes a scorching impression as a scared witness in just a few minutes of screen time. Ed Begley feasts on the opportunity to play a particularly heartless mob boss (I don’t want to give a big plot development away except to say, holy shit).