Kiss Me Deadly (1955)

A barefoot woman (Chloris Leachman), dressed only in a raincoat, runs down a highway, looking behind her, and trying to hitchhike.  She stops (Ralph Meeker) Mike Hammer’s car by standing in the middle of the road. 

Once in the car, she tells him three things: he’s selfish, her name is Christina, and not to forget her.  Immediately afterward, they are run off road.

Mike is only conscious enough to know they are in terrible danger but not conscious enough to even see who the villain in charge is.  Christiana is being tortured and I felt it was upsetting though you don’t see anything.

Mike wakes up in a hospital bed with a lot of questions.  Everyone tells him to back off the case but he doesn’t.

I thought this film noir was very stylish and it kept my attention.  Everywhere Mike went, some dame was after him.  There seemed to be no shortage of sexually aggressive women.

There seemed to be a running theme of art in the movie.  Classical music, opera, Victorian poetry, paintings, etc.

It is worth watching.

FilmFanatic.org review.