Pickup on South Street (1953)
How the law took a chance on a B-girl … and won!
Director: Samuel Fuller · Writers: Samuel Fuller, Dwight Taylor
In New York City, an insolent pickpocket, Skip McCoy, inadvertently sets off a chain of events when he targets ex-prostitute Candy and steals her wallet. Unaware that she has been making deliveries of highly classified information to the communists, Candy, who has been trailed by FBI agents for months in hopes of nabbing the spy ringleader, is sent by her ex-boyfriend, Joey, to find Skip and retrieve the valuable microfilm he now holds.
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Trailer
Director
Samuel Fuller
Cast
Richard Widmark
Skip McCoy 
Jean Peters
Candy 
Thelma Ritter
Moe Williams 
Murvyn Vye
Captain Dan Tiger 
Richard Kiley
Joey 
Willis Bouchey
Zara 
Milburn Stone
Detective Winoki 
Parley Baer
Headquarters Communist in Chair (uncredited) 
Chet Brandenburg
Fight Spectator (uncredited) 
Frank Kumagai
Lum (uncredited) 
Virginia Carroll
Nurse (uncredited) 
Harry Carter
Detective Dietrich (uncredited) User Reviews (2)
Forget the communist fervour and delve deeper. Skip McCoy is a three time loser pick pocket, unable to curb his instincts back on the street, he picks the purse of Candy on a subway train. What he doesn't realise is that Candy is carrying top secret microfilm, microfilm that is of high interest to many many organisations. Director Samuel Fuller has crafted an exceptional drama set amongst the seedy underworld of New York City. Communist spies and shady government operatives all blend together to make Pickup On South Street a riveting viewing from first minute to the last. Based around a Dwight Taylor story called "Blaze Of Glory", Fuller infused this adaptation with a heavy set political agenda, something that many at the time felt was over done, but to only focus on the anti communist leanings is doing it a big disservice. Digging a little deeper and you find characters as int…
Richard Widmark is quite effective in this quickly paced espionage thriller. He's a petty thief whom we see lifting something from a woman's purse on a busy subway train. He's not the only one watching her, though, and as he makes his exit he narrowly avoids capture the police. Why are others watching this woman? Well it turns out that she is suspected of passing secrets to the communists and that the police reckon the purse purse contains evidence. Of course, "Skip" (Widmark) knows nothing of this but is soon working with the authorities to find "Candy" (Jean Peters), trace her compatriots and thwart the deceit. Thelma Ritter always adds value - if perhaps not versatility - and it features a tightly knit supporting cast as Samuel Fuller keeps the dialogue focussed and the pace deft before quite an exciting ending. It does play a little to cold war politics and paranoia, but it's still a…
