THE SET-UP: when the loser surprises

Robert Ryan in THE SET-UP
Robert Ryan in THE SET-UP

 

The Set-Up (1949)  is one of the great film noirs and one of my 10 Best Boxing Movies . Robert Ryan plays a washed-up boxer that nobody believes can win again, not even his long-suffering wife (Audrey Totter).  His manager doesn’t even bother to tell him that he is committed to taking a dive in his next fight.  But what if he wins?

Director Robert Wise makes use of real-time narrative, then highly innovative. Watch for the verisimilitude of the bar where the deal goes down.

The Set-Up plays regularly on Turner Classic Movies.  The DVD is available from Netflix, and The Set-Up can be streamed from Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

Robert Ryan in THE SET-UP
Robert Ryan in THE SET-UP

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