Richard Widmark delivers a strong performance in this briskly moving spy story. The film opens with him as a small-time criminal stealing from a woman on a crowded subway platform. He isn’t the only one observing her, and while he's escaping, he just manages to dodge arrest. The question is, why are others interested in this particular woman? It becomes clear that she's believed to be sharing information with communi…

Putting aside any notions of communist ideology and looking beyond that, there’s more to appreciate. Skip McCoy, a pickpocket with a losing record, finds himself back on the streets where he can't resist temptation, stealing a purse from a woman named Candy on a subway. Unbeknownst to him, Candy is carrying sensitive microfilm that several groups are desperate to obtain. Samuel Fuller’s direction delivers an ou…