Your Movie Library
Cast
- Lana TurnerCora Smith
- John GarfieldFrank Chambers
- Cecil KellawayNick Smith
- Hume CronynArthur Keats
- Leon AmesKyle Sackett
- Audrey TotterMadge Gorland
- Alan ReedEzra Liam Kennedy
- Jeff YorkBlair
- Philip AhlmPhotographer (uncredited)
- John AlbanPhotographer (uncredited)
- 100
TV Guide Magazine
The best version of James M. Cain's torrid, hard-hitting romance comes to startling life under Garnett's shrewd direction. - 100
Los Angeles Times
This 1946 version became a key film in postwar Hollywood film noir. Directed by Tay Garnett, it remains one of Lana Turner's (right) very best films. [02 Feb 1997, p.78] - 100
The Observer (UK)
More film gris than film noir, it offers a biting moral conundrum at every turn. [17 Oct 2010, p.4] - 91
Portland Oregonian
Garfield is customarily strong and energetic as a desperate guy on the edge. Famous for her work in tight sweaters and halters, Turner was no thespian. But the combination of Garfield and Garnett, or something, fired a performance from her that is, in its way, perfect. [05 Mar 1999] - 89
Austin Chronicle
With a plot hinging on twists and turns that might not have worked as well with less electricity than Turner and Garfield generate, Postman sizzles and flares with crackling tension. - 80
The New York Times
The picture achieves its distinction through the smart way in which it has been made and through the quality of its representation of two passion-torn characters. - 80
Chicago Reader
This 1946 film is a key work of the postwar period, dripping with demented romanticism and the venom of disillusionment. Tay Garnett directed, finding the pull of obsession in every tracking shot. - 70
Variety
Development of the characters makes Tay Garnett’s direction seem slowly paced during first part of the picture, but this establishment was necessary to give the speed and punch to the uncompromising evil that transpires.
