Imposter noir: 51 films about swapping, losing and faking identities

Olivia de Havilland, 'The Dark Mirror' (1946).

"There is only one plot – things are not what they seem." 

 — Jim Thompson

By Paul Parcellin

Let’s say you’re a character in a film noir. It’s likely that someone who you’re rubbing elbows with is not who they say they are. For that matter, you may not be who you claim to be, either. Or, stranger still, you may be using an alias because you can’t recall who you really are and bad people are trying to do you harm.

Unlikely, you say? Guess again. Noir characters often shed their identities and don new facades. It’s just a matter of faking the paperwork (in the movies, at least).

But there’s a huge pitfall in the identity switching game: Whomever you’re fixing to impersonate may be sitting on a powder keg, and suddenly, you’re in a dangerous game of musical chairs.

Take note that when it comes to false identities, stolen identities, memory blackouts and the like, director Alfred Hitchcock is the ringmaster extraordinaire of it all. Sir Alfred clocks in here with a whopping seven identity switcheroo films. Was he obsessed? You be the judge. Here are 51 films in which identities are stolen, faked and erased from the mind:

“Across the Bridge” (1957)

A wealthy businessman (Rod Steiger) hops a train to Mexico to evade embezzlement charges. Enroute, he steals another man’s identity, but that only complicates matters. Ken Annakin directs.

“The Big Steal” (1949)

An Army lieutenant (Robert Mitchum) accused of robbery pursues the real thief on a frantic chase through Mexico, aided by the thief's fiancee (Jane Greer). Meanwhile, the lieutenant appropriates an Army captain’s (William Bendix) identity. Don Siegel directs.

“The Bigamist” (1953)

A man (Edmond O’Brien) is secretly married to two women, and carefully maintains two separate identities. But he feels the pressure of his deceit. Ida Lupino directs.

“The Case of Charles Peace” (1949)

Businessman Charles Peace (Michael Martin Harvey) leads a double life. By day he's a respected local businessman, but by night he's a professional thief who lets nothing, not even murder, stop him from getting what he wants. Norman Lee directs.

“The Chase” (1946)

A drifter (Robert Cummings) takes a job as a chauffeur, becomes entangled in a criminal scheme, and wonders if he’s losing his grip on reality. Arthur Ripley directs.

“Chase a Crooked Shadow” (1958)

At Kimberley Prescott’s (Anne Baxter)  villa, a stranger (Richard Todd) shows up and claims he is her brother who supposedly died the previous year in a car accident. Michael Anderson directs

“Crossroads” (1942)

A diplomat (William Powell) suffers amnesia and is blackmailed over a possible criminal past. The mystery hinges on whether he’s someone else entirely. Jack Conway directs.

“The Dark Mirror” (1946)

Identical twins (Olivia de Havilland), one good, one possibly a murderer, swap identities to confuse authorities.  Robert Siodmak directs.

“Dark Passage” (1947)

A man (Humphrey Bogart) convicted of murdering his wife escapes from prison, changes his face with plastic surgery and assumes a new identity while working to try to prove his innocence. Delmer Daves directs.

“Dead Reckoning” (1946) 

A soldier (Humphrey Bogart) searches for another serviceman (William Prince) who has run away just before receiving the Medal of Honor. There’s a dark spot on the fleeing soldier's past and Bogart investigates. John Cromwell directs.

“Dead Ringer” (1964)

A woman (Bette Davis) kills her wealthy twin sister and takes her place. But her plan is more complicated than she anticipates. This crime drama is steeped in gothic atmosphere and deception. Paul Henreid directs

“Detour” (1945)

An unemployed pianist (Tom Neal) hitchhikes across the country. Along the way he assumes a new identity and his troubles grow deeper by the hour. Edgar G. Ulmer directs.

“Dishonored Lady” (1947)

A beautiful editor at a fashion magazine (Hedy Lamarr) has a breakdown due to the pressures of her work and her disappointing love life. A psychiatrist recommends that she start life fresh by moving into a smaller apartment and under another name. Robert Stevenson directs

“Foreign Correspondent” (1940)

On the eve of World War II, a young American reporter (Joel McCrea) tries to expose enemy agents in London. Kidnapping, deceptive identities and treason come to light. Alfred Hitchcock directs.

“High Wall” (1947)

A man (Robert Taylor) accused of murder suffers from amnesia and tries to recover his memory and his true identity to prove his innocence. Curtis Bernhardt directs.

“His Kind of Woman” (1951)

Deported gangster Nick Ferraro (Raymond Burr) plans to re-enter the United States with the aid of gambler Dan Milner (Robert Mitchum). Milner is unaware of the scheme he’s taking part in. John Farrow, and Richard Fleischer (uncredited) direct.

“Hollow Triumph” (1948) a.k.a. “The Scar”

A criminal (Paul Henreid) assumes the identity of a psychiatrist he resembles, complete with a self-inflicted facial scar. But his plan has a major flaw. Steve Sekely directs.

“House of Bamboo” (1955)

Planted in a Tokyo crime syndicate, a U.S. Army Investigator (Robert Stack) goes undercover in search of answers in the death of an Army official. Samuel Fuller directs.

“The House on Telegraph Hill” (1951)

Concentration camp survivor Victoria Kowelska (Valentina Cortese) becomes involved in a mystery after she assumes the identity of a dead friend in order to gain passage to America. Robert Wise directs.

“I Walk Alone” (1947)

An ex-con (Burt Lancaster) returns to claim part of a business, only to find the books and identities have been manipulated. Byron Haskin Directs.

“Jail Bait” (1954)

Vic Brady (Timothy Farrell) draws young Don Gregor (Clancy Malone) into a life of crime. He then blackmails Gregor's plastic surgeon father (Herbert Rawlinson) into fixing up his face so he can evade the cops. Edward D. Wood Jr. directs.

“Kansas City Confidential” (1952)

An ex-con trying to go straight (John Payne) is framed for a million dollar armored car robbery and must go to Mexico in order to unmask the real culprits. Incidents involving disguise, hidden identity and mistaken identity prevail. Phil Karlson directs.

“Lady in the Lake” (1946)

The editor of a crime magazine (Audrey Totter) hires Phillip Marlowe (Robert Montgomery) to find her boss’s wife. But there’s murder afoot, and the private eye finds himself smack in the middle of it. Identity switching plays an important role in this mystery. Based on Raymond Chandler’s novel. Robert Montgomery directs.

“Macao” (1952)

Nick Cochran (Robert Mitchum), an American exiled in Macao, has a chance to restore his name if he can help capture an international crime lord. Cochran goes undercover while trying to woo the beautiful songstress Julie Benson (Jane Russell). Josef von Sternberg directs.

“The Maltese Falcon” (1941)

San Francisco private detective Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart) takes on a case involving three eccentric fortune hunters (Peter Lorre, Sidney Greenstreet, Elisha Cook Jr,) and a compulsive liar (Mary Astor). The object of their quest is a priceless statuette. John Huston directs.

“The Man Who Cheated Himself” (1950)

A cop (Lee J. Cobb) helps his lover cover up a murder and tries to lead the investigation, effectively switching from lawman to suspect. Felix E. Feist directs.

“Ministry of Fear” (1944)

Stephen Neale (Ray Milland) has just been released from an asylum during World War II in England when he accidentally stumbles onto a dangerous underground organization. Fritz Lang directs.

“The Narrow Margin” (1952)

A woman (Marie Windsor) planning to testify against the mob must be protected against potential assassins on the train trip from Chicago to Los Angeles. Richard Fleischer directs.

“Nightfall” (1956)

Through a series of bizarre coincidences, an artist (Aldo Ray) finds himself falsely accused of bank robbery and murder and is pursued by the authorities as well as the real killers. Jacques Tourneur directs.

“No Man of Her Own” (1950)

A pregnant woman (Barbara Stanwyck) adopts the identity of a railroad-crash victim and starts a new life with the woman's wealthy in-laws. But she finds that maintaining her ruse is more difficult than she imagined. Mitchell Leisen directs.

“North by Northwest” (1959)

A New York City advertising executive (Cary Grant) goes on the run after being mistaken for a government agent by a group of foreign spies, and falls for a woman (Eva Marie Saint) whose loyalties he begins to doubt. Alfred Hitchcock directs.

“Out of the Past” (1947)

A former private eye (Robert Mitchum) living under a false identity escapes his past to run a gas station in a small town. But his past catches up with him and must return to the life he tried to leave behind. A gambler (Kirk Douglas) and a duplicitous dame (Jane Greer) await his arrival. Jacques Tourneur directs.

“Seconds” (1966)

An unhappy middle-aged banker agrees to a procedure that will fake his death and give him a completely new look and identity. But it comes with its own price. John Frankenheimer directs.

“Shadow of a Doubt” (1943)

A teenage girl (Teresa Wright), is overjoyed when her Uncle Charley (Joseph Cotten) comes to visit the family in their quiet California town. But slowly she begins to suspect that he harbors a dark secret and isn’t exactly who he seems to be. Alfred Hitchcock directs.

“Somewhere in the Night” (1946)

George Taylor (John Hodiak) returns from World War II with amnesia. Back home in Los Angeles, while trying to track down his old identity, he stumbles upon a murder case that’s gone cold and a hunt for a missing $2 million. Joseph L. Mankiewicz directs.

“Spellbound” (1945)

A psychiatrist (Ingrid Bergman) becomes involved with the new director of the hospital (Gregory Peck) where she practices. But she discovers that her new beau has a dark side. Alfred Hitchcock directs.

“Stolen Face” (1952)

A doctor (Paul Henreid) repairs a female inmate's disfigured face to match the lovely woman (Lizabeth Scott) who left him. He marries the inmate and learns that beauty is only skin deep. Terence Fisher directs.

“Stolen Identity” (1953)

A jealous concert pianist (Francis Lederer) murders his wife's lover, then frames an innocent taxi driver (Donald Buka) for the crime. Gunther von Fritsch directs.

“Strange Impersonation” (1946)

A research scientist (Brenda Marshall) conducting experiments on a new anesthetic finds herself being blackmailed by a woman (Ruth Ford) she accidentally knocked down with her car. Anthony Mann directs.

“The Strange Mrs. Crane” (1948)

Jenny Hadley (Marjorie Lord) settles into a comfortable existence with a new identity as Gina, the wife of politician Clinton Crane (Pierre Watkin). Blackmailer Floyd Durant (Robert Shayne) threatens to reveal her criminal past. Sam Newfield directs.

“The Stranger” (1946)

An investigator from the War Crimes Commission (Edward G. Robinson) travels to Connecticut to find an infamous Nazi. Amid the bucolic countryside, danger lurks. Orson Welles directs and co-stars.

“Tension” (1949)

A meek pharmacist (Richard Basehart) creates an alternate identity under which he plans to murder the bullying liquor salesman who has become his wife's lover. John Berry directs.

“They Won't Believe Me” (1947)

On trial for murdering his girlfriend, philandering stockbroker Larry Ballentine (Robert Young) takes the stand to claim his innocence and describe the actual, but improbable, sequence of events that led to her death. Mistaken identity is a major plot twist. Irving Pichel directs.

“The Third Man” (1949)

Pulp novelist Holly Martins (Joseph Cotten) travels to shadowy postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, Harry Lime (Orson Welles). The films plays heavily with false appearances and coverups. Carol Reed directs.

“The 39 Steps” (1935)

A man in London (Robert Donat) tries to help a counter-espionage agent (Lucie Mannheim), but when the agent is killed and the man stands accused, he must go on the run to save himself and stop a spy ring that is trying to steal top-secret information. Alfred Hitchcock directs.

“This Side of the Law” (1950)

A drifter (Kent Smith) is bailed out of jail by a lawyer (Robert Douglas), who hires him to impersonate a millionaire until the man can be declared legally dead and the estate settled. However, the man soon finds out that things are not exactly how they seem. Richard L. Bare directs.

“The Two Mrs. Carrolls” (1947)

An artist (Humphrey Bogart ) forms an attachment with a woman (Barbara Stanwyck) on holiday in the country. As the relationship develops, his behavior and information about his past cause her increasing concern. Peter Godfrey directs.

“Vertigo” (1958)

A former San Francisco police detective (James Stewart), struggling with his personal demons, becomes obsessed with a hauntingly beautiful woman (Kim Novak) he’s been hired to tail. Alfred Hitchcock directs.

“Walk Softly, Stranger” (1950)

An ex-hood (Joseph Cotten) hopes to start a new life under an assumed name in a small town but his past catches up with him. Robert Stevenson directs.

“The Woman on Pier 13” (1949) a.k.a. “I Married a Communist”

Successful, newly-married Brad Collins (Robert Ryan) once belonged to the Communist Party. He’s been living under an assumed identity, but now the party will stop at nothing to use him. Robert Stevenson directs.

“The Wrong Man” (1956)

Manny Balestrero (Henry Fonda) is mistaken for an armed robber and arrested. But how can he prove that he’s innocent? Alfred Hitchcock directs.

There are undoubtedly many more films that deal with identity and impersonation. What would you add to the list, and which are your favorites? Shout it out in the comments section.

When Gangsters Collide with the Dark Side: 65 Mobbed Up Films Noir

Jean Hagen, Sterling Hayden, "The Asphalt Jungle" (1950). 

In Noir, Racketeers

Aren't Like the Ones
In Your (Grand)Father's
Mob Pictures

By Paul Parcellin

Gangster films were already a cinematic staple when a new kind of crime film began to emerge in the early 1940s. Films noir captured the popular imagination for a couple of decades after World War II. While some of the post war films are about mobsters, they’re different in tone from 1930s gangster films. Warner Bros. gangster movies, the gold standard of the era between the world wars, are rags to riches tales about rough guys with machine guns blasting their way toward prosperity, a scenario that must have appealed to Depression era audiences.

James Cagney, Jean Harlow,
"The Public Enemy" (1931)

Noirs of the 1940s and ’50s that include gangsters distinguish themselves by leaning toward existential questions and characters’ internal conflicts. Gangsters of the 1930s are not complicated people. They know what they want — booze, broads and moolah — and they know how to get them. James Cagney never agonized over morality as a Prohibition era bootlegger. Ditto for Edward G. Robinson.
 

Noirs explore the blurred line between cops and criminals, sometimes with wrongly accused men on the run or in prison, and naive dupes lured into hornets' nests by seductive women and the promise of easy cash. Usually, they involve ordinary, relatable characters caught up in extraordinary circumstances. 

While gangster films are usually about syndicates of organized criminal enterprise, noir gang activities are often one-time operations, heists aimed at the big score, a last job sketched out by graying thieves eying retirement after a lifetime of criminal mischief. They’re about flawed people who want to lead more normal lives, as opposed to old time gang kingpins, who revel in the mobster lifestyle and lead excessive lives of tacky luxury.    

With that in mind, here are 65 noirs with gangsters, syndicate bosses and average, unassuming fall guys who stumble into the dark side (and gangster films with a noirish edge). It's not a complete list. Feel free to mention others that aren't included:

“Paper Bullets” (1941)

Dorothy Adams serves time on a bum rap and emerges from the joint a hardened criminal who rises to power in the local crime organization.

"Dangerous Mission” (1954) 

A police officer tries to shield a young lady who witnessed a mob killing. She splits from New York with a hitman in hot pursuit.  

“Hoodlum Empire” (1952)

After World War II, ex-mobster war hero Joe Gray goes straight, to the dismay of his New York mob boss uncle who's afraid that his nephew will testify against his outfit before a Grand Jury.

“A Bullet for Joey” (1955)

A police inspector discovers a plot to abduct a nuclear physicist. Mobsters, spies and a seductive blonde all play a role in the plot.

“Machine-Gun Kelly” (1958)

Public Enemy number one, George “Machine-Gun” Kelly, launches a crime wave in 1930s America.

“The Hoodlum” (1951)

Career criminal Vincent Lubeck is out of the slammer and on parole but he still organizes a tricky armored car robbery.

“Deported” (1950)

An American gangster sent back to his home country falls in love with a widowed countess.

“Johnny Rocco” (1958)

A gangster and police look for a gangster's son who witnessed a murder. The question is, who will find him first?

“Baby Face Nelson” (1957)

One of the most notorious gangsters of 1930's Chicago, George "Babyface" Nelson, earns his reputation by masterminding a number of brutal robberies.

“Forbidden” (1953)

Eddie Darrow, searching for a mobster's widow in Macao, gets wrapped up in a casino owner's business.

“Hell on Frisco Bay” (1955)

After five years in prison, ex-cop Steve Rollins is paroled and searches for the San Francisco mobsters who framed him for manslaughter.

“Thunder Road” (1958)

A Korean War veteran comes home to the mountains and takes over the family moonshining business. But gangsters want to muscle into his territory and the cops want to lock him up.

”Dillinger” (1945)

Notorious bank robber John Dillinger begins his life of crime as a petty thief, meets his future gang in prison and eventually masterminds a series of daring robberies.

“One Way Street” (1950)

After stealing a gangster's money and his girlfriend, a doctor heads for a small village in Mexico.

“The Naked Street” (1955)

A mobster springs a condemned murderer because the jailbird got his sister pregnant.

“The Gangster” (1947)

A cynical gangster who controls the Neptune Beach waterfront runs a numbers racket with the local soda shop owner. The police are in his pocket and the local hoods are on his payroll.

“Macao” (1952)

American Nick Cochran, living in exile in Macao, has a chance to restore his name by helping capture an international crime lord.

“Tight Spot” (1955)

A female inmate is whisked out of prison and into a police-guarded hotel until the district attorney can convince her to testify against the mob.

“The Trap” (1959)

In a remote Californian desert town, a lawyer arranges for a wanted mobster to skip the country via a small airstrip, but the local sheriff and his deputy throw a wrench into the plan.

“Decoy” (1946)

A mortally-wounded female gangster recounts how she and her gang revived a killer executed in the gas chamber to try to find out where he buried a fortune in cash.

“The Racket” (1951)

Two honest New York cops try to stop a crime syndicate from moving into their precinct, while preventing a corrupt prosecutor from being made a judge.

“Desperate” (1947)

A young married couple flee the police and a gangster who’s out for revenge.

“Suddenly” (1954)

Three gangsters trap a family in their home as part of a plot to kill the president of the United States.

“711 Ocean Drive” (1950)

An electronics expert creates a gambling broadcast system for a crime boss, then takes over the operation when the boss is murdered.

“M” (1951)

In this American remake of the 1931 German thriller, both the police and the criminal underworld stalk a mysterious serial killer who preys on little girls.

“House of Bamboo” (1955)

Planted in a Tokyo crime syndicate, a U.S. Army Investigator probes the death of a fellow Army official. 

“Party Girl” (1958)

Atty. Tommy Farrell defends crooks. Vicki Gaye wants him to go straight, but mobster Rico Angelo disagrees.

“New York Confidential” (1955)

A top syndicate crime boss and his corrupt politicians make multi-million dollar deals and order murders until the vicious pattern finally catches up to them.

“The Glass Key” (1942)

A crooked politician finds himself accused of murder by a gangster whom he refused to help.

“His Kind of Woman” (1951)

A deported gangster's plan to re-enter the United States comes to a head at a Mexican resort, and gambler Dan Milner is stuck in the middle.

“The Street with No Name” (1948)

An FBI agent infiltrates a ruthless gang, but a mysterious informant funnels information to the hoodlums that puts his life at risk.

“Johnny Eager” (1941)

The step-daughter of a district attorney falls in love with a gangster on parole whom her father sent to prison.

“Border Incident” (1949)

Mexican and American federal agents tackle a vicious gang exploiting illegal farm workers in Southern California.

“The Damned Don't Cry” (1950)

A New York socialite climbs the ladder of success, man by man, until a life among rich gangsters gives her what she thought she always wanted.

“The Mob” (1951)

A policeman botches a murder case and is suspended from the force. It’s a ruse that allows him to go undercover and identify the mysterious crime boss of the New York waterfront.

“The Enforcer” (1951)

A crusading district attorney finally gets a chance to prosecute the organizer and boss of Murder Inc.

“The Big Combo” (1955)

A police lieutenant is ordered to stop investigating deadly crime boss for lack of hard evidence against the mobster. Instead, he seeks information by pursuing the mobster’s girlfriend.

“The Lineup” (1958)

A psychopathic gangster and his mentor retrieve heroin packages carried to the United States by unsuspecting overseas travelers.

“Criss Cross” (1949)

An armored truck driver and his ex-wife conspire with a gang that wants to rob his truck.

“High Sierra” (1941)

After being released from prison, a notorious thief is hired by his old boss to help a group of inexperienced criminals plan and carry out the robbery of a California resort.

“The Narrow Margin” (1952)

A woman planning to testify against the mob must be protected against potential assassins on the train trip from Chicago to Los Angeles.

“Key Largo” (1948)

A drifter visits a hotel run by the family of a war buddy who was killed in action. A Chicago mobster and his gang have taken over the place.

“Force of Evil” (1948)

An unethical lawyer wants his older brother to become a partner with a big-time client in the numbers racket.

“The Big Heat” (1953)

Tough cop Dave Bannion takes on a politically powerful crime syndicate.

“White Heat” (1949)

A psychopathic criminal with a mother complex makes a daring break from prison and leads his old gang in a chemical plant payroll heist.

“Don’t Touch the Loot” (“Touchez pas au grisbi”) (1954)

An aging, world-weary gangster is double-crossed and forced out of retirement when his best friend is kidnapped and their stash of eight stolen gold bars is demanded as ransom.

“The Killers” (1946)

Hit men arrive in a small New Jersey town to kill an unresisting victim, and insurance investigator Reardon uncovers his past involvement with beautiful, deadly Kitty Collins.

“This Gun for Hire” (1942), 

When assassin Philip Raven shoots a blackmailer and his beautiful female companion dead, he is paid off in marked bills by his treasonous employer who is working with foreign spies.

“Nobody Lives Forever” (1946)

Ex-GI Nick Blake gets involved in a scheme to fleece a rich, young widow, but finds himself falling for her, much to the displeasure of his racketeer cohorts.

“Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye” (1950)

Starting with a violent prison break, clever, ruthless Ralph Cotter corrupts everyone around him.

“Night and the City” (1950)

A small-time grifter and nightclub tout takes advantage of some fortuitous circumstances and tries to become a big-time player as a wrestling promoter.

“The Asphalt Jungle” (1950)

A major heist goes off as planned, but then double crosses, bad luck and solid police work cause everything to unravel.

“Bob le flambeur” (1956)

An aging gambler loses a pile of cash and decides to return to a life of crime, this time robbing a highly secure gambling casino.

“The Killing” (1956)

Career criminal Johnny Clay masterminds an audacious racetrack robbery committed in broad daylight with a packed house of spectators.

“Out of the Past” (1947)

A private eye hiding out in a small town is discovered by one of the last people he ever wanted to see again, and is sent on a mission to find a gangster’s runaway moll.

“Ride the Pink Horse” (1947)

Lucky Gagin arrives in a New Mexico border-town seeking revenge against mobster Frank Hugo. But FBI agent Bill Retz watches over Gagin and tries to keep him on the right side of the law.

“Kansas City Confidential” (1952)

An ex-con trying to go straight is framed for a million dollar armored car robbery and must go to Mexico to unmask the real crooks.

“He Ran All the Way” (1951)

A cop killer meets a young woman and he forces her family to hide him from police who are scouring the area to find him.

“The Big Sleep” (1946)

Private eye Philip Marlowe is hired to get a spoiled heiress out of trouble with gamblers and blackmailers.

“Kiss Me Deadly” (1955)

Mike Hammer picks up a hitchhiker and is lured into a Cold War nightmare that centers around a briefcase full of hot nuclear soup.

“Brighton Rock” (1947)

Gang leader Pinkie Brown murders a news reporter then tries to cover up his crime. But the police, some witnesses and another gang all make his life rough.

“Lady Gangster” (1942)

A woman acting as a decoy in a bank robbery is arrested. But she grabs $40,000 of the loot from her accomplices before she's carted off to prison.

“The Crooked Way” (1949)

A war hero recovers from amnesia and is confronted by his criminal past, a stellar example of the ever popular amnesia noir films.

“The Chase” (1946)

A mobster's chauffeur gets involved with the boss's fearful wife, and (as you might expect) it turns into a nightmare.

“Highway 301” (1950)

A violent gang robs banks and murders anyone who might identify them.