In While the City Sleeps, Fritz Lang introduces a violent serial killer, but the focus is actually on newsmen trying to scoop one another on the killer's identity and arrest so they can get a big job in their media empire. Internal politics are more important than detective work, and I couldn't always decide if it was an interesting way to tackle a crime picture, or a frustrating one. Lang's protagonist is as broken as any in noir fiction, perhaps more than most, often drunk and using his girlfriend as bait to catch the killer. Lang is a daring director, that's no surprise, and he has edge. I just wish it didn't feel like the newspaper office was next door to Don Draper's. This is a very sexist film, not just because the killer is targeting young women - bosses getting fresh, the way Nancy is treated, how all the others are cheaters, etc. - and when the script decides the killer was inspired by EC's violent crime comics, well... Let's just say I hate this thing's politics and leave it at that.

My viewing note says: "Some good, saucy dialogue!".