Appointment with Crime

Appointment with Crime

Year: 1946

Runtime: 92 mins

Language: English

Director: John Harlow

DramaCrime

Small-time jewel thief Leo Martin is abandoned by his partners—club owner Gus Loman and driver Hatchett—when a robbery goes awry. After serving his prison term, determined to settle the score, Leo resurfaces with an elaborate revenge scheme that intricately weaves false evidence to frame Loman and his unscrupulous boss Gregory Lang for murder, while Inspector Rogers remains convinced of Leo’s guilt.

Appointment with Crime (1946) – Spoiler-Free Movie Summary & Plot Overview

Get a spoiler-free look at Appointment with Crime (1946) with a clear plot overview that covers the setting, main characters, and story premise—without revealing key twists or the ending. Perfect for deciding if this film is your next watch.

In a rain‑slick metropolis where glittering jewels coexist with dim back‑room deals, a modestly ambitious thief learns that loyalty is as fragile as glass. Leo Martin spends his early years slipping through velvet‑curtained clubs, his hands deft at lifting treasures that never quite belong to anyone but the shadows. The city’s underworld hums with men who run clubs, drivers who know every shortcut, and a quiet network of dealers who profit from the unseen.

When a botched heist leaves Leo badly injured and his partners—club owner Gus Loman and his trusted wheelman Hatchett—to walk away, the fallout lands him in a cold cell. Prison becomes a crucible for his simmering resentment, and upon release, he carries a single, unshakable resolve: to balance the scales that tipped against him. He begins to weave a meticulous plan, one built on fabricated threads that could ensnare his former collaborators and the unseen puppeteer behind their schemes.

The tension sharpens as Leo finds himself shadowed by Gregory Lang, the polished yet unscrupulous figure who profits from the illicit trade, and by Inspector Rogers, a detective whose instincts refuse to let the former thief’s façade go unchallenged. Between the glare of streetlights and the clink of cheap whiskey, each character circles the other’s motives, creating a cat‑and‑mouse rhythm that pulses through every encounter.

The film moves with a gritty, noir‑inflected style, balancing stark realism with a lingering, almost operatic sense of revenge. Its mood is one of smoky corridors and uneasy alliances, where every glance could conceal a hidden agenda. As Leo steps back into the world that once discarded him, the audience is drawn into a landscape of grit and grit‑softened ambition, eager to see how far a man will go when his past and his purpose collide.

Last Updated: December 05, 2025 at 09:53

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Movies like Appointment with Crime: Calculated Underworld Revenge

Stories of meticulous revenge plots unfolding against a gritty criminal backdrop.If you enjoyed the intricate revenge plot of Appointment with Crime, explore more movies where protagonists craft meticulous schemes against their betrayers. These films share a gritty criminal setting, a steady build of tension, and a somber tone, delivering a similar feeling of grim, methodical payback.

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Narrative Summary

The narrative typically follows a betrayed individual—often a criminal themselves—who, after a period of suffering, returns with a cold, intelligent plan for vengeance. The story methodically details the setup and execution of this scheme, creating a cat-and-mouse game with their targets, and often culminating in a high-stakes, morally complex conclusion.

Why These Movies?

These movies are grouped by their shared focus on a specific revenge archetype: the planner. They feature a similar dark tone, steady pacing that builds suspense, and a heavy emotional weight stemming from themes of betrayal and the high cost of vengeance, creating a cohesive viewing experience for fans of intricate, character-driven crime dramas.

Bleak and Fatalistic Crime Movies like Appointment with Crime

Grim crime stories where characters are trapped by circumstance and a bleak fate.Fans of the grim ending in Appointment with Crime will appreciate this selection of movies that share a fatalistic tone. These stories feature characters caught in inescapable cycles of crime and punishment, resulting in sad or bleak conclusions and a consistently dark, heavy atmosphere.

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Narrative Summary

The narrative journey in these films is often a spiral, where a character's initial mistake or desperate act sets them on an unavoidable path toward downfall. Despite their struggles, the world of the film is unforgiving, and the ending reinforces a sense of inevitability and poetic, if tragic, justice.

Why These Movies?

They are united by a shared, dominant mood of grim fatalism. The combination of a dark tone, heavy emotional weight, and predominantly sad or bleak endings creates a distinct viewing experience centered on the inescapable consequences of a life of crime and moral compromise.

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Appointment with Crime Summary

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Appointment with Crime Summary

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Appointment with Crime Timeline

Characters, Settings & Themes in Appointment with Crime

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Characters, Settings & Themes in Appointment with Crime

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