"Shakedown" featured an antihero protagonist, to wit a talented photographer, arranging all kinds of interesting business opportunities for himself, mainly by manipulating a variety of criminals and racketeers. At one point I was hoping/suspecting that the movie would introduce an extra layer of intrigue, by disclosing that the protagonist was pitting all these gangsters against each other because he had an ulterior motive. (For instance : he wanted revenge against gangster X for knocking down his mother during a blood-drenched getaway.) This turned out not to be the case, our protagonist was behaving like a callous and greedy opportunist because he was, well, a callous and greedy opportunist. Anyway, watching "Shakedown" was time well spent : I thought it was a suspenseful noir with a well-constructed plot, memorable characters and quotable dialogue. The ending provided an ingenious example of an engineer hoist with his own petard.
Movie lovers interested in "contrast and compare" may want to take a look at the much later "Nightcrawler" (2014), which is a compelling thriller/drama in its own right. (Wrote a small review there too.) Although different in style and plot, both movies raise similar underlying questions, for instance with regard to the public's craving for striking and violent images. If you and me and the postman ask for dramatic pics of victims jumping from the third floor of a burning building, there will arise people willing to satisfy the demand - quite possibly at the expense of the victims and the rescuers.
Movie lovers interested in "contrast and compare" may want to take a look at the much later "Nightcrawler" (2014), which is a compelling thriller/drama in its own right. (Wrote a small review there too.) Although different in style and plot, both movies raise similar underlying questions, for instance with regard to the public's craving for striking and violent images. If you and me and the postman ask for dramatic pics of victims jumping from the third floor of a burning building, there will arise people willing to satisfy the demand - quite possibly at the expense of the victims and the rescuers.