by Richard Gilliam
review
Call Northside 777 utilizes a pseudo-documentary style to heighten the realism of its fact-based plot. Director Henry Hathaway effectively combines Joe MacDonald's black-and-white cinematography with the atmospheric orchestral score of Alfred Newman to create an effective, engrossing mood for the wrongful imprisonment tale. Lead James Stewart is solid as usual; of special note in the supporting cast are the performances of Lee J. Cobb as Stewart's editor and Richard Conte as Frank Wiecek, the wrongfully convicted subject of Stewart's investigations.
