Howard Hughes reunites Jane Russell and Vincent Price from His Kind of Woman in another tale involving love and mystery in a slightly exotic location but instead of Robert Mitchum there's Victor Mature. The story fairly shamelessly rips off Casablanca - Russell returns to down after some time away with her new husband (Price), enters a nightclub where the pianist knows her (Hoagy Carmichael) and plays a theme song ('I Get Along Without You Very Well') which meant something for her and her ex (Victor Mature).
There are differences - instead of doing something interesting like running a casino or nightclub, Mature is a Vegas cop, which sounds interesting, but Mature doesn't do anything like bust heads or gangsters, he spends a lot of time stopping under age kids getting married. Price isn't a freedom fighter but a compulsive gambler. There's no political undercurrents, just people after money.
This is a frustrating film. It's got a lot of strong elements: Vegas, cops, crooks, Jane Russell, lounges, gambling, desert, location shooting. Russell is always fun, the songs are good, the support cast impresses, there's a terrific climax in a deserted airport out in the desert with the wind blowing hard and Mature trying not to get killed as he rescues Russell. But there's a lot of weak bits too - Russell and Mature (who I would have thought made a good team) have no chemistry, Mature looks bored, Price is set up as his major character and disappears for the last third (this is unforgivable - he's not even a real baddie). There are some odd bits which smack of Howard Hughes interference (I could be wrong), like Mature bringing Russell along with him as he deals with some under-age elopers; Carmichael singing a long song and the camera cutting back to Russell listening, smiling and nodding her head.
It's a bit of a mess - I enjoyed most of it, particularly the first third and the ending; it's certainly a bit of a curio. Never reaches the giddy heights of His Kind of Woman though.
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