W.R. Burnett's novel was filmed in 1931 with Lew Ayres; Universal blew the dust off and turned it into a vehicle for its new bare-chested star, Jeff Chandler. He's ideal casting as a man from the mines who is determined to get out of his poor background - certainly much ; Evelyn Keyes is his wife.
Watching this I was thinking about what makes a star. Evelyn Keyes never became one - a competent, pretty actor, obviously captivating in real life, she never had the right amount of individuality (I had this problem in Smuggler's Island, her previous collaboration with Chandler).
Stephen McNally never became a star either - a powerful actor with a strong presence, he was perhaps too inherently unsympathetic; maybe he didn't get the roles but he had a sympathetic part in Sword of the Desert along with Chandler but it was Chandler who moved forward and became a star.
But Chandler never became a huge star - he had a respectable career but never became a top ten name, like say Rock Hudson who is in this film. I think Hudson matched Chandler's looks, physique and acting, but he had an extra warmth and sympathy which Chandler could never get. I am fully aware this in part because of their roles in this movie - but consider their entire career.
Anyway, this film is briskly directed by Joseph Pevney, who keeps the action moving, and is well shot. I had fresh appreciation for
The drama however is muddled. This feels like one of those films where there were all these discussions about how to keep the characters sympathetic. Chandler is a poor miner who wants to own a radio shop; there's easy money from fighting, and he's a great fighter, but he doesn't like fighting, in part because of a child hood trauma (revealed too late in the film) which turns him into a bit of a psycho. Apparently Chandler fights "dirty" - we here a lot about this but don't really see it; maybe my untrained eye couldn't tell the difference, it just looks like he's fighting more aggressively. But characters go on about it a LOT.
Anyway Chandler fights dirty. His girlfriend/wife Keyes is keen on him doing it for the money, then isn't keen, then is keen again. Chandler isn't keen to fight, then he becomes keen, then he isn't keen. Sports columnist Jim Backus is nice, then nasty, then nice. Stephen McNally's gambler is a drain on Chandler, then is supportive. The crowd boo Chandler all the time because he fights dirty - then at the end when he fights clean and loses they cheer; and we're meant to cheer because...? Everyone likes Hudson because he fights clean (as opposed to Chandler) but he loves the way Chandler fights.
It makes it hard to care - especially once Chandler punches Keyes. A capable cast and director is let down by the script.
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