rating:
(out of
4 stars)United States; 1948
Directed by John Huston; produced by Jerry Wald; written by Richard Brooks, John Huston
Starring Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Edward G. Robinson, Lionel Barrymore, Claire Trevor, Thomas Gomez, Harry Lewis
Once again Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall team up with a terrific director, John Huston this time, to create entertainment. Their films, except for their masterpiece 'The Big Sleep', do not belong to the best, but they work on their own level. Watching them reminds us of how much fun the Hollywood film in that decade, the 1940s, really was. Although they both star, I found their dialogue, brilliant in other films, not that special here. The reason is Bacall's character, normally a strong independent woman, here a widow in sorrow, living with her father.
Bogart is Frank McCloud, just returning from the war in Europe, to meet the father of soldier killed in action. James Temple (Lionel Barrymore) owns a hotel in Key Largo, and there Frank meets daughter Nora (Bacall), and some suspicious acting men including Johnny Rocco (Edward G. Robinson), who turns out to be a wanted gangster. Gaye Dawn (Claire Trevor) is his alcoholic girl, Curly (Thomas Gomez) and Toots (Harry Lewis) his companions. The good guys are held hostage until Rocco has closed a deal. Police, looking for two Indians, and an upcoming hurricane bring unwanted complications.
Bogart is the guy who wants nothing to do with it, as we have seen him play a million times. (At least it feels that way.) We are not surprised when the climax involves his character in the most important role, but that's the way these stories go. The things leading up to that point are often more important, and 'Key Largo' does not disappoint there. The villains, both men and hurricane, all have their moments to show they mean business. Robinson makes more out of his character than we might expect. He is a Scarface kind of crook, one we used to know in films from the early 1930s, but he sure fears that hurricane, making him more human than a caricature.
Since Bogart and Bacall are not their usual selves (when it comes to the relation between the two), the film needs these other qualities to succeed. Pretty impressive is the fact the film plays in one house only, but still the surroundings seem to change often. Huston shifts from the various spaces with a certain rhythm, but also knows how to keep the claustrophobic tension. The story on itself is entertaining and although the climax lacks the suspense it could have, it satisfies. Next to 'The Big Sleep' this is the best Bogart/Bacall collaboration and those two are enough to recommend it.