Post by mikef6 on Feb 23, 2019 5:33:41 GMT
The Enforcer / Bretaigne Windust and Raoul Walsh (uncredited) (1951). United States Pictures / distributed by Warner Bros. Something of a “lost” Humphrey Bogart film. “The Enforcer” was the film released immediately after “In A Lonely Place” and just before “Sirocco” and “The African Queen” yet it did not get a home video release until 2013. That’s a shame because this is a crackling, suspenseful film courtesy of unbilled director Raoul Walsh who stepped in early during production after assigned director Windust became ill. Walsh’s fingerprints are all over this movie. The time period is vaguely hinted at but is at least a decade earlier than the time of production and is based on (but doesn’t mention) information that was coming out of Senator Estes Kefauver’s investigation into organized crime (1950-51) that was on-going as the script was being prepared. This is reputed to be the first movie to use words like “contract” and “hit” as used in gangster lingo.
Bogie plays Assistant District Attorney Martin Ferguson who has worked years to bring a master criminal to justice. Albert Mendoza (Everett Sloan) is an all-powerful leader of murder-for-hire gang. (The U.K. title was “Murder Inc.” which is much better and more descriptive of the content.) Even though he is in solitary, the stool pigeon, Rico (Ted de Corsia), is afraid, fearing Mendoza can reach out from his cell like a Dr. Mabuse or Prof. Moriarty and kill him before his can testify the next morning. But Rico does die, leaving Ferguson without a case. He and his head investigator (Roy Roberts) sit up all night going over the case, which we see in flashback with flashbacks within the flashback. Ferguson has a tickle that tells him he missed some small clue. I won’t dare tip the ending but when Bogart solves the case, sees the small detail he missed, and speeds away to prevent another killing it is very thrilling. Great Reveal. Great action ending. Even exhilarating.
“The Enforcer” was shot by Robert Burks who would go on to be director of photography for 10 straight Hitchcock master works from “Dial M For Murder” (1954) thru “Marnie” (1964) winning an Oscar for “To Catch A Thief” (1955) along the way. Burks’ expert work with light and shadows plus the flashback structure place “The Enforcer” well within noir parameters. Yet it is also a brilliant police procedural, even looking backwards at the docu-drama form of the ‘40s like “The House On 92nd Street” and “The Naked City,” straddling two or more genres. The only thing lacking is a femme fatale. There are hardly any women at all. Bogart’s performance is very straight forward, almost low key. No Big Movie Star fireworks which was perfect for the material.
A word about a couple of supporting players. Zero Mostel plays an incompetent low-level hood who Ferguson gets to squeal. Mostel was being blacklisted even as filming was proceeding. He didn’t make another movie until “A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum” in 1966. Former western star Bob Steel who had played mob hitman Canino and faced Humphrey Bogart in “The Big Sleep,” plays what might be a close relative of Canino. He goes up against Bogart again with the expected result. King Donovan is a detective and Jack Lambert is a hitman who is often confined to an asylum.
Highly recommended.
Nobody could wear a bowtie like Humphrey Bogart
Player, Bogart, King Donovan
Ted de Corsia
Jack Lambert and Zero Mostel
Bogie plays Assistant District Attorney Martin Ferguson who has worked years to bring a master criminal to justice. Albert Mendoza (Everett Sloan) is an all-powerful leader of murder-for-hire gang. (The U.K. title was “Murder Inc.” which is much better and more descriptive of the content.) Even though he is in solitary, the stool pigeon, Rico (Ted de Corsia), is afraid, fearing Mendoza can reach out from his cell like a Dr. Mabuse or Prof. Moriarty and kill him before his can testify the next morning. But Rico does die, leaving Ferguson without a case. He and his head investigator (Roy Roberts) sit up all night going over the case, which we see in flashback with flashbacks within the flashback. Ferguson has a tickle that tells him he missed some small clue. I won’t dare tip the ending but when Bogart solves the case, sees the small detail he missed, and speeds away to prevent another killing it is very thrilling. Great Reveal. Great action ending. Even exhilarating.
“The Enforcer” was shot by Robert Burks who would go on to be director of photography for 10 straight Hitchcock master works from “Dial M For Murder” (1954) thru “Marnie” (1964) winning an Oscar for “To Catch A Thief” (1955) along the way. Burks’ expert work with light and shadows plus the flashback structure place “The Enforcer” well within noir parameters. Yet it is also a brilliant police procedural, even looking backwards at the docu-drama form of the ‘40s like “The House On 92nd Street” and “The Naked City,” straddling two or more genres. The only thing lacking is a femme fatale. There are hardly any women at all. Bogart’s performance is very straight forward, almost low key. No Big Movie Star fireworks which was perfect for the material.
A word about a couple of supporting players. Zero Mostel plays an incompetent low-level hood who Ferguson gets to squeal. Mostel was being blacklisted even as filming was proceeding. He didn’t make another movie until “A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum” in 1966. Former western star Bob Steel who had played mob hitman Canino and faced Humphrey Bogart in “The Big Sleep,” plays what might be a close relative of Canino. He goes up against Bogart again with the expected result. King Donovan is a detective and Jack Lambert is a hitman who is often confined to an asylum.
Highly recommended.
Nobody could wear a bowtie like Humphrey Bogart
Player, Bogart, King Donovan
Ted de Corsia
Jack Lambert and Zero Mostel
