Tonight we were back in the company of Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake, this time in "The Glass Key"(1942), another Noir discovered through my "TCM Vault" search. The Ladd/Lake team is a good one, but they don't share as much screen time as they did in "This Gun For Hire", which we saw and raved about several nights ago. Both are again in top form, however - if separately - and there is a lot to like about "Glass Key", even if it doesn't rise overall to the previous film's level of excellence.
The script is from a story by famed crime novelist Dashiell Hammett (or Hashiell Dammett if you prefer). I haven't read any of his books, but if this movie is any indication, they must be jam packed with plot and characters, so much so that it must've been hard for the screenwriter to squeeze it all into his adaptation. I'll preface my review, therefore, by saying that there are so many cross references among the characters, i.e. so many intertwined relationships, that it will get extremely confusing if you are not paying attention. That goes for reading this review as well as for watching the movie. Thus I will do the best I can, but don't be surprised if I ditch the description at some point and just start jabbering instead.
Brian Donlevy, he of the square build and well-trimmed moustachio, plays "Paul Madvig", a rough and tumble political boss in an unnamed second tier city. It's unclear whether Madvig is an elected official. We do see that he's able to sway blocks of voters, unions, etc. and that his backing will have a decisive effect on the outcome of the upcoming Senatorial election. Madvig grew up poor, using his fists to get his way, and he's not above intimidation to get what he wants in the political sphere. His opponents view him as an outright crook. He needs legitimacy, so he decides to throw his weight behind a surging Reform candidate, "Ralph Henry" (Moroni Olsen). The deal is cinched when, at a party, he meets Henry's comely daughter Janet (Veronica Lake). He falls hard for her and decides he's gonna marry her, as soon as the election is over. And what Madvig wants, he usually gets.
The trouble is, Lake isn't much interested in him. He's a brute and much older than her. She's got eyes instead for Alan Ladd, Madvig's cool enforcer. Ladd is his usual quiet self here, but badass, exuding confidence. Lake makes no secret she'd rather be with him, but Ladd doesn't trust her. He tells her she's slumming : "You think you're better than we are", meaning himself and Madvig, to whom he is fiercely loyal.
Lake has a brother, Taylor (Richard Denning of "Creature From The Black Lagoon" fame), who is the black sheep of the family. He's got a gambling problem and owes big money to a Mobster (Joseph Calleia) who owns the casino Taylor frequents. He asks Lake for a loan to pay off the debt and she complies, but only partially. He still owes the Mobster half the dough. Now, Taylor has a girlfriend named "Opal" (Bonita Granville) who just so happens to be Paul Madvig's little sister. She's only 18, and Madvig doesn't want her running around with a loser like Taylor Henry. But, he can't risk alienating Taylor's father the Senator, who he hopes to back in the election, nor Taylor's sister Veronica Lake, whom he plans to marry.
Now you can see what I mean about the convoluted relationships!
Madvig takes a half-measure solution to the problem, telling little sister Opal to stay away from Taylor. She of course ignores this advice. Madvig sends Alan Ladd out to follow them around, and lo and behold, Ladd finds Taylor Henry dead in the gutter outside his father's mansion.
He's been murdered, but who could've done it? The prime suspects are obviously the Mobster Casino Owner, to whom Taylor owed money, and Paul Madvig, who didn't want Taylor dating his sister. Ladd is gonna protect Madvig first and foremost, so he goes back immediately to tell him of Taylor's death. Madvig swears he had nothing to do with it. Ladd believes him, but sister Opal does not. Now the plot is gonna go into convoluted overdrive. I'm just gonna give you the main details and let you work out the rest, hopefully by seeing the movie for yourself!
While the bought-and-paid-for district attorney sorts out the evidence in Taylor's murder (including some anonymous letters that are being mailed around), Paul Madvig goes on the offensive. He suspects the Mobster of killing Taylor, and sets out to tighten the noose around him. The first thing he does is use his political clout to have the Mobster's casino shut down, a move that makes him look good to Reform voters. Then he sends Alan Ladd out once again to snoop, this time on the Mobster's hideout. This doesn't turn out well for Ladd, who gets caught and is subsequently beaten to a pulp by the Mobster's thug (William Bendix) in one of the most horribly violent scenes I've ever witnessed in a Noir film. You may wanna close your eyes during this sequence; it's not for the squeamish.
The Mobster, in turn, is certain that Paul Madvig is Taylor Henry's killer. He has no evidence to prove it, but in addition to the district attorney, he's also got the local newspaper editor in his pocket. He plans to get the editor to run a headline story, based merely on hearsay evidence from Opal, Madvig's sister and Taylor's girlfriend, that will convict Madvig in the court of public opinion. Then he can get the crooked D.A. to sign on, and put Madvig in the electric chair.
What the Mobster hasn't counted on, though, is Alan Ladd. He managed to escape while Bendix was beating him up, spent a couple weeks in the hospital recovering, and now he's out - and out for revenge. I think Ladd is possibly the toughest guy I've seen in the Noir genre. Even Richard Widmark would be scared of him. But he's also very smart, and he thinks he's figured out who the killer is. He sets out to prove it, first by paying a return visit to William Bendix (to even their score), then to Veronica Lake, and finally to the mountain retreat of the newspaper publisher, who plans to run the incriminating headline on Madvig.
Did I mention this was a complicated plot? There was one subtheme so obscure that I couldn't figure it out even after a couple of rewinds, but it was very brief so I finally let it go. It was a case of the screenwriter suddenly throwing a character at you that the director had barely introduced, way back at the beginning of the movie, so when this person's name comes back up over an hour later, you're going "who's that"? It doesn't detract, however, from what is mostly an expert script.
The acting is fine all around. I wish William Bendix hadn't been so believable as the thug, but he delivered the intended effect, no doubt. Veronica Lake's sleek sophistication is present as always, and Brian Donlevy is right in his element as the political bully Madvig. He's a bull in a china shop, but not entirely without finesse as we shall see.
"The Glass Key" was excellent in most ways - the acting, photography, even the convoluted storyline. It could've done without the one minor subtheme I mentioned, and they maybe could've ditched a character or two, but I'm still gonna give it Two Big Thumbs Up, especially because of Alan Ladd, who is so great that now we've gotta find every single Noir he was ever in. I'll be looking. /////
Hey Elizabeth! That is beyond cool, that Neige sent you that message! He called it a "special memory", and boy is he ever right. That was when he was just gaining a fanbase in America, so for you to cover his song - and do such an amazing and original job of it - must have blown him away and also been very gratifying. And it was, enough so that he cherishes the memory to this day!
And so do I, of course. Me & Neige, "the two April 16th guys", remember? I had been a fan since Summer 2011, when I discovered "The Secret" on Youtube. I remember being so excited when "Les Voyages" came out, and then just a few weeks later seeing that post from Neige, featuring your cover. I watched and was as impressed as he was, so then I watched it again.......and again. :):)
A few days went by, and something hit me. "Who was that girl"?, I wondered. I had to find out, so I went back to Alcest's page, hoping the post would still be there. I scrolled down, found it and watched again.
I listened, and I thought, "that's ingenious, to do it on piano". Your entire video was such a great concept, with the shot of you walking through the Thai Pavillion. An American girl, singing in French.
Another week went by, and again I thought, "Who is this girl"? And I had to find out. So I searched FB to see if you had a page. You did; I sent a friend request, and the rest is history! This is part of what I was talking about when I said yesterday that I miss the Old Days. That sure was an exciting time. :):)
Well, huge congratulations for the message from Neige! You knocked it out of the park with your version of "Autre Temps" and you continue to do so to this day.
As I've been saying for a long time, "You rule, Elizabeth"!
That's all for now. I'm gonna head out for a hike. Back tonight at the Usual Time.
Tons of love! xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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