Harrison's Reports (1950)

May 20, 1950 HARRISON'S REPORTS 79 car she had stolen in order to meet the socialite. Thompson had lied about the manner in which his car had been stolen lest his wife Sally Forrest, learn that he had been out with Jan. In the events that follow, Elsa Lanchester, Jan's landlady, learns of her affair with the socialite and attempts to blackmail him. This leads to her own murder by Edmon Ryan, the socialite, when he tries to recover the murder gun, which Elsa had stolen from him. In the end, Montalban traps Ryan, clearing young Thompson. It was produced by Frank E. Taylor and directed by John Sturges from a screen play by Sydney and Richard Brooks, based on a story by Leonard Spigelglass. Adult fare. "In a Lonely Place" with Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Grahame (Columbia, July; time, 94 min.) Although it is a first-rate production from the viewpoint of direction, acting, photography and settings, the appeal of this melodrama will probably be limited to sophisticated picture-goers. It is hardly an entertainment for the masses, for the hero is an erratic character and often resorts to violence, at times with justification, but at other times without it. For this reason he does not win the spectator's sympathy. There are tense dramatic moments, for the hero is suspected of a murder he had not committed and is plagued by police efforts to pin the guilt on him. Humphrey Bogart turns in a compelling performance as the temperamental hero given to maniacal rages, as does Gloria Grahame, as the girl who falls in love with him only to leave him lest he bring her suffering and horror. It is a realistic ending, but hardly one that will please the average movie-goer. Some comedy relief is furnished by that fine actor, Robert Warwick, as a faded but cultured screen star addicted to drink: — Bogart, a screen writer who had no patience with trite stories, meets Art Smith, his agent, in a fashionable Hollywood restaurant and agrees to take a scription job on a popular novel. Unable to stand the thought of reading the trashy novel, Bogart asks Martha Stewart, the hat check girl, who had read the book, to accompany him to his apartment to tell him the story briefly. After hearing the story from Martha, Bogart gives her cab fare to go home. Early the next morning he is awakened by Frank Lovejoy, a detective friend, who informs him that Martha had been murdered. He accompanies Lovejoy to headquarters, where his story that he had not left the apartment with Martha is doubted until corroborated by Gloria Grahame, his pretty neighbor, who could see into his apartment. Gloria and Bogart had never met formally, but once they begin to know each other they fall madly in love. She inspires him to take a new interest in his writing and helps him with the typing. Meanwhile he is somewhat annoyed by the fact that he, along with the dead girl's sweetheart, are still suspects. One day Gloria is summoned to headquarters for further interrogation, but she withholds this news from Bogart lest it upset him. He learns of it, however, from another source, and becomes so enraged that he drives off in his car at a dangerous speed and collides with another car. Still angered, he starts beating the other driver unmercifully. Gloria intervenes in time to save the man from certain death. Eventually calming down, Bogart apologizes to Gloria for losing his head and wins her consent to marry him that night. At a pre-wedding celebration prior to their departure for Las Vegas, Bogart again loses his temper over a minor matter, insulting Gloria and striking his agent. She rushes home. Bogart follows her to beg her forgiveness, but Gloria, now concerned over his violent temper and wondering whether he had not killed Martha, had already made arrangements to leave town. She feigns forgiveness to pacify him, but through a chance phone call from the airport he learns of her plans to leave him. His violent temper comes to the surface again and he starts to choke her, but he comes to his senses when the telephone rings again. Gloria answers it as Bogart walks out dejectedly, and learns from the police that Martha's boy-friend had confessed to her murder. This good news has no effect on her, for Bogart's latest outburst had shattered her dreams. Robert Lord produced it and Nicholas Ray directed it from a screen play by Andrew Solt, based on the novel by Dorothy B. Hughes. Adult fare. "The Jackie Robinson Story" with Jackie Robinson (Eagle-Lion, May; time, 76 min.) Very good! From its very first scene to its final fadeout, this factual dramatization of the career of Jackie Robinson, the famous baseball star of the Brooklyn Dodgers, holds one completely engrossed. Told in simple but effective terms, it is at once a thought-provoking and inspirational human interest drama, one that should win many more admirers for the remarkable Negro athlete, whose rise to fame in the organized baseball world, despite the prejudice displayed by officials, players and even the fans themselves, is an inspiring lesson in high courage, restraint and personal dignity, as well as a tribute to the democratic sportsmanship of the American public. It should be made clear that, though the picture has great social significance, it is at all times an entertainment of a quality that should give it popular appeal because it touches the heart. It will undoubtedly prove to be a huge box-office success, not only because of the picture's merits, but also because of the exceptional publicity breaks both Robinson and the picture have received in recent weeks in the national magazines. The surprise of the picture is the fine job done by Robinson in portraying himself on the screen. He is not, of course, a polished actor, but under Alfred E. Green's finished direction, he comes through with a performance that is completely natural and appealing, speaking his lines clearly and facing the camera with nary a trace of self-consciousness. His performance would do credit to many a professional actor. An outstanding job is turned in Minor Watson, as Branch Rickey, president of the Dodgers, who defies the traditional ban against Negro ball players, and who guides Robinson through his trials and tribulations. Richard Lane, as a team manager, injects many humorous touches. Louise Beavers, as Jackie's mother, and Ruby Dee, as the girl he marries, lend just the right warmth and tenderness to their sympathetic roles. Briefly, the rather episodic but well written story takes Robinson from childhood through his high school and college days, during which time he proves to be a prize athlete in all competitive sports, particularly baseball. To help support his mother, he quits college in his senior year to play pro-football. He enters the Army with the start of World War II, rising from private to lieutenant by the time he is honorably discharged. His efforts to secure work as an athletic instructor prove futile, but he eventually lands a job on an all-Negro baseball team. His fine work on the ball field comes to the attention of the Dodgers, and before long he is signed to a contract by Branch Rickey, who warns him of the problems he must overcome to remain in organized baseball. Assigned to play second base with Montreal, Robinson quickly proves his worth, but he is constantly subjected to the abuse of the heckling fans and of the players, including some of his own teammates. Although hurt and discouraged, he sticks to his promise to Rickey not to fight back either with words or fists, no matter how vicious the insults. In due time he wins a chance to play with the Dodgers and, despite opposition from some of the players, soon wins their respect as a ball player and a gentleman. The sportswriters vote him the "Rookie of the Year," and he goes on to help the Dodgers win two National League pennants. Mort Briskin, the producer, Alfred E. Green, the director, and Lawrence Taylor and Arthur Mann, the screen play writers, deserve great credit for the masterful way in which they have presented Jackie Robinson's story. It is a picture that should be seen by everyone, and every exhibitor may well be proud to show it on his screen.