The Lauren Bacall Blogathon – Key Largo (1948)

This is the first of 3 reviews that are part of the Lauren Bacall Blogathon being hosted by Crystal over at In The Good Old Days Of Classic Hollywood.

Thanks for letting me take part!

“When your head says one thing and your whole life says another, your head always loses. ” – Frank

Number of Times Seen – 1 (6 Sep 2015)

Brief Synopsis – A WWII veteran travels to Florida to meet up with the family of a fallen comrade and ends up getting involved with a terrible gangster who is scheming to commit a crime

My Take on it – Even as an admitted Movie buff, I have not watched many movies with Humphrey Bogart and this is one that I had missed until now.

I liked the way this story was built up and the characters were all interesting to watch.

The way this was filmed really captured the noir aspect and we got a very clear understanding of both the good and bad of each of the characters who are involved in this situation.

The choice to pit Bogart vs. Edward G. Robinson was really a great one because they both have very strong on screen presence that gives them both equal standing in scenes where they confront one another.

The supporting cast is also well chosen and Lionel Barrymore and Lauren Bacall doing excellent work as relatives of a close friend of Bogart’s.

The story itself is pretty simple and predicable, but that is part of the magic here and it keeps it quite enjoyable to watch throughout.

Bottom Line – Nicely done film noir that really captures the good and evil of all of the characters very well.  The conflict between Bogart vs. Robinson is definitely a good choice for two leads with strong on-screen presence.  The plot itself isn’t too complex and is pretty predictable, but it’s still quite enjoyable to watch.  Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – In a classic case of a director being emotionally manipulative, John Huston informed Claire Trevor that they were to film her song that very day. Trevor was not a trained singer, and had not even rehearsed the song yet. She also felt very intimidated by the A-list actors seated directly in front of her. The result was a hesitant, nervous, uncomfortable rendition, exactly the feeling Huston was hoping to get. (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy

_______________________________________

Check out my *updated* movie stats here

To see my reviews of Oscar Winning Performances check out this link

To see my reviews of all Oscar Best Picture Winners click here (now complete)

Here is a link to my movie index A-Z