The Glass Key (1942)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Stuart Heisler

Writers:

Dashiell Hammett (novel)
Jonathan Latimer (screenplay)

Release Date:

23 October 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Film-Noir | Crime | Mystery

Plot Keywords:

Suicide Note | Reformer | Casino | Engagement | Escape

Cast

Brian Donlevy	...	Paul Madvig
Veronica Lake	...	Janet Henry
Alan Ladd	...	Ed Beaumont
Bonita Granville	...	Opal 'Snip' Madvig
Richard Denning	...	Taylor Henry
Joseph Calleia	...	Nick Varna
William Bendix	...	Jeff (Varna's henchman)
Frances Gifford	...	Nurse
Donald MacBride	...	DIst. Atty. Farr
Margaret Hayes	...	Eloise Matthews
Moroni Olsen	...	Ralph Henry
Eddie Marr	...	Rusty (Varna's henchman)
Arthur Loft	...	Clyde Matthews
George Meader	...	Claude Tuttle
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tom Dugan	...	Jeep (scenes deleted)
Edward Peil Sr.	...	Politician (scenes deleted)

Runtime:

85 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #8207) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | Sweden:15

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Several actors and their character names listed in studio records and casting call lists did not appear in the movie. These were Edward Peil Sr. (Politician), 'Al Hill' (Bum) and Tom Dugan (Jeep).

Goofs:

Continuity: In Farr's office, when Ed is slowly tucking the anonymous letter in his inside pocket, Farr tells him he expects a visit from Nick. The camera is on Ed who abruptly takes his hand out of his inside pocket and turns to Farr, but then the camera cuts to show both him and Farr and he's still tucking the letter in his inside pocket.

Quotes:

Nick Varna: I'm too big to take the boot from you now.
Paul Madvig: You may be too big to take it laying down, Nick, but you're gonna take it. You are taking it.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Best of Film Noir (1999) (V)

Soundtrack:

I Don't Want to Walk Without You

Sock-Me-Again Ladd and Big-Slob Bendix

"Reform" party politicians making unholy alliances in the final days of an election, media manipulators itching to smear a candidate in the morning news, ingrate gambling richboys who screw up everything for everybody. A "dated" film?

If anyone's ahead of the game it's Ladd. Smart, tough--he'll take the blows but not the fall. A shark-eyed quiet little guy with a deep voice. A small mouth with barely an upper lip. A smile not quite a smile--head to head with doll-like Veronica Lake who smiles even more when she doesn't mean it. They are a stare-down match for each other. And that bemused look on their faces tells you they're not just game players.

Then there's scene-stealer William Bendix. When a redneck isn't gettin' any action, he might settle for a good knock-down. Getting good & drunk is foreplay. Bendix romances Ladd. How many times does he call Ladd sweetheart? Bendix can hardly wait to get on with the hard stuff. (Don't forget to check out the contemporary hair.) Watch and wince while Ladd plays co-dependent.

For toppers: Ladd's dinner-crashing moment (via skylight)--inspired. Maybe worth the whole film just to see.

Then there are lines like, "My first wife was a second cook in a third-rate joint on Fourth Street," Lake's jab at the Christian Science Monitor, or "If you're going to be a nitwit, don't go around with a megaphone." Also not to miss: Lillian Randolph at the piano of a hide-out bar singing to Bendix. Looking like he's about to cry---till Ladd walks in.

Densely detailed, paced one step ahead--not for the sleepy.