Key Largo (1948)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

John Huston

Writers:

Maxwell Anderson (play)
Richard Brooks (writer) ...

Release Date:

31 July 1948 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Thriller

Tagline:

A storm of fear and fury in the sizzling Florida Keys !

Plot:

A man visits his old friend's hotel and finds a gangster running things. As a hurricane approaches, the two end up confronting each other.

Plot Keywords:

Hotel | Hurricane | Gangster | Seminole Indians | Key Largo

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Humphrey Bogart	...	Frank McCloud
Edward G. Robinson	...	Johnny Rocco
Lauren Bacall	...	Nora Temple
Lionel Barrymore	...	James Temple
Claire Trevor	...	Gaye Dawn
Thomas Gomez	...	Richard 'Curly' Hoff
Harry Lewis	...	Edward 'Toots' Bass
John Rodney	...	Deputy Clyde Sawyer
Marc Lawrence	...	Ziggy
Dan Seymour	...	Angel Garcia
Monte Blue	...	Sheriff Ben Wade
William Haade	...	Ralph Feeney

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Sweden:15 | West Germany:16 (nf) | South Korea:15 (2003) | Australia:G (cable rating) | Australia:PG (original rating) | Canada:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #12932)

Filming Locations:

Florida Keys, Florida, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Claire Trevor sings "Moanin' Low" acapella. This song was popularized in the early 1930s by Libby Holman.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Frank says that Rocco's boat anchored just offshore "ought to be away from those reefs with this blow coming up". The coral reefs are much farther offshore.

Quotes:

Frank McCloud: When your head says one thing and your whole life says another, your head always loses.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Watching the Detectives (2007)

Soundtrack:

Moanin' Low

One of Bogart's, Bacall's & Robinson's best.

Basically this film is almost like a play. The whole story is more or less (apart from the ending) shot in a rustic Florida hotel. A great location and setting, a real credit to John Huston.

In short, Frank McCloud (Bogart) an ex war hero and living at no-fixed-address, visits (by request) his dead war buddy's father (barrymore) & widow (Bacall). As he arrives, it doesn't take long for Frank to work out the Hotel is temporarily hostage to a big mob gangster - Rocco (robinson) and his cronies.

The film instantly grabs you, it looks beautiful, there is a lot of substance and well thought out scripts, nothing glamorous or smart, just very good story telling. A good side line to the story, are the Native American clan, who due to an approaching hurricane need to find shelter, their plight is placed nicely into the story. There is a scene in which Bacall introduces Bogart to the oldest member of the clan, a 100 and something year old Native woman which is just so genuine, I still don't believe this woman was an actress, Huston must have improvised this into the script.

Not only is Bogart superb in this, but also the whole cast. It goes without saying Edward G Robinson's performance was second to none as to was - his right hand man (Harry Lewis I think), Bacall & Rocco's girlfriend - Ziggy..pretty much the entire cast.

The whole thing ties up well, without Spoilers it does have a great ending. This is a must not just for Bogie fans but for anyone who can appreciate an intelligent film.

-Paul Browne.