IMDb > The Racket (1951) > IMDb user comments

IMDb user comments for
The Racket (1951) More at IMDbPro »

Filter: Hide Spoilers:
Page 1 of 3:[1] [2] [3] [Next]
Index 26 comments in total 

18 out of 18 people found the following comment useful :-
Nasty Robert Ryan Elevates This Film Noir, 26 October 2006
8/10
Author: ccthemovieman-1 from Lockport, NY, United States

A deep cast of well-known actors highlights this film noir effort. Robert Mitchum, Robert Ryan, Lizabeth Scott, William Talman, Ray Collins, Don Porter and William Conrad are all familiar names, especially to film noir buffs.

Ryan lifts this from an average classic-era crime film to above-average with a convincingly nasty character. He plays a no-compromise hood who lives by the code of violence. You have a problem? Violence, not brains, is the answer, according to Ryan's character "Nick Scanlon."

The film is fast-moving despite not having a lot of action scenes. All the characters are good, not just Ryan's, and the dialog is excellent in spots. The photography is nothing special, at least not as dramatic as most noirs, but it's a solid crime film, thanks to this cast. I would rate this a bit higher but I didn't care for the ending.

Was the above comment useful to you?

13 out of 13 people found the following comment useful :-
excellent and gritty, 9 February 2006
8/10
Author: planktonrules from Bradenton, Florida

This film reminds me a lot of an earlier film that paired Robert Mitchum and Robert Ryan (CROSSFIRE), as both have very tough and gritty plots that are excellent examples of Film Noir. However, in this film instead of a plot involving anti-semitism, it's a good cop versus organized crime flick. Once again, Ryan is a scumbag and Mitchum is a decent and hard-as-nails cop bent on justice. A particular standout is the dialog between them--very snappy and pure Noir! I particularly liked the exchanges between them in the police station when they were cross-examining the cocky and unrepentant Ryan. And, since it is Noir, you know that there will be ample quantities of violence and testosterone. Give it a try--this is a seldom-mentioned classic.

Was the above comment useful to you?

12 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
Updating of a Prohibition era play, 5 October 2005
6/10
Author: bkoganbing from Buffalo, New York

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

The Racket was originally a play on Broadway which ran for 119 performances in the 1927-1928 season and was later made into a silent film by Howard Hughes. Come 1951 and the Kefauver Senate Rackets Committee hearings in full swing, the gangster film was having a renaissance. So Hughes dusted off this old chestnut and updated it to post World War II America and gave it to his most reliable star at RKO.

Robert Mitchum, though cast against type, does well as the upright police captain. I believe his character is based on a man named Lewis J. Valentine who was a well known police captain in New York in the Hylan-Walker era. Valentine was assigned to something called The Confidential Squad which delved into organized crime. Valentine like Captain McQuigg in The Racket, stepped on a lot of toes and got transferred to garbage assignments. Ultimately he was vindicated when Fiorello LaGuardia became mayor, he made Valentine first the Chief of Uniform Patrol and later Police Commissioner. He probably was the best that ever held that job in New York City.

Robert Ryan is at his snarling best as old time gangster Nick Scanlon. Ryan is a man behind the times, the syndicate is looking for less public methods to enforce it's will and Ryan is constantly bumping up against them.

Interestingly enough, problems are not solved here. McQuigg keeps his precinct clean, but the corruption is shown to be quite systemic. A very groundbreaking attitude for that era.

Though The Racket met with a great deal of criticism by reviewers as being old fashioned, I rather like it and would classify it as one of the better products coming out of RKO during the Hughes era.

Was the above comment useful to you?

8 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
Corrupted City, 19 November 2008
7/10
Author: Claudio Carvalho from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

In New York, corruption has reached all levels under the command of the powerful mobster lord "The Old Man" and the local crime boss Nick Scanlon (Robert Ryan). When the Crime Commission under the command of Chief Investigator Harry Craig (Les Tremayne) meets with governor, the disbelief of the population is almost total. Craig tells that the uncorrupted Captain Thomas McQuigg (Robert Mitchum) was moved to the 7th District Police Station and has the intention to clean his district. The Commission counts on the testimony of Roy Higgins (Howland Chamberlain) but Nick sends one of his men to eliminate him. McQuigg uses his honest Officer Bob Johnson (William Talman) to arrest Nick's brother Joe Scanlon (Brett King) and his lover and singer Irene Hayes (Lizabeth Scott) to press Nick, under the protest of the corrupt District Attorney Mortimer X. Welsh (Ray Collins), who is supported by the mafia to the position of judge on the next elections. When Nick kills Bob, he sees the collapse of his empire and the end of the support of "The Old Man".

"The Racket" is a good but dated police story disclosing corruption in all levels of New York City. The ending is extremely commercial, moralist and without credibility, with the subpoenas of Mortimer Welsh and Detective Sergeant Turk and the romance between Irene Hayes and the naive City Press journalist Dave Ames. Robert Ryan is excellent in the role of the violent and old-fashioned criminal, but Robert Mitchum has a bureaucratic performance. Just as a curiosity, the name of the owner of the car used by Joe stamped on the newspaper is William R. Wyler, maybe in a tribute to the great director. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "A Estrada dos Homens Sem Lei" ("The Road of the Men Without Law")

Was the above comment useful to you?

7 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
Racket-No Foul Ball Here ***, 3 October 2006
7/10
Author: edwagreen from United States

Entertaining film with politics, crime and corruption the main themes here.

Robert Mitchum plays a dedicated, righteous policeman who heads a unit of officers. He is as honest as 24 hours in a day. He takes pride in such officers as Bill Talman, a young cop gunned down in police headquarters by the usually evil Robert Ryan. Without the insanity of his earlier crime driven roles, Ryan comes across as the embodiment of evil.

Ray Collins steals the show as a worm of a prosecuting attorney up to his neck in corruption. It is interesting to note that both Collins and Talman went on to TV careers in "Perry Mason."

Lizabeth Scott, as a lounge singer, caught up in the mayhem, tries hard to please but she does not evoke the emotion needed for her role.

To say that the ending is justified is more than right.

Was the above comment useful to you?

5 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
The syndicate, 30 September 2006
7/10
Author: jotix100 from New York

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

This film, as some other contributors have already pointed out, belongs to the gangster movie genre. This is not a film noir as IMDb and some other comments suggest. Sure, there are elements of it, but it clearly strays from the basic concept of the noir, as we know it.

"The Racket" originated in the theater. In fact, John Cromwell, its director, appeared on the original production on the stage. Mr. Cromwell, who is credited with the direction, was in fact, fired by Howard Hughes for differences in the original concept. Nicholas Ray was engaged to re-shoot some scenes that were then edited in what Cromwell had already shot before. One can see the different styles and that's why this film doesn't have a satisfying effect on the viewer. In spite of what William Wister Haines and W. R. Burnett fine screen play, and excellent work by the two leading actors, we are still left hungry for more.

Robert Mitchum who plays against type as the courageous Capt. Tom McQuigg, gives a great performance as the uncompromising police chief who believe in doing the right thing. Robert Ryan is also seen in one of his tough appearances as the head of the local gang, Nick Scanlon. Lizabeth Scott doesn't have a great chance to shine in the film since her character stays outside of the action most of the time. William Talman, Ray Collins, William Conrad, Don Porter, are seen in supporting roles.

John Cromwell had an eye for showing Los Angeles in all its splendor worked wonders with his cinematographer, George Diskant in this black and white film that although flawed, still shows its edge after more than fifty years since it went into production.

Was the above comment useful to you?

8 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :-
A slow starter, but a fine crime drama, 29 August 2006
7/10
Author: TrevorAclea from London, England

I'd never been able to get past the first couple of reels of The Racket on TV and it certainly looked like being the make-weight of Warner's new Film Noir collection, but once you get past the lunking Howard Hughes-imposed Nicholas Ray-directed prologue turns into a surprisingly engaging and gripping crime drama. Structurally it's certainly unusual, probably as a result of Hughes' typical interference - it's more than 17 minutes before Mitchum makes his entrance, and there are some sporadically awkward crosscuts to inserts shot by Ray and others after John Cromwell (who starred in the play the film was based on in the 1920s) had left.

Robert Ryan is surprisingly not quite there on screen for once: not exactly bad, but somewhere between phoning it in and, in his early scenes at least, possibly drunk on set - his timing is slightly askew, his usual excellent instincts abandoned along with his sense of proportion in moments that are just a little over the top. But there's so much to admire that even the unlikely escalation of the feud between the two protagonists is carried along. There's a fine shootout in a garage, a neat car chase that sees the cops plow through a billboard for a mob-backed political candidate and a terrific death scene at the end. The supporting cast are intriguing too, with William Conrad's cop and Ray Collin's DA both corrupt but not so entirely that they're lost causes: they exist in a gray area that throws the leads into sharper relief.

Eddie Mueller's audio commentary is the only extra on Warners' R1 DVD, but it's quite excellent and well worth listening to.

Was the above comment useful to you?

6 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
Run of the mill crime caper, 28 December 2001
Author: sibisi73 from United Kingdom

A competent crime movie, enlivened by two strong lead performances from Mitchum and Ryan. The latter has the more interesting part as the gangster who ultimately finds himself friendless when those loyal to him decide he has become too much of a liability. Although the political machinations behind the scenes are dealt with more predominantly than many of the film's contemporaries, much of the satire is lost due to the 'other-worldliness' of the setting. Time and place are never specified, so we are more entangled in the personalities than the bigger moral implications.

A slight, but entertaining example of the genre.

Was the above comment useful to you?

3 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
Robert Ryan is a Superb Villain, 12 August 2008
6/10
Author: beresfordmax from United States

Pretty much the entire cast delivers good performances. Robert Mitchum swaggers through the movie calmly exuding righteousness (!), machismo, and testosterone as a good cop dedicated to fighting a sprawling web of political intrigue and corruption.

Robert Ryan is superb as a nasty, snarling thug, the ruthless boss of a vicious gang of hoodlums who specialize in murdering witnesses.

William Talman -- who starred as the psychopathic killer in The Hitch Hiker -- is convincing but underused as a decent, dependable cop.

Lizabeth Scott is disappointing as a trashy blonde nightclub singer. She doesn't seem to get 'into' her part and delivers a bland, lack-luster performance.

Although the cast's acting in general is good, the direction and cinematography are mediocre. The plot is predictable and holds no surprises, no twists, no denouement. Although the story hints at a mastermind who is pulling Ryan's strings, the angle is not developed and we never find out who it is (probably the Governor). Not a classic, but Ryan's performance is worth the cost of admission.

Was the above comment useful to you?

3 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
Probably of most interest to fans of Robert Ryan and Robert Mitchum, 3 February 2009
5/10
Author: Terrell-4 from San Antonio, Texas

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

The Racket, no noir just a big city crime story, is as predictable as a fig newton. Still, in some ways the movie as like finding out at first bite that your fig newton is made with pumpkin.

Captain Tom McQuigg (Robert Mitchum) is a big, tough cop in charge of a go-nowhere precinct. He's been bounced from precinct to precinct, not because he's a failure but because he's honest. His city is filled with corruption, vice, the numbers...you name it. Nick Scanlon (Robert Ryan), just as big a guy as McQuigg, just as tough and with a preference for violence, has run the city for years. Scanlon and McQuigg have a history that goes way back. Scanlon has the city under his thumb. It's Scanlon who sees to it that McQuigg gets the worst assignments and the lousiest precinct. If McQuigg won't play the game, Scanlon will make his life as hard as he can. Recently Scanlon has started a partnership with a big, out-of-town syndicate run by The Chief, a man no one knows. The Syndicate wants to grow opportunities in Scanlon's territory and Scanlon wants more of the big-time. It's a partnership as unstable as a one-legged man on a merry-go-round. And it looks like only Captain Tom McQuigg is determined enough and smart enough to stop Scanlon in his tracks.

There's nothing here that hasn't been done over and over. Director John Cromwell, however, keeps the clichés from bumping into each other too often. The story moves briskly along. But it's Mitchum and Ryan who make the movie worth watching. They're the unexpected pumpkin in the stale fig newton. Mitchum had finished his debt to society after his marijuana bust. Studio owner Howard Hughes wanted Mitchum in a role that would be on the side of the angels, with no fooling around on the other side. So Mitchum is a relentless good guy. He has no romantic interest except, seen one or twice, a good-looking, brave, supportive wife who Mitchum honors and loves. Mitchum's McQuigg plays by the book and even gives a speech or two condemning corruption. He's smart and clever, but his tricks to capture Scanlon are all aboveboard. Opposing him is Robert Ryan, who winds up playing a crook who is almost a psychopath. Scanlon cares for his younger brother, but slaps the kid around. He takes out inconvenient witnesses. He doesn't mind ordering a cop killed and doesn't mind doing the killing himself if need be. At times, he gets really, really mad.

Mitchum and Ryan were big men. When they face off with others in the room, the others look small. While this movie isn't all that good, both men give solid performances and neither, in my view, is able to outshine or out act the other. Mitchum had plenty of star charisma by the time the movie was made. Ryan has plenty of actor charisma. I wound up watching them both and wondering what either of them would do next.

The Racket is not an especially interesting movie, but Mitchum and Ryan give it what class it has. They played together in Crossfire, a film worth watching, with both men contributing a lot to that good movie. Lizabeth Scott, given little to do as a nightclub singer who turns on Scanlon, makes what she can of a seriously underwritten part.

If you're a Robert Ryan fan, you might be interested in these lesser known films of his: The Woman on the Beach, The Set-Up, On Dangerous Ground, Inferno and The Day of the Outlaw. They're worth tracking down.

Was the above comment useful to you?
Page 1 of 3:[1] [2] [3] [Next]

Add another comment

Related Links

Plot summary Ratings External reviews
Plot keywords Main details Your user comments
Your vote history