While George Raft was turning down stuff like High Sierra, he made this movie on loan-out to Walter Wanger, spending most of his time on Alcatraz for not being smart enough to be Bogart. Consigliere Lloyd Nolan pitches woo to Joan Bennett, Raft's girlfriend, who responds by running away to become a singer in a bar -- probably pronounced "chan-tooz-ee". Meanwhile, law enforcement, Walter Pidgeon, and drunks from Fresno take an interest in her.
The movie concerns Miss Bennett's desire to remain true to her boy in uniform, even if it's a prison uniform, and while her casting may not have been on sheer acting ability -- she was married to Wanger at the time -- there's no disputing she's beautiful and handles the role very well.
Archie Mayo handles the megaphone very well, with some uncredited fill-in directing from Hitchcock. Merritt B. Gerstad handles fog and shadows to make this tale of an unwilling femme fatale far more film noir that poetic realism. Gladys George adds her talents as a faded rose to the ensemble.
The movie concerns Miss Bennett's desire to remain true to her boy in uniform, even if it's a prison uniform, and while her casting may not have been on sheer acting ability -- she was married to Wanger at the time -- there's no disputing she's beautiful and handles the role very well.
Archie Mayo handles the megaphone very well, with some uncredited fill-in directing from Hitchcock. Merritt B. Gerstad handles fog and shadows to make this tale of an unwilling femme fatale far more film noir that poetic realism. Gladys George adds her talents as a faded rose to the ensemble.