The first 30 minutes are terrific. Three navy buddies are returning from combat in the Pacific. The trouble is that Buzz (Bendix) now has a plate in his head and doesn't think too well, while Johnny (Ladd) has a faithless wife (Dowling) who welcomes him home with a party for her boyfriend (de Silva). The party scene is especially well done with the girls looking like they've emptied Paramount's best wardrobe racks. Now Johnny's angry and footloose, while poor Buzz keeps hearing "monkey music" in his plated head. So when the faithless wife unsurprisingly turns up dead, the cops are looking for Johnny and we're wondering who really did it.
The trouble is the story meanders after this promising start, while Ladd fades somewhat into the background, and Chandler's screenplay seems unsure what to do with Veronica Lake. After all, what's the point of the lengthy diversion with the two "heist" guys and the fleabag hotel, or Dad's blackmailing of Harwood, both of which detract from the central plot of who killed Helen. Marshall's direction doesn't help either. Note the deliberate pauses in too many of the dialogue exchanges that slows down the action when what's needed is more snap to match Chandler's often clever lines. Then too, for what seems like noir material, there's not much matching atmosphere. Ultimately, the movie's really more of a meandering thriller than a compelling noir.
There are compensations, however. Bendix really delivers as the brain-damaged ex-sailor. His scenes are the movie's real core and have lost none of their original force as he struggles painfully to fight through the mental fog that the war has cost him. This may be the only post-war film to portray the ravages of his type of injury, albeit in a non-rehabilitative context. We wonder what will become of him. I gather the screenplay originally set him up as the culprit, but navy authorities objectedtoo sensitive for returning vets, I would guess. It may also be worth noting that even though Buzz's injury evokes sympathy, he's none too likablesomething of a surprise given Hollywood's tendency to sentimentalize. Nonetheless, he's often belligerent and abusive toward strangers, a boldly realistic move on both Chandler's and Bendix's parts.
I guess no commentary would be complete without remarking on the Ladd-Lake pairing, perhaps the most perfect visual match-up from Hollywood's so-called golden era. They're like two exquisite blond dolls with wryly brittle personas to match. I'm just sorry the script got sidetracked into not giving their pairing the amount of screen time they deserved. And speaking of visual perfection, was there ever a better embodiment of an unfaithful wife than Doris Dowling with her cruel eyes and drop-dead sexy gown. No wonder she cuts through even Buzz's mental fog. With her unusual appearance, it's too bad Dowling left Hollywood at the height of the Mc Carthy investigations. Too bad also that Ladd's career was plagued by his lack of height 5'5''. In fact, like Cagney 5'6", Ladd could project the authority of a much taller man, a real tribute to his abilities. Nonetheless, note how in giving a description of Johnny (Ladd) in the movie, all his physical characteristics are included except his height!a rather glaring omission.
Anyway, the movie remains an interesting period piece, even though it lacks the coherence and snap of a first-rate thriller.
The trouble is the story meanders after this promising start, while Ladd fades somewhat into the background, and Chandler's screenplay seems unsure what to do with Veronica Lake. After all, what's the point of the lengthy diversion with the two "heist" guys and the fleabag hotel, or Dad's blackmailing of Harwood, both of which detract from the central plot of who killed Helen. Marshall's direction doesn't help either. Note the deliberate pauses in too many of the dialogue exchanges that slows down the action when what's needed is more snap to match Chandler's often clever lines. Then too, for what seems like noir material, there's not much matching atmosphere. Ultimately, the movie's really more of a meandering thriller than a compelling noir.
There are compensations, however. Bendix really delivers as the brain-damaged ex-sailor. His scenes are the movie's real core and have lost none of their original force as he struggles painfully to fight through the mental fog that the war has cost him. This may be the only post-war film to portray the ravages of his type of injury, albeit in a non-rehabilitative context. We wonder what will become of him. I gather the screenplay originally set him up as the culprit, but navy authorities objectedtoo sensitive for returning vets, I would guess. It may also be worth noting that even though Buzz's injury evokes sympathy, he's none too likablesomething of a surprise given Hollywood's tendency to sentimentalize. Nonetheless, he's often belligerent and abusive toward strangers, a boldly realistic move on both Chandler's and Bendix's parts.
I guess no commentary would be complete without remarking on the Ladd-Lake pairing, perhaps the most perfect visual match-up from Hollywood's so-called golden era. They're like two exquisite blond dolls with wryly brittle personas to match. I'm just sorry the script got sidetracked into not giving their pairing the amount of screen time they deserved. And speaking of visual perfection, was there ever a better embodiment of an unfaithful wife than Doris Dowling with her cruel eyes and drop-dead sexy gown. No wonder she cuts through even Buzz's mental fog. With her unusual appearance, it's too bad Dowling left Hollywood at the height of the Mc Carthy investigations. Too bad also that Ladd's career was plagued by his lack of height 5'5''. In fact, like Cagney 5'6", Ladd could project the authority of a much taller man, a real tribute to his abilities. Nonetheless, note how in giving a description of Johnny (Ladd) in the movie, all his physical characteristics are included except his height!a rather glaring omission.
Anyway, the movie remains an interesting period piece, even though it lacks the coherence and snap of a first-rate thriller.