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Year: 1947 Studio: RKO Director: Jacques Tourneur Cast: Robert Mitchum ... Jeff Bailey/Jeff Markham Jane Greer ... Kathie Moffett Kirk Douglas ... Whit Sterling Rhonda Fleming ... Meta Carson Virginia Huston ... Ann Paul Valentine ... Joe Dickie Moore ... The Kid Steve Brodie ... Fisher Ken Niles ... Leonard Eels |  |
| Virginia Huston and Mitchum in the film's idyllic beginning |
Plot Synopsis: Jeff Bailey has a nice quiet life with his girl Ann in a small town in California, until a man from his past rolls into town and recognizes him as Jeff Markham, a former private investigator. Seems Jeff messed up an assignment for gangster Whit Sterling to find his girl, Kathie Moffett, who made off with $40,000 of Sterling's money. Jeff trailed Kathie to Mexico, where they began an ill-advised romance. They hid out in San Francisco, but Jeff's old partner spotted them and threatened to tell Sterling. Exit Fisher .. and the criss-crosses just keep coming from there.
Verdict: One of the best-written and sexiest film noirs of all time, and featuring Jane Greer as one of filmdom's most fatale femmes. An absolute must-see. The chemistry between Greer and Mitchum is palpable, especially in the scene on a Mexican beach where she tries to tell him she didn't steal Whit's money and he grabs her and says, "Baby, I don't care," and plants a sizzling kiss on her.
Behind the Scenes: Mitchum claimed that the confusing plot was because "two or three pages were lost in the mimeo department." Greer was impressed with Mitchum's ability to breeze through each scene without apparently studying the script and tried to follow his no-effort approach. "He was letter-perfect while I blew take after take," she confessed, before realizing that Mitchum did indeed know "the lyrics," as he referred to his lines. You may remember young Dickie Moore from earlier films like Blonde Venus.
| Remake: The 1984 remake, Against All Odds, starred Jeff Bridges, Rachel Ward and James Woods in the roles originated by Mitchum, Greer, and Douglas, respectively. The plot wasn't exactly the same, with Bridges playing a football player instead of detective, and traces of Chinatown's real-estate issues thrown in for good measure. Fans of the original should note that Jane Greer plays the mother of Rachel Ward and that Paul Valentine (Whit Sterling henchman Joe) has a cameo at the very end of the film.
Jane Greer and Paul Valentine (second from right) in Against All Odds |
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