This film pleasantly surprised me, since it
isn’t considered of one Humphrey Bogart’s best. I had actually never even heard
of it but was anxious to see some on screen interaction with Lauren Bacall. Major Frank
McCloud an ex-GI is on his way to Key West in the Florida Keys. He takes a little detour
and visits the Father and widow of a good friend who had died in the war. The late George
Temple’s father James (Lionel Barrymore) and his widow Nora (Lauren Bacall) are
pleased that major McCloud has come to visit.
However there are problems ensuing at the Largo hotel which is owned by James Temple
and run with the help of his daughter in law.
Mobster Johnny Rocco and his associates have booked out the entire hotel and are
illegally visiting the U.S. to dispose of some counterfeit money. Along with this comes
the onslaught of a hurricane on the island, which is holding Johnny Rocco back from his
activity.
Major McCloud steps in to keep everyone in line and keep them from the callousness of
Johnny Rocco and his gang.
So How Does This Transfer Hold Up?
VIDEO
The Black and White full frame transfer is an average quality. Most
faults though could be attributed to source material rather than the digital transfer.
I found the grey scale to be a little dull throughout and lacking some definite
contrast at times. Although the greys were not generally murky they did need some more
definition.
There were no great problems with MPEG artefacts or grain. Shadow detail is also quite
good, but was not strained with the limited screen settings.
There are some minor cases of aliasing but not so much that it is distracting at all.
There are some inconsistencies in sharpness and clarity with the images especially with
some obviously soft focus scenes of Lauren Bacall. Most of the rest of the film was
consistent though.
There are a plethora of film artefacts but this is to be expected considering the age
of the source material.
AUDIO
The Dolby Digital mono soundtrack wasn’t too bad. Dialogue was clear
and easy to understand through out and there didn’t seem to be any sync problems.
As a mono transfer I do tend to find it a little flat and lifeless but I guess I
can’t expect too much.
The score from Max Steiner is surprising given the age of the film and brings out drama
and emotion to a good level without being too cliché’ish.
EXTRAS
Theatrical Trailer
OVERALL
Not a bad little Sunday matinee flick. Humphrey Bogart takes on a little different
character trait to usual and plays it very well. Enjoy some reminiscing.
