Gangsterfalle

Paramount had enough confidence in ALAN LADD (after THIS GUN FOR HIRE and THE GLASS KEY) to give him solo star billing above the title for LUCKY JORDAN. He fits the role of the cynical, wise-cracking Jordan, every inch the cocky wise guy who keeps getting into one scrape after another until the fadeout.

Instead of Veronica Lake, we have HELEN WALKER as the WAC he's forced to kidnap when she threatens to report him to the authorities for minor infractions. It's Walker's first film and she handles her chores with great assurance.

But the scene-stealer is MABEL PAIGE as an old wino who is chosen to act as Ladd's mother, so he can call her a dependent and avoid the military draft. Trouble brews when Ladd's own henchman (SHELDON LEONARD) is part of a scheme to turn over military plans to the enemy during World War II. Ladd gets back at Leonard on a few occasions but really throws the book at the mob when they beat up "his old lady."

All of it is directed at a fast pace by Walter Tuttle. The script is full of one-liners that draw a laugh, most of them delivered in crisp style by Ladd himself. It's easy to see why his popularity as the hottest male star at Paramount was cemented with this film. He's very believable as the cynic with a heart of gold. It's an energetic performance that made the studio realize they had a good prospect for stardom on their hands.

Only quibble: The print shown on TCM was a poor one needing restoration.

I never really rated Alan Ladd but he's quite decent in this wartime thriller. He's the gangster "Lucky" who finds himself drafted! Despite the best efforts of his lawyer "Higgins" (Lloyd Corrigan) to get him off, he is duly posted - and promptly absconds. Not before, though, he encounters "Jill" (Helen Walker) who disapproves heartily of his unpatriotic attitude. She ends up his hostage and the briefcase she was carrying becomes the hottest property in town. We discover it contains some top secret army designs and that there's a group of Nazi fifth columnist's out to retrieve it. Now "Lucky" has to make some tough choices (and a fairly impassioned speech at the end) before their secrets fall into enemy hands. The drama itself is quite well put together and decently paced. There's a solid, if unremarkable, effort from Walker and a few scene stealing quips from Mabel Paige's rather astute "Annie" - the sharpest, shrewdest and wittiest of the bunch. It's all fairly standard fayre, but is an easy watch as it sows the seeds for US involvement in WWII.

This is an early starring vehicle for Alan Ladd and like most of his early starring roles, he plays a bad guy. Lucky Jordan is a gangster who has been drafted. However, he has no allegiance to anyone but himself, so when the opportunity arises, he goes AWOL. In the process, he stumbles upon some military secrets and plans on selling them to the highest bidder. He also ends up kidnapping a spunky WAC. Now, with mobsters and Nazis in pursuit, is there any way Jordan can avoid getting killed?

One thing I noticed is that Ladd's delivery is different than in later films—a bit higher-pitched and a bit faster. It's obvious that he must have had some voice lessons after this film as it just didn't sound like him. As for the dialog, it was classic gangster lingo—the sort of stuff I love as well as other lovers of film noir. As a result, it was quite enjoyable. However, as it was planned first and foremost as a wartime propaganda film, the gangster aspect always took a back seat to patriotism. As a result, while the film was very effective in bolstering commitment to the war effort, the film itself was a tad of a letdown—especially since the viewer knew all along that by the end of the film Ladd would prove to be 100% American! Still, an enjoyable if slight and predictable gangster flick.

The 19 year old Dorothy Dandridge got the opportunity to act alongside of Alan Ladd in this rather dull film, 'Lucky Jordan'. It sums up how lucky she was during her teens to act alongside Alan Ladd, John Wayne, The Little Rascals, Abbott and Costello and The Marx Brothers.

This is one of my favorite wartime crime/espionage/comedies. It's played mostly straight, but a few of the comedy sequences are priceless. Ladd plays Lucky Jordan, a man who makes his living in the rackets. He is a bookie and also makes money in slot machines. Basically letting the saps gamble away their dough. Business is good, but there is a problem. Jordan has been drafted into the army. You know the film isn't taking itself totally serious when Lloyd Corrigan plays Lucky's lawyer.

Jordan looks out for number one and thinks the government should look after itself. He finds nothing but trouble in the army and decides to skip and hide out until the war blows over. He gets away but inadvertently comes into the possession of some blueprints of a new tank design. Spies are after the documents and so is Slip (Sheldon Leonard), his old partner. His main nemesis however, is a spunky idealist (Helen Walker), who wants to see Lucky suffer for his unpatriotic attitude.

Also in the cast is Mabel Paige, who is hired to play Lucky's long lost mother. This is where most of the best laughs are found. But also it becomes quite touching, when the two loners find they have someone they can trust. The spies end up with the blueprints, but they have to beat up Paige to get it. This makes Lucky decide to join the fight. As Lucky says in the film, "I don't want to see my country run by a bunch of guys who beat up old ladies."

Jordan gets a tip that Slip has a connection to Kilpatrick Gardens, a high end garden nursery. This is where the final fireworks will start as we learn that Kilpatrick's is a front for the spies. It's all breezy and filled with snappy patter. The two leads, Walker and Ladd, are beautiful and work well off each other. Ladd's role is very physical here and he's up to meet the challenge. He was a star athlete in high school and you can see it here.