The Gambler and the Lady

After being unable to find the last couple films covered by the "House of Hammer" podcast, Youtube finally came up trumps again with this 1952 crime thriller "The Gambler and the Lady". Whilst I ultimately found this one to be a bit inconsequential, I can't say I didn't enjoy the ride whilst we were on it.

An American gangster, Jim Forster (Dane Clark) has set up a small gambling establishment in London. He looks to leave the violence of his past behind and harbours dreams of interacting with the higher echelons of English society. His entry point to this is Lord Peter Willens (Anthony Forwood) - who introduced Forster to his friends and his sister Susan (Naomi Chance), whom quickly becomes his friend. Forster's problems begin though when an Italian mob, who have no qualms about using violence, approach to buy him out.

So, whilst the film was panning out, I quite enjoyed it. I thought Dane Clark was an engaging lead, and another in a long line of American guest starring in these pictures as Hammer made their ties with American studios, this time with Robert Lippert's studio. It's almost a comedy of manners in the early part, as the American employs an elderly woman to teach him dinner etiquette, whist his long-term friends look on bemused. Indeed, the scene when Forster is openly mocked by The Willens friends is straight out of any "fish out of water" comedy you may care to see.

It changes when the Italians arrived and becomes more much of a Gangster thriller before the settling of a couple of old grudges brings us to the conclusion. I have to admit, I was a bit underwhelmed by that conclusion. I felt it could have gone for a touch more tragic, or much happier and been OK, but it almost downplays its own ending.

So a good central performance and a decent film, up until that slightly soft ending.

There were lots of movies like "The Gambler and the Lady" back in the '50s: low-budget British noir-like films, sometimes detective stories, starring an American second or third-stringer, with the rest of the cast British. Often they're quite entertaining.

"The Gambler and the Lady" is one such film from 1952, produced by Hammer Film, and stars Dane Clark, Kathleen Byron, Naomi Chance, and Anthony Forwood. Forwood, by the way, was a very handsome man who was married to Glynis Johns and then became Dirk Bogarde's partner and manager for 30-plus years.

Clark plays Jim Forster, an American running an illegal gambling houses in England. The story is told in flashback - when the film begins, we see Forster being hit by a car.

Forster, a little rough around the edges, is a social climber, and in fact is taking lessons in social niceties so he can rub elbows with the mucky-mucks. He is dating a dancer at his club, Pat (Byron), who seems to want to get more serious than Forster. One night, she loses her temper at him and he walks out and won't have anything to do with her again.

At his club, he meets Lady Willens (Chance), and though her brother (Forwood) who bounced a check at Forster's club is against him, she starts to see him. Pat becomes jealous and attempts to warn her off.

That's on the personal end. On the professional end, some thug-types want to take over his clubs. When Lady Willens' father talks about a mining deal that promises to be lucrative, Forster thinks he's found a way into the social strata and out of illegal gambling.

Dane Clark had a very prolific 45-year career which, once the '50s hit, was mostly in television. He started out in films as an ersatz John Garfield but never hit those heights. He is well cast in this. Naomi Chance was effective and beautiful as the society woman; she did a lot of this type of movie during her career. The patrician-looking Kathleen Byron (who appeared in "Saving Private Ryan") made a good shrew. Interestingly, all of the lead actors had long, very active careers.

Hammer Films are low budget, yes, but they usually are atmospheric, as this one was, and entertaining. They attempted to copy the American films done by, say, RKO in the '40s, and while not entirely successful, you may enjoy this one.

In 1950, American producer Robert Lippert formed a business alliance with Hammer studios. Under the agreement, Lippert would provide American acting talent - frequently shop-worn stars or just supporting actors who fancied a profitable trip out of the country - while Hammer would supply the rest of the cast and the production facilities. Together they would split the profits. Famous for his concern with the bottom line, Lippert produced over 140 films between 1946 and 1955, characteristically genre pieces such as I Shot Jesse James or Rocketship XM. For the British deal, most of the films were noir-ish thrillers - and include this title.

Dane Clark, who appeared in several of these productions, plays the doomed gambler in question: a self made man, running a profitable London set up into which rudely intrudes his aspirational love life and the aggressive ambitions of some Italian gangster interlopers. His social climbing ultimately proves the straw that breaks the camel's back. Many of the British noirs interestingly import class considerations into the dramatic mix, concerns that are usually absent in the American model, and they are seen most strongly in this title. The gambler's end is ultimately determined by the suckering in of social mobility as much as the machinations of fate - but not before there is some effective sniping at the rudeness and untrustworthiness of the British ruling classes. Clark cuts a suitably doomed and somewhat pathetic figure as he struggle to gain acceptance.

THE GAMBLER AND THE LADY (1952) is one of Hammer's earlier noirs, so heavily based on Hollywood films from the 1940s that it feels more American than British. Short-but-powerful Brooklyn native Dane Clark plays a guy running a gambling syndicate who gets involved with a beautiful aristocrat while at the same time tackling some thugs muscling in on his territory. Familiar stuff for sure, but this is quite a crisp and well-paced thriller, with some decent menace, solid character work, and a wraparound structure that reminded me of CARLITO'S WAY. Kathleen Byron and Eric Pohlmann are among the supporting players.

Like many European films of the 1950s and 60s, the folks who made "The Gambler and the Lady" imported an American star to give the film more box office power. While Dane Clark was not a huge name in Hollywood, he was very recognizable back in 1952 and already had a reputation as an excellent tough-guy in films.

The film begins with Clark owning a successful gambling house in England. You soon learn that he's trying hard to fit in with society but this is difficult, at times, for him since he is, down deep, a tough palooka. Time and again, he needs to fight the impulse to slug people as it will undo all the culture and refinement he's been adopting since relocating to this country. Now, after meeting a woman of high breeding, he has dreams of selling out and becoming respectable. This need is so strong that for once in his life, he makes himself very vulnerable. What happens next? See this nifty little film for yourself.

So why did I describe this film as being 'noir-ish'? Well, it has many of the qualities you find in an example of film noir--such as the dame, great tough-guy dialog, a downbeat ending and a hero who has a shady past. But, it also lacks the great lighting and camera-work you'd expect to see in American or French noir--making it, perhaps, noir-lite! This is not a complaint--just an observation about the film's style. But, it IS very good for a low-budget B movie--short, well-paced and full of nice acting. Well worth seeing.