La sirène des bas-Fonds

If you can get past the overly contrived plot, this is an enjoyable minor Film Noir. While it's far from the best example of Noir, FLAXY MARTIN can boast one of the most evil femme fatales you'll ever find. In the title role, Virginia Mayo digs her teeth into a selfish, scheming, two-timing dame that rivals just about any of the better-known ones. Flaxy is a nightclub singer (we never see her perform, not even dubbed) kept by syndicate boss Hap Richie (Douglas Kennedy). Unknown to Hap, she's also keeping company with syndicate lawyer Walt Colby (Zachary Scott) who is unaware of her liaison with Hap. Things get interesting when Hap forces Walt to get one of his thugs, Cesar, out of jail after a killing he's committed. He complies, but Walt is tired of his criminal associations and wants to settle down with Flaxy, who pretends to go along with him for a while. Then a paid 'witness" Peggy Farrar (Helen Westcott) is found murdered and it looks like Flaxy is the guilty party. Strongly smitten Walt offers to plead guilty in place of Flaxy, certain he can be acquitted, but Flaxy and Hap take advantage and Walt is on his way to prison. He manages to escape (in a wild sequence) and ends up meeting Nora Carson (Dorothy Malone) a trusting soul who's immediately taken with him. Though he gives her a rough time from the start, Nora helps Walt evade police and relentless pursuit of Roper (Elisha Cook, Jr.) . More help comes from Sam Malko (Tom D'Andrea) an old associate who owes Walt a favor. The plot is full of coincidence and easy solutions, but there is plenty of action, not least of which is a night-time chase that ends with Walt and Roper battling on a rooftop. Everyone in the cast is good, with Mayo, Scott, Westcott (excellent in her brief role) standing out. The ever-dependable Cook is really terrific as small-time hood treated like an idiot by both Hap and Walt ("Go back to sixth grade!") and who wants his revenge. See it for the cast and the crazy plot.

This film starts with overconfident Scott foolishly taking the fall for Virginia Mayo. He ends up in prison and subsequently escapes. He ends up on the run and virtual stranger Dorothy Malone decides to upend her life and follow him.

Strange plot, strange character motivations make this unbelievable, yet it is still entertaining as a B noir.

Zachary Scott isn't a name on the tips of too many tongues these days, but in the late ‘40s he was a very busy boy. However, in his best remembered movies, like Mildred Pierce and Flamingo Road, he had the misfortune to play second fiddle to the domineering Joan Crawford; many of his roles, too, were as weaklings, leaving the false impression that he was a weak actor (his visage – deeply waved hair, a Tomas E. Dewey mustache – was considered quite dashing in the post-war years but now looks seriously passé, which doesn't help his legacy either).

Flaxy Martin preserves one of his stronger starring performances, as a mob mouthpiece who finds himself in over his head. He's been balking at his shady job as a syndicate lawyer for a long time, but his girl (Virginia Mayo, who takes the title role) keeps urging him to stick with it until he assembles a nice nest egg. Unfortunately, she's really the moll of syndicate kingpin Douglas Kennedy, stringing Scott along to keep him quiescent. When a murder by one of Kennedy's goons threatens to implicate Mayo, Scott takes the rap, confident that he'll get himself off. He didn't count on being double-crossed. The plot traces his rude awakening and plans for payback.

The movie mixes a lot of tight, hard scenes with some soft and sappy ones; the redemptive sub-plot with, as Scott's new love interest, Dorothy Malone (wasted yet again as a good girl) proves flat and superfluous. Mayo, along with Scott, has one of her better parts; she might have been one of the noir cycle's more memorable femme fatales had her acting skills been on a par with her pouty blonde looks. And Elisha Cook, Jr. contributes another turn as a bantam rooster barely bigger than his gun.

Flaxy Martin, along the the previous year's Smart Girls Don't Talk (also starring Mayo), marks a rare break for director Richard Bare, who from the early ‘40s until the late ‘50s and his passage into series television directed little but dozens upon dozens of `humorous' shorts with titles beginning `So you think you're...' and `So you want to be...'. They're a part of Hollywood better left undisturbed. The overlooked Flaxy Martin, on the other hand, ought to be a bit better known

... as almost everybody in this noir makes terrible choices that make no sense. It seems to be the grand champion of bad decisions in noir, just like The Big Sleep is the undisputed champion of indecipherable plots.

The plot is involved but inane but I'll try to explain. Lawyer Walter Colby (Zachary Scott) represents mobster Hap Richie (Douglas Kennedy) and is in love with the titular Flaxy Martin (Virginia Mayo). But Flaxy is just using Colby so she can get information for Hap. Flaxy's only true love will always be money. Colby gets tired of the illegal dealings of Hap - just what was he expecting? - and tells Hap he is quitting AND going to the police about some perjury that ocurred.. Bad decision number one. The mob doesn't like people who quit or inform. When Flaxy is implicated in a murder -because she was involved AND allowed herself to be seen - she goes to Colby. Colby foolishly decides to confess to the killing himself but claim it was self defense. The mob can't believe the beauty of its situation and pays off another witness to say he saw Colby kill the girl and that it was not self defense.

On the way to prison, Colby knocks the cop accompanying him unconscious and hopes he actually has the key to the handcuffs on him - he does - and then escapes. A mousy woman sees Colby unconscious on the side of the road (Dorothy Malone as Nora Carlson) and, knowing he is an escaped prisoner convicted of murder, just thinks he has such a darned honest face that she takes him home and shields him anyways. Can you count all of the bad decisions here? From that point I'd say watch and find out if you want to know how it ends. But just let me say that the ending depends on being able to lock somebody INSIDE of their own apartment from the outside. I can't believe that the fire marshal would be OK with this.

I don't know why this film was named after character Flaxy Martin since she actually is not on the screen that much of the time. It's rather ironic that it is Dorothy Malone who is the real lead actress, still with her brown hair and playing the nice girl. Because Malone will later transition to blonde and play the kind of characters in the 50s that Mayo played in the 40s. Actually, Elisha Cook Jr. Is probably on camera just as much if not more than Mayo, and that is fine because he is a joy to watch, playing a very determined homicidal maniac who seems to love his work.

In spite of the goofy plot, this really is fun to watch with lots of good noir atmosphere, themes, and action.

Odd little noir film with Virginia Mayo as the title character, a total conniving bitch! This must surely be Mayo's most unsympathetic character and shows that she was a better actress than we remember. She played so many "glamour" parts that we forget she could act.

Here she plays a moll working both sides of the fence. She's with a local racketeer (Douglas Kennedy) but also plays his lawyer (Zachary Scott) for a chump. Lots of murders here and there and plot twists aplenty.

Dorothy Malone plays the nice country girl, Tom D'Andrea is Sam the mechanic, Helen Westcott is the hapless Peggy, Elisha Cook plays the gunsel again, Marjorie Bennett is the nosy neighbor, Douglas Fowley is the detective, and Bill McLean is the hotel desk clerk.

Scott actually gets the most screen time because Mayo disappears while he has his country adventure and meets Malone. But everyone is good and works well together. While Malone is stuck in frilly frocks and aprons, Mayo does the glam bit and looks just great.

Aside from solid work from the trio of stars--Mayo, Scott, and Malone--D'Andrea and Westcott are very very good as well. For those of us who remember D'Andrea as the neighbor on The Life of Riley it's always pleasant to see what a good supporting actor he was. I'm not that familiar with Westcott but she is solid here as Peggy. And I always enjoy seeing Marjorie Bennett!!