All Through the Night

The discovery that your cheesecake vendors gone, leads to a caper that you wouldn't gamble on, in a club someone's rid of, and in error you leave a glove, as five fingers point to what you've stumbled on. With help you make it to an auctioneers, after wandering around a place in rears, but you're captured and you're bound, not long after you are found, then discover there are fascists in the gears. There's some toing and some froing that leads to, a vipers nest of Nazis who review, plans to set off an explosion, causing chaos and commotion, can you stop the saboteurs, what can you do?

An of its time, not particularly funny, propaganda promotion.

Vincent Sherman's "All Through the Night" has a feeling of a B picture, although probably was not intended to be that way. This 1942 Warner Bros. film is much more enjoyable than we suspected, because even though the film was supposed to tackle a serious problem, it has a lot of fun moments that make the film much lighter in tone than perhaps the film makers intended.

At the center of the story we find 'Gloves' Donahue, a small time gangster and his crew. They are a fun group that are drawn into an international spy story right in their own backyard. Ma Donahue comes to ask her son's assistance in trying to solve the murder of her baker neighbor, and the fun and games begin in full force.

There are a lot of good moments in the film, but it is dominated by Humphrey Bogart who runs away with the picture. His crew is also a great asset to the film, Frank McHugh, a fantastic actor, no matter in what picture is excellent, as well as William Demarest, one of the best character actors in the movies of that era. A much slender Jackie Gleason puts in an appearance as Starchy, a member of Donahue's team.

The heavies are amazing. Conrad Veidt is wonderful as the Nazi spy trying to blow up a ship in New York's harbor. Mr. Veidt was such an elegant figure in everything he did. Judith Anderson is seen as the mysterious assistant to Mr. Veidt's character. Ms. Anderson had a way about her that she dominates the scenes in which she appears. Peter Lorre does a lot with his small piano player, Pepi.

The film never ceases to entertain. Thanks to Mr. Humphrey and the wonderful cast assembled for the movie, it will not disappoint anyone with an open eye for a lighter take on a serious matter.

A very funny war era movie. Bogart had played a gangster in comedies (Brother Orchid with Edward J. Robinson), but played it straight as a tough guy. This movie highlighted Bogart's great comedic timing which was also evident in harder edged movies from the same period: The Big Sleep, Casablanca, and the Maltese Falcon. All Through the Night makes a fun companion piece to these movies and like the others, has a great supporting cast.

Not the typical Bogie film, but still with the typical Bogie... cracking wise and being a tough guy that is slower to catch on that usual. This is more of a romp with plenty of fun thrown in, almost akin to a Bob Hope style Ghost Busters or even a Bowery Boys serial. William Demarest plays a good supporting role for those of us that only remember him from "My Three Sons" replacement to Bill Frawley.

If you are a fan of the 30's and 40's style vernacular, you will enjoy this film more than most from the period as the lingo is fast and furious and many terms familiar with some new ones in there as well. Light humor, CORNY... but get a bucket of corn of your own to fight back with... and hiss the villain... Gee, I wonder if Bogie will come through in the end and get the pretty girl?!!?

A search for the murderer of their friendly neighborhood German baker and a nightclub bouncer leads New York City "sports promoter" (read: bookie) Gloves Donahue (Humphrey Bogart in one of his most entertaining roles) and his sidekicks Sunshine (William Demarest) and Barney (Frank McHugh, or as we affectionately call him, "Annabelle's Husband," in honor of the film's running gag about his character's newlywed status) to a nest of Fifth Columnists with sabotage on their minds, right in the middle of Manhattan! The high concept of this fast, funny, suspenseful Warners adventure is basically "Damon Runyon Meets The Nazis." I especially got a kick out of the breezy, sometimes punny dialogue (like "We'll get them by the seat of their Panzers" and "Hey, there's more here than meets the FBI!") and its delightful euphemisms for Bogie's line of work, such as "man about town and well-known figure in the sporting world." (My late dad was a bookie, so I should know! ;-) Bogart, Demarest, McHugh, and charming leading lady Kaaren Verne are joined by smooth villains Conrad Veidt, Peter Lorre, and Judith Anderson, and on the good guys' team, Jane Darwell (as Bogie's mom!), Edward Brophy, Barton MacLane, and even a young Phil Silvers and Jackie (C.) Gleason! Alas, Pearl Harbor was still too fresh in 1942 audiences' minds for them to appreciate a quasi-realistic World War 2 spy thriller with broadly humorous overtones. Luckily, ALL THROUGH THE NIGHT is available on home video and Turner Classic Movies so you modern movie lovers can enjoy this entertaining genre blend!