Body and Soul

In many ways, 'Body and Soul' is a very typical Hollywood story. It has the 'local boy makes it big', the 'vamp and the virgin', the 'corrupt businessmen' and of course the final moral fight. However, James Wong Howe's brilliant cinematography and John Garfield's solid acting lift this movie above the norm. Every emotion is heart-felt, and the tension at the end is perfectly presented. One of the best boxing movies.

I always thought that John Garfield was one of the most under-rated of actors; he made some great films - and this is one of them. He is the down at heel, amateur boxer "Charley" who lives with his decent and upstanding mother "Anna" (Anne Revere) pretty much hand to mouth. When he wins an amateur bout, promoter "Quinn" (William Conrad) picks him up and starts him earning a little from his fights. Accompanied by his friend "Shorty" (Joseph Pevney) and his gal "Peg" (Lilli Palmer) he starts to attract attention, and when the big time looms he agrees a deal with "Roberts" (Lloyd Goff) and suddenly finds that his standards of morality and decency start to become compromised. His new found mentor is ruthless and his friends are gradually marginalised or ignored. Can a tragedy very close those to home open his eyes? This is a great story of grit and determination, of love, loyalty and manipulation and Robert Rossen keeps the pace moving really well. The cast is small, and the story tightly woven around some strong characters and a moral many can easily understand - money being the root of all evil, however well intentioned the earning of it. It's well scored and the production is photographed cleverly, at times intimately, making for a superior tale well worth watching.

John Garfield is a fighter taken over "Body and Soul" in this 1947 Faustian drama about a man who becomes too heady with success and too greedy, eventually signing on with a crooked fight promoter. Garfield is supported here by Lilli Palmer, Anne Revere, Hazel Brooks, William Conrad, Canada Lee, and Lloyd Gough.

American filmmakers love boxing movies, and why not? It's a one on one brutal action sport that has inherent in it good drama because of what is at stake for people who most likely came from nothing and used their fists on the street. "Body and Soul" is no different in this regard, but it's one of the best of its kind. It also boasts an unusual and exceptionally talented cast.

The film is loaded with conflict for Charlie Davis (Garfield) - his mother (Revere) doesn't want him to fight; he's in love with Peg (Palmer) and wants to marry her but is talked into delaying it when he signs on with a new and corrupt promoter, Roberts (Gough).

This will be the first of Charlie's concessions and unfortunately not the last. He fights Ben (Lee), but isn't told that the man has a blood clot and he needs to coast through only a few rounds. Instead, he pulverizes Ben, causing further brain damage, and takes him on as a trainer out of guilt.

Then he's seduced by a money-hungry babe named Alice (Brooks). And on and on, until Roberts bets against him and orders him to take a dive in the championship fight he's been waiting for. (With all the films done about taking dives, anyone who bets on a fight is nuts.)

Something about this movie - maybe it's the theme song, which is one of my favorites - swept me away. It's one of Garfield' most colorful performances, and the beautiful, classy Palmer is a perfect juxtaposition not only to the streetwise Charlie but the trashy Alice.

The truly transcendent role and performance is essayed by Canada Lee, a wonderful actor who died too young and had too few opportunities in film. His performance as the volatile, ill Ben was Oscar-worthy. Like Ben Carter in "Crash Dive," the fact that Lee is black does not enter into the script at all, and he is treated as an equal.

For all the rotten stereotyping done in films at that time, there were a few scripts that defied it. Lee was blacklisted and died in 1952 (the same year that John Garfield died), at 45, almost literally of a broken heart. He left a legacy of five films and some wonderful stage work, including Orson Welles' all-black Macbeth.

Cast members Garfield, Lee, Anne Revere, Lloyd Gough, Art Smith, Shimen Ruskin, scriptwriter Abraham Polonsky and producer Bob Roberts would all find themselves blacklisted, and director Rossen would be threatened but admit to being a Communist and name names.

Magnificently photographed in black and white by James Wong Howe and with top direction, "Body and Soul" is an example of how wonderful film can be.

This boxing picture deals with the seedier side of the business; (is there any other?). It helps that it was written by Abraham Polonsky whose script is suitably cynical and hard-boiled. John Garfield is the pugnacious fighter easily swayed by the prospects of easy money and not adverse to taking a dive. It's a fine, hard-nosed performance. Garfield was always at his best in roles that required him to battle with his conscience.

The whole movie is well cast. The under-rated Lilli Palmer is fine as the 'nice' girl who loves him as is Hazel Brooks as the 'bad' girl who seduces him while the villains are ably taken care of by Lloyd Gough and William Conrad. Best of all there is Anne Revere as Garfield's mother. (Did Revere play everybody's mother movies?). It's another of her no-nonsense roles. Revere was one tough cookie who kept her heart of gold well-hidden. The climatic fight scene is very well staged and Robert Parrish and Frances Lyon's editing won the Oscar while James Wong Howe's cinematography adds considerably to the realism.

A vintage tale of corruption in boxing world with a fine message and nice production design. A kind young boxer called Charlie Davis (John Garfield) living in poor conditions attempts to carry out a boxing career . As Garfield is a Jewish boxer whose mother (Anne Revere) wants him to quit the ring and get an education. Instead, he rises quickly to the world championship , thanks in part to a mobster protector . Along the way , he becomes involved with an unethical gangster promoter (Lloyd Gough) and falls in love for a good girl (Lilli Palmer) and a bad girl (Hazel Brooks) . Depicting the triumphs and misfortunes in the seedy world of the professional boxing . It details the story of a fighter who'll do anything to get to the top and does , with tragic results . As the good boxer with a certain ambition has to fight against nasty people , cheats and corruption in politics .

One of the best boxing movies ever , and almost impressionistic in its development , as it contains a thoughtful and thought-provoking approach . A classic Forties' boxing film that defines deeply the genre . Resulting in a well made , grim and stunning drama , adequately photographed by James Wong Howe , evocative musical score by Hugo Friedhofer , magnetically interpreted and dynamically directed . This is an allegorical work that covers everything from the importance of honor personal to fight for life . It displays stark realism with appropriate boxing combats and intense drama including top-notch performance. John Garfield gives his best acting , he has a perfect character as the pugilist starring who becomes involved with crime and corruption in his quest to box his way out his ghetto environment . Being accompanied by a very fine cast , such as : Lilli Palmer , Hazel Brooks , Anne Revere , William Conrad , Joseph Pevney , Lloyd Gough and special mention mention for Canada Lee as an injured boxer with cerebral damage. Although many of whose participants were to fall foul of the House UnAmerican Activities Committee within the ensuing few years . The picture had many imitators but few peers . Remade in 1981 by George Bowers with Leon Isaac Kennedy , Peter Lawford, Muhammad Ali , Perry Lang .

This 1947 gem was competently directed by Robert Rossen and attractive script by the black-listed Abraham Polonsky . This is a great film by a stunning filmmaker , Robert Rossen , who delivers an exciting rematch that artfully milks it for all it's worth. Rossen was a pretty good film writer by writing a lot of interesting and notorious storylines for prestigious directors and he also made a few important pictures , such as : ¨Lilith¨, ¨They came to Cordura¨, ¨Island in the sun¨, ¨Alexander Magno¨ , ¨Mambo¨, ¨The Brave Bulls¨ , ¨All the King's Men¨, ¨Johnny O'Clock¨. Rating : 7.5/10. Better than average . Worthwhile watching .