VALUTAZIONE IMDb
5,9/10
436
LA TUA VALUTAZIONE
Aggiungi una trama nella tua linguaAfter WW2, ex-mobster war hero Joe Gray goes straight, to the dismay of his New York mob boss uncle who's afraid that his nephew will testify against his outfit before a Grand Jury.After WW2, ex-mobster war hero Joe Gray goes straight, to the dismay of his New York mob boss uncle who's afraid that his nephew will testify against his outfit before a Grand Jury.After WW2, ex-mobster war hero Joe Gray goes straight, to the dismay of his New York mob boss uncle who's afraid that his nephew will testify against his outfit before a Grand Jury.
Phillip Pine
- Louis Barretti
- (as Philip Pine)
Recensioni in evidenza
Joe Gray, a former gangster who became a hero in World War Two, leads a respectable life until he is called to testify before a grand jury looking into racketeer activity. Of course his former mob cronies, one of whom is his uncle, do not want him to testify and threaten his family. This would have been a good thriller if it did not have the overlong flashback sequences. The flashback to World War Two is overlong, pointless, and looks cheap. Luther Adler and Brian Donlevy give good performances. Even Forrest Tucker is O.K. But John Russell as Joe Gray is stiff and dull. His performance is an embarrassment.
Hoodlum Empire - 5/10
Senate committee hearings investigating the gambling rackets threaten the reputation of a former gangster gone good. Capitalizing on the Kefauver hearings, this is a pretty dull story with pretty dull characters and a messy, tedious flashback structure. None of the performances light up the screen, even Brian Donlevy and Claire Trevor are rather disappointing. The script is corny and clichéd, the execution of it is uninspired. Nothing about the film is outright horrible, but there's no reason to recommend it.
Hoodlum Empire - 5/10
Senate committee hearings investigating the gambling rackets threaten the reputation of a former gangster gone good. Capitalizing on the Kefauver hearings, this is a pretty dull story with pretty dull characters and a messy, tedious flashback structure. None of the performances light up the screen, even Brian Donlevy and Claire Trevor are rather disappointing. The script is corny and clichéd, the execution of it is uninspired. Nothing about the film is outright horrible, but there's no reason to recommend it.
Hoodlum Empire - 5/10
Loosely based on the Kefauver hearings investigating organized crime, Hoodlum Empire has a good cast that includes Brian Donlevy, Claire Trevor, Forrest Tucker, John Russell, and Luther Adler. Directed by Joseph Kane. Because it was produced by Herbert Yates at Republic, his wife, Vera Hruba Ralston has a role.
The committee, led by Senator Stevens (Donlevy) has served subpoenas on members of an organization run by Nick Mancani (Adler). They cannot at the moment find Mancani to serve him, but they do subpoena Charley Pignatalli (Tucker) and Joe Gray (Russell).
Stephens and Gray have a history as they served together in World War II. At the time, Joe was a racketeer and in love with Connie Williams (Trevor).
However, Joe meets Marte (Ralston) in France and decides to go straight. He breaks up with Connie, who then becomes involved with Nick, though she never stopped loving Joe. Joe promises Mancani he will never expose him or aspects of his business.
Joe and Marte marry and have two children. Joe becomes a legitimate businessman. What he doesn't know is that Mancani has set Joe up, putting his name on several rackets.
Senator Stevens doesn't believe Joe when he claims to have been framed. The Army Chaplin, Father Simon Andrews (Grant Withers) knows the truth and wants it to be told. Meanwhile, the Mancani group is nervous that Joe will tell what he knows.
Fine performances, but there is nothing exceptional about this film. It has way too many flashbacks. For Republic, this is an ambitious production.
Good but not great.
The committee, led by Senator Stevens (Donlevy) has served subpoenas on members of an organization run by Nick Mancani (Adler). They cannot at the moment find Mancani to serve him, but they do subpoena Charley Pignatalli (Tucker) and Joe Gray (Russell).
Stephens and Gray have a history as they served together in World War II. At the time, Joe was a racketeer and in love with Connie Williams (Trevor).
However, Joe meets Marte (Ralston) in France and decides to go straight. He breaks up with Connie, who then becomes involved with Nick, though she never stopped loving Joe. Joe promises Mancani he will never expose him or aspects of his business.
Joe and Marte marry and have two children. Joe becomes a legitimate businessman. What he doesn't know is that Mancani has set Joe up, putting his name on several rackets.
Senator Stevens doesn't believe Joe when he claims to have been framed. The Army Chaplin, Father Simon Andrews (Grant Withers) knows the truth and wants it to be told. Meanwhile, the Mancani group is nervous that Joe will tell what he knows.
Fine performances, but there is nothing exceptional about this film. It has way too many flashbacks. For Republic, this is an ambitious production.
Good but not great.
John Russell was in the rackets, working for his uncle, Luther Adler, and Claire Trevor was his girl. Army service in the Second World War changed him, and he wants to go straight and marry French girl Vera Ralston. But the mob is expanding its grip and they come to the small city where he, his wife and two children live. So is a U.S. Congressional hearing under the control of Senator Brian Donleavy, Russell's former commanding officer.
This is an ambitious movie for Republic Pictures and director Joseph Kane, about a thinly disguised Kefauver Commission, and mobsters like Forrest Tucker. Although it has the violence of an exploitation picture, it's more in the lines of an expose film. It's also edited with frequent flashbacks that makes the story tough to follow at times, and despite the Italian names of the mobsters, the actors are anything but Italian in appearance or behavior. Even so, it's an honest effort, a lot like the 'small guy fights the crooks' movies that the independents turned out in the 1930s, but with superior production values and actors.
This is an ambitious movie for Republic Pictures and director Joseph Kane, about a thinly disguised Kefauver Commission, and mobsters like Forrest Tucker. Although it has the violence of an exploitation picture, it's more in the lines of an expose film. It's also edited with frequent flashbacks that makes the story tough to follow at times, and despite the Italian names of the mobsters, the actors are anything but Italian in appearance or behavior. Even so, it's an honest effort, a lot like the 'small guy fights the crooks' movies that the independents turned out in the 1930s, but with superior production values and actors.
OK, this ain't The Godfather, and the budget for this film proves that beyond a doubt. However, despite its low production values, the actors give it their best shot, and the storyline is interesting for two reasons. One is the war connection; war connections can be very strong. The second reason it is interesting is because these people have known each other since childhood; those connections can be very strong as well.
When i was 18, I had to choose being in a straight job for less money, or joining a few of my good friends who were in the illegitimate gambling business. I chose the straight job; more because I feared what my mother would have thought, than anything else.
Joe Gray comes to the same crossroads after he gets out of the Army. He chooses to go straight. But sometimes, it is harder to go straight than one might imagine.
There are good performances all around in this one; and it is a nice, watchable crime film. There is a wordy, overwrought committee member, but other than him, the rest is fine.
When i was 18, I had to choose being in a straight job for less money, or joining a few of my good friends who were in the illegitimate gambling business. I chose the straight job; more because I feared what my mother would have thought, than anything else.
Joe Gray comes to the same crossroads after he gets out of the Army. He chooses to go straight. But sometimes, it is harder to go straight than one might imagine.
There are good performances all around in this one; and it is a nice, watchable crime film. There is a wordy, overwrought committee member, but other than him, the rest is fine.
Lo sapevi?
- QuizThis film was inspired by the Kefauver Committee hearings dealing with organized crime.
- BlooperTutte le opzioni contengono spoiler
- ConnessioniReferenced in Rewind This! (2013)
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Dettagli
- Data di uscita
- Paese di origine
- Lingue
- Celebre anche come
- Hoodlum Empire
- Luoghi delle riprese
- Azienda produttrice
- Vedi altri crediti dell’azienda su IMDbPro
- Tempo di esecuzione
- 1h 38min(98 min)
- Colore
- Proporzioni
- 1.37 : 1
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