Raios de Calor

I was very fortunate to DVR a pristine copy of this many years ago on TCM and I have watched it probably 30 times since.

My dad made several auto trips across the US in the twenties and earlier. Though this was 1934, it provides me with a visual perspective on some of what he may have encountered before there was a national system of highways, or many paved roads for that matter.

My enjoyment of this film comes mostly from the glimpses into early motoring. As a kid in the early fifties I made many a trip from California to Iowa with my folks on route 66. Motoring was not all that sophisticated even in the early fifties and that plays into it as well.

This review/comment is not so much about the finer points of the movie as it is a statement on how enjoyable it is for me because of the time in which it was made.

The fact that there is a great little drama playing out and lots of ventures into quirky personalities and side plots, is just icing on the cake.

If you like a subtle and mature superbly acted drama with just enough humour to keep it light, you should enjoy this. Although an awful lot happens, the action somehow manages to seem inconsequential compared with the oppressive mundanity of the desert.

This film has a very modern feel to it. Set in an isolated oasis in the Nevada desert there's little to tie it down to a particular time - were it not for the old cars, it could be now. The other thing which makes this timeless is the acting, specifically that of Aline MacMahon whose character is the focus of this film. Being from the 'method school' her characterisation is much more natural than was typical in the early thirties. It's an outstanding performance.

She plays Olga who runs this little 'service station' isolated from the outside world, isolated, as we'll discover, from something in her past. We never quite find out what led her here, dragging her reluctant and resentful sister along and that's one of the things which makes this so intriguing. Whatever it was, she's not going to let it happen to her sister whom she keeps a tight rain on which in her sister's mind means stopping her having any fun.

She's content hiding from the world where her only interaction with people is with the strangers passing through. She's content hiding from who she was, hiding from being a woman until a sinister face from the past re-enters her life. When her mask slips, we perhaps get an idea of why she abandoned that former life.

It's totally addictive viewing but at the time you're not sure why. When it's over you realise that it's one of those pictures that you will always remember. Although the skies are bright and clear, the atmosphere is as thick as soup infused with something undefined but dark and dangerous. Its unrelenting oppressive heat permeates through the screen into your own world, you can taste the desert yourself - such is the brilliance of LeRoy's direction.

Heat Lightning is tied with The Adventure of Robins Hood as my favorite Warner's film. It's always a pleasure to watch Aline MacMahon, but here I think she gives an Oscar worthy performance. She and Preston Foster smolder! Aline's slowly changing attitude is wondrous to behold. Her final scene with Foster is memorable. A lot of the Warner's stock company come and go throughout the film, always giving freshness to their roles. The daytime location and cinematography perfectly capture the feel of the desert. (I live near Tucson.) The night time scenes, although well matched, are shot on a sound stage, and so, are not as effective. But I suppose they were necessary for the lightning effects. This a film that will stay with you. And make you want to watch it again.

In many ways, this film reminds me of another Warner Brothers film made just a few years later, "The Petrified Forest". Both are set at isolated gas stations in the desert and both involve gangsters who come there to seek shelter. However, the films are certainly different enough to make it worth seeing them both.

Olga (Aline MacMahon) is a world-weary soul who has chosen to move into the middle of nowhere because she's tired of people. Her sister, Myrna (Ann Dvorak), however, isn't tired of people and yearns for excitement and men-- and the pair couldn't be more different. Into their very dull and predictable lives come an assortment of folks to stay at their gas station/motor court. One pair are a couple of divorcées on their way from Reno after their latest conquest. Another are a pair of crooks on the run from the law. In a coincidence you'll only see in a play or movie, it turns out the boss (Preston Foster) was once Olga's lover! What's next? See the film.

There are two main things going for this film--Foster and MacMahon. Their characters are interesting and the final scene between them is something to see! Unfortunately, Dvorak's role is very whiny and annoying--and the character significantly impairs the film with her overwrought performance. Overall, it is worth seeing but is far from brilliant work from the studio.

After reading several reviews that enjoyed the film, I almost did not write a comment.

However, after reading the one comparing it to a poor man's Petrified Forest, I wanted to say that's just plain unfair.

I, was not around for the New York Times drab review in 1934, like the previous reviewer, but I can form my own opinion. I really liked the movie. Aline McMahon, pulled off the difficult character of playing a woman mechanic/business owner, and Preston Foster played the crook on the lam quite believable for the situation he was in.

I personally wish Ann Dvorak had more of a developed part, I always like her, but sadly hers was the least developed of the several interesting characters in the film. Obviously made on a small budget, it's just unfair to compare this to Petrified Forest. They are not the same film at all.