The Racket

Like TWO ARABIAN KNIGHTS and THE MATING CALL, this film has now been restored by UNLV (which found the prints of these films once thought lost in an archive of producer Howard Hughes' possessions) in cooperation with Flicker Alley.

Lewis Milestone, who had just directed TWO ARABIAN KNIGHTS for Hughes, brought much of the same sense of friendly rivalry between the two leads to this picture, as well as the same co-star, Louis Wolheim. All the elements of many a subsequent gangster picture are here: The close personal relationship between the antagonists (gang boss Wolheim and cop Thomas Meighan); the kid brother whom the gangster wants to shelter from the rackets (George E. Stone, soon to appear in LITTLE CAESAR and many another gangster flick), but who runs afoul of a tough little chanteuse (Marie Prevost). Mob bosses cavorting in lavish nightclubs, overwrought gangland funerals, crooked politicians, a wet-behind-the-ears reporter with two old pros as a chorus: it's all here.

Enough of the action takes place in a run-down precinct house to belie the story's stage origins, but there's plenty of action, including a shootout between two rival gangs, to keep things hopping.

I watched this in anticipation of Josef von Sternberg's UNDERWORLD (1927), a film that revolutionized the gangster genre – which THE RACKET is as well (I am already familiar with its 1951 remake from the same producer, Howard Hughes). Playwright Bartlett Cormack helped adapt his own work to the screen; interestingly, the chief hoodlum during the original theatrical run was essayed by Edward G. Robinson – who would achieve movie stardom with a similar role in LITTLE CAESAR (1930)!

Though the original was nominated for the Best Picture Oscar, ultimately, I still think that the later version is superior (even if nominal director John Cromwell ended up getting replaced by Nicholas Ray!) – principally because there the antagonistic relationship at its core was formidably filled by Roberts Mitchum and Ryan! In this version, we have forgotten star Thomas Meighan as the quintessential (albeit over-age) Irish cop and burly but suitably smarmy Louis Wolheim (who would re-unite with director Milestone for his Oscar-winning masterpiece ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT [1930]). From what I can recall, the plot is pretty much identical between the two versions (for the record, I own Warner's SE DVD of the 1951 movie, while the earlier one was restored for DVD release by Silent-movie specialists Flicker Alley but it somehow never hit stores!): the gangster not only muscles in on a rival (the entire mob's come-uppance in a speak-easy, during a party thrown in honor of Wolheim's younger brother no less, is superbly realized by Milestone) but even seems to have authority figures under his thumb (recalling in this way the recently-viewed THE GLASS KEY [1935], down to a car-accident-turned-murder-rap which sends a ripple through the already murky waters) – so that, no matter what he or his associates do, they are sure to get away scott-free!

In both, there is also a girl – pretty but spirited Marie Prevost in 1928, sultry-yet-dull Lizabeth Scott in 1951 – who first gets embroiled in the villain's schemes and, then, becomes a pawn in the protagonists' struggle for supremacy (which sees Meighan transferred to a precinct far removed from the center of activities and Wolheim tripping himself up by personally exacting revenge upon the cop who arrested his sibling). On the side-lines are a trio of reporters, two vaguely comical (though their antics only seem to exacerbate the feud between policeman and criminal!) and the other a rookie (who becomes involved with Prevost, and is actually the one to bring the villain to book) – his eventual demise, then, emerges to be heavily tinged with irony!

Tough cop Thomas Meighan (as James McQuigg) versus underworld kingpin Louis Wolheim (as Nick Scarsi). In a subplot, blonde gold-digger Marie Prevost (as Helen Hayes) pursues Mr. Wolheim's "bad boy" brother George Stone (as Joe Scarsi). This Howard Hughes piloted film was considered for "Best Production" at the first Academy Awards, as "the most outstanding motion picture considering all elements that contribute to a picture's greatness." Although it understandably lost to "Wings", it does posses elements of "greatness".

Mr. Meighan, one of the biggest and most beloved stars of the era, brings considerable presence to his role; with a script that offers him surprisingly few opportunities for characterization. Wolheim and director Lewis Milestone are always a fun to watch match. Ms. Prevost and the supporting cast do their best with the "love story" and gangland activities. And, the production values are high. If only more focus and characterization were on the personal stories and conflicts concerning McQuigg and Scarsi! Curiously hesitant to show much depth; still, "The Racket" exposes, while inadvertently glamorizing, the gangster lifestyle.

******* The Racket (6/30/28) Lewis Milestone ~ Thomas Meighan, Louis Wolheim, Marie Prevost

Sadly this film was made available long years (like 50) after the giants of the early gangster films were available---Little Cesear and The Public Enemy,so it missed the true acclaim it probably deserves.

Being made during Prohibition, and during the less "glamourous" studio period (but with an excellent director, fast paced script and great supporting cast) it has the immediate feel of the time---when the policeman hero is exiled to the country it IS the country, and the character actors shine here--especially the incandescent and tragic Marie Prevost as the platinum blonde chanteuse, Helen Hayes. She is absolutely wonderful as a complete jazz baby flinging herself into the arms of the nearest well heeled heel available, her desperation clearly visible under the surface. This performance is subtle in it's (Mae West) undertones, but she anticipates the bright gaudy generous hearted vulgarity of Jean Harlow by several years. She has a huge range with her hideous fox fur collared cape, her cigarette, and her bits of business with her props--she has the stage presence of her character's name Helen Hayes, but she is much more naughty and fun to watch. She cynically analyzes the lead villain's fear of women, and stands up to him, leveraging his fear in the face of his men, and lays her neck on the line. At the same time, she desperately digs for gold, playing hard to get with the gangster's weak spot, his younger, ratty brother. (George Stone in an early role). The scene where she rips off her "act" costume, and jumps on an upright piano and has the musician's wheel her over to the gangster's brother's "birthday party" is pure gold.

How sad that she died so horribly in real life, but how wonderful that her performance is preserved here in all it's splendor! While Thomas Meighan is the same noble stiff as a board hero of DeMille's society matrons movies of the l920s he also shows range in a "good cop" role with a noir twist at the end, making this one of the first contemporary gangster movies. George E Stone, who would go on to play everyone's favorite rat for the next 40 years is here in a juvenile lead, scummy and detestible as ever, and the perpetually bombed and wisecracking reporter Skeets Gallegar gets all the fast paced and best lines. God Bless Ted Turner for not letting this one get lost! Cannot wait for it to come out on DVD for all true noir and gangster film archaeologist's to enjoy! We can only wonder what a kick it would be in film histories of today if this had been available at the same time as The Public Enemy , Little Ceasar and other seminal works. If you are a "Merry Gangster Historian" go for it!

If you've read some of my other comments, you'll know that I'm in the middle of watching all movies that received Academy Award nominations in the Academy's very first year, 1927-28. "The Racket" was one of three nominees for Best Picture, along with "Seventh Heaven" and "Wings," and though it's by far the least ambitious and "important" of the three, it's the one that I found to be most satisfying.

It's a quick, speedy little gangster thriller from Lewis Milestone about one committed cop's determination to see a crime lord brought to justice. It was based on a play, but Milestone does a terrific job of keeping things cinematic -- this movie moves, and that plus the fact that it's not long to begin with makes its running time go racing by.

Thomas Meighan, who apparently was a big name at the time but who is unfamiliar to me, plays the cop, while Louis Wolheim plays the gangster. Both are terrific, but both are upstaged, as is everyone else, by Marie Prevost (playing a character named, of all things, Helen Hayes) as surely one of the first memorable gangster molls. She gets a really good pre-Code line (if silent films can be said to have lines) about babies and storks that gives you one of those "could they really say things like that back then" moments that pre-Code movies always have.

As far as I know, this movie isn't available anywhere for legitimate viewing. I had to see it the same way I saw "Wings," by watching it in pieces on a site whose name I won't mention. Better catch it soon before someone takes it down.

Grade: A