Although George Raft plays the title role in Mr. Ace, the film such as it is really belongs to Sylvia Sidney as the ambitious Congresswoman who wants to become her state's first female governor. The Mr. Ace of the title is Eddie Ace, noted political boss in the state whose backing Sidney wants.
In fact two female governors had already been elected in the USA at the point in time Mr. Ace was made, Nellie Tayloe Ross in Wyoming and Miriam Ferguson in Texas. The script makes reference to both these ladies and to the 29 members of the House of Representatives that had been elected up to that point. It had been done before, but it was still a relatively new phenomenon.
For a smart political boss Raft sure gets his hormones involved in his decision making. His problem with Sidney is that she's tough and independent minded and won't take his orders or anything else from him. Raft's decision making is not coming from his head, that's for sure.
Sidney is also fighting an attraction to Raft as well even though she's married to Alan Edwards albeit they are estranged and do divorce during the film.
There's a whole lot of maneuvering done and at times it's more hormone driven than politically driven. These are supposed to be professional people you know.
Roman Bohnen plays Sidney's former political science professor and mentor in her younger days. He still appeals to the better angels of her nature. Sidney has two political operatives in Jerome Cowan and Sara Haden who do her bidding. Watch Haden's performance, a very understated one with definite lesbian undertones.
Sid Silvers is Raft's factotum and Stanley Ridges his rival within his own organization who Sidney successfully subverts for a while.
The emphasis of this film should have been on Sidney rather than Raft. Her's is the real story here and Mr. Ace would have been a better film had it been entitled Mrs. Chase.
Sidney's name in the film is Margaret Chase and in 1948 one Margaret Chase Smith won election to the United States Senate to become the first woman elected in her own right to that body without having been appointed by the state governor to fill a vacancy.
Mr. Ace does have its moments and one might want to view it just to see how things have so changed for women in politics.
