Casbah

It is not a bad remake of Julien Duvivier's classic and incomparable "Pepé le Moko" with Jean Gabin from 1937 with even some advantages to the French original, chiefly Marta Toren as the beautiful lady from abroad and home and Peter Lorre as the police inspector in one of his most suavely amiable and abominable performances; but the songs are quite good also and Tony Martin, although inferior to Jean Gabin, is convincing and charming enough. Another asset is Yvonne de Carlo as Inez, and like in "Pepé le Moko" you wonder why he doesn't prefer her to the alien lady as a much more rational and sensible option; but it's in his nature to choose challenge to comfort.

There is very little to add, if you have seen "Pepé le Moko" you have seen it all, the drama is exactly the same here with its regrettable and overwhelmingly sad finale, but Julien Duvivier makes it both more realistic, more poetic and more overwhelming. What Tony Martin lacks is the tragic touch of Jean Gabin with his poignant stigma.

If you don't recall seeing this featured in any of the "That's Entertainment" anthologies, it's because this black-and-white postwar romance with songs is considerably darker and more sophisticated than the usual Hollywood musical. A considerable improvement over the 1938 Americanization of "Pepe Le Moko," the logy Charles Boyer vehicle "Algiers," this not only integrates a few well-chosen musical numbers featuring Martin, Yvonne de Carlo and the Katherine Dunham Dancers into the old story, but adds a refreshing note of humor and playfulness. Martin isn't bad at all as the surly, sexy gangster Pepe, who was always one-dimensional anyway. Peter Lorre is the dream Slimane that he should have played ten years earlier in the Boyer film (though Lorre's often credited as being in "Algiers," it was actually Joseph Calleia who played Slimane in that film), and Marta Toren's bittersweet siren is seductively reminiscent of Valli in "The Third Man."

Pepe Le Moko is a great film role. Jean Gabin introduced the character to screen in the same named French Flick in 1937.

Charles Boyer brought the moody mobster to Hollywood's ALGIERS in 1938.

But in 1948, Tony Martin and director John Berry collaborated to create the most dramatic and entertaining version of the downfall of the exiled jewel thief in CASBAH.

Casbah is a film very alive with energy, style, suspense and romance. Brilliant casting; Tony Martin plays the suave thief with easy conviction and delivers the Harold Arlen songs skill, charm and gusto.

Marta Toren was arguably the most beautiful woman in films, prior to the arrival of Audrey Hepburn.

Peter Lorre...I can't believe how powerful his complex performance is as the dedicated policeman, committed to the capture of the thief who became also his friend.

Yvonne De Carlo, Douglas Dick, Katherine Dunham, acting, singing, dancing, love, passion, treachery...where is this great film on DVD? John Berry and Jules Dassin were contemporary artists and spirits. Their films even show a similarity of style and influence, possibly each upon the other.

They were also fingered as American Pinko Fellow Travelers right about this time and both moved to England. Dassin prevailed and prospered, probably with some initial support from Darryl F. Zanuck. Berry also prevailed, but without achieving anything like Dassin's level of success or recognition. Still, CASBAH, for my money is, value for value, the most under-acknowledged film out of Hollywood.

Surprisingly good remake of Pepe Le Moko with crooner Tony Martin giving a good account of himself as the cool, ultra-popular master criminal who enjoys a spurious life of liberty in the maze-like Casbah. Journeyman director John Berry does a good job of creating a sultry, claustrophobic atmosphere, and while the songs are largely unnecessary they don't really slow things down too much.

Wrong headed semi musical remake of Algiers which is missing all the ingredients that made the first film stand out. Whoever thought that Tony Martin(?!) could be an acceptable substitute for Charles Boyer was seriously misguided or just plain crazy. While he has a fine singing voice he has zero screen presence so starting out the film has a black hole at it's center. Then there's Marta Toren in the Hedy Lamaar role, while she is certainly lovely she does not possess that elusive star quality which Hedy, although a spotty actress, had in spades. Yvonne de Carlo, an effective actress when properly cast, seems a natural for the Hedy Lamaar role but is wasted in a secondary part although top billed. Peter Lorre is the best thing here but he is similarly underused. All in all a throughly forgettable enterprise.