711 Ocean Drive

711 Ocean Drive was indeed preachy, as attested to and confirmed by the blurbs at both beginning and end. Still, I found the film interesting and entertaining (although D.O.A. remains my all-time favorite O'Brien, and one of my top favorites, overall). The character of Mal Granger really presented a sharp and unexpected contrast to that of Frank Bigelow in D.O.A. The real surprise in this film came early on when the personality of Granger, itself, did a 180-degree turnaround, from the benign, carefree and kindly telephone repairman (who insisted his co-worker accept a few bucks that he was in need of), to the ruthless, unscrupulous, and murderous "operator" for whom even a little power is seen to surely corrupt. Although the early-on character of Granger is seen for only the first 15 or 20 minutes of the film, the contrast remained with me throughout. An excellent characterization by O'Brien, as usual.

A better than routine, if not exceptional, noir crime drama, with O'Brien excellent in the lead, and good casting throughout. Opening and closing textural comments convey the sense that this is more of a sensational expose of syndicate control of horse-race betting (a major West coast institution if there ever was one), produced "under threat". That remains to be seen. What is undeniable is that a well-paced tale of one man's ambition is engagingly portrayed. Of particular interest are the wonderful filming locations in the L.A. area -- rich streetscapes--full of marvelous period detail, "Modern" architecture as seen in circular drive-ins, open plan houses, groovy bars ands nightclubs, and some flavor of Palm Springs weekending. With the evolution of O'Brien's character from a telephone repairman into a major crime so well reflected in the improvements in his dress, along with the sartorial variety among the leads, one gets a nice sense of personal style in this period. Worth a look.

Yes, I was heavily rooting for O'Brien to prevail in this flick. The cops seemed to get too much out of the smallest bits of info in taking him down.

The crappy preach at the ending, and the inevitability that O'Brien wold be foiled spoiled it somewhat. And it was much too long to get to the predictable conclusion.

But Dorothy Patrick as Trudy was a nice plus! O'Brien's aide, "Chippie" was good as his reliable 2nd man. Constant visible Cash profits from vigorish helped the realism.

Also enjoy the gambling lingo. This is year 2013 and I believe 'past posting' is still prevalent today!

"711 Ocean Drive" is an interesting '50s film noir set in Los Angeles. Edmond O'Brien stars as Mal Granger, a nice telephone repairman who is into a bookie for some gambling debts. The bookie makes a deal with him and, since he's a technician, has him do some modernization on the illegal gambling in the area that uses the wire service. The O'Brien character turns out to be pretty ambitious and greedy and starts making his way up the ladder in the syndicate. He does well until some guys from the East coast show up and want some of his action.

The O'Brien character really changes from the beginning, when he's a relaxed, friendly guy. Then he becomes ruthless and murderous. O'Brien does a great job in making this change believable. There are also very good performances from Howard St. John as a police officer, Bert Freed as a hit man, and Otto Kruger as a mob boss. Joanne Dru is the object of Mal's affections, although she's married to someone else.

Seeing Los Angeles in the '50s is one of the best parts of this film. Recommended for Edmond O'Brien, the scenery, and the noir style.

The address of Edmond O'Brien's posh Malibu digs -- 711 Ocean Drive -- lends the title to this semidocumentary noir about bookmaking. Unfortunately the movie is bookended by sermons instructing viewers on their civic responsibilities: the two bucks you put on a horse go straight to graft and murder! In between, it's not bad. O'Brien, always better supporting than, as here, in the lead, is a money-grubbing telephone technician who brings his electronic expertise to the illegal-betting circuit. The profits his innovations generate oil his swift climb up the syndicate ladder; his ruthlessness greases his slide down. Along the way, the movie casually includes what may be the first Hollywood episode of severe wife-battering, perpetrated on Joanne Dru. At the end, O'Brien's grasping ambitions are dwarfed by the enormity of Boulder Dam, and viewers are left with a sense of his brief notoriety being but a single cog in a vast, unstoppable crime machine. It's a dated message in a time when, increasingly, gambling with the government's blessing has become the new civic responsibility.