Trafic à La Havane

Errol Flynn - a casino dealer- gets handed fake pesos by a myserious blonde gambler. After he confronts her outside the casino, a trio of thugs jump him. Not only are the police not sympathetic about the mugging, they arrest him for possessing counterfeit money.

And we're on our way. Like Cary Grant in North by Northwest, Flynn is a shmoe stuck in the middle of something. The movie has him trying to unravel that mess.

Everybody is shady on some level. The dames are gorgeous. The location work is top-notch. The photography is beautiful.

Flynn, despite the high mileage, still looks quite dashing. I mean, geezus, if I still looked that good at 48 and had female companionship half as old, I'd be on top of the world.

And, as always, he's convincing in his role. He doesn't get the acclaim Hollywood's famous hambones get - Cagney, Muni, Kirk Douglas, Brando, et al. And compared to limited-range actors like Cooper, Wayne, Gable, Bogart, et al, he's a thespian.

It's really too bad semi-literate Americans had such limited expectations of their movie stars that guys like Flynn were rarely allowed to stretch. And when they did their movies bombed. Historical perspective is a different matter. I enjoy his darker movies and this was no exception.

For fans of Errol Flynn, this is a rather tough film to watch. That's because after a lifetime of wild living and booze, the once handsome actor looks pretty lousy for a 48 year-old. He's puffy, flat and lacks the spark and charm that made him a matinée favorite in previous decades. Here, he's just "phoning it in" in a low-budget and rather dull film and it's only of much interest to fans with morbid curiosity or who want to see every film this star made.

The story has Flynn playing a lowly blackjack dealer in a Cuban casino--quite a comedown compared to other characters he'd played in the past. While it is interesting to see street scenes of pre-Castro Cuba, the rest of the film is a dull affair concerning Errol being tossed, quite innocently, into a bunch of murderous counterfeiters. Because he was no longer the glamorous hero, he spends most of the film being beaten up and hassled. The best fight for him is at the end when he barely manages to beat up a doughboy-like villain. Not exactly CAPTAIN BLOOD or ROBIN HOOD--it's really a shame Flynn's final films are generally of this low quality.

I recorded "The Big Boodle" when it played on TCM and expected to see a "train wreck" of a movie based on articles and books I have read. I was most pleasantly surprised to see a very entertaining film. I thought that Errol Flynn and the supporting cast were uniformly good. Errol again showed what a great star and actor he really was. The plot was plausible and the pace of the movie moved right along. I am surprised by the negative reviews. "The Big Boodle" is a more substantial film than many more critically acclaimed films... and,by that,I mean mainstream movies that are supposedly "A" quality. Errol brings a worldly weariness appropriate to his role. I was surprised to see how fit he appeared and how involved he was in his portrayal. I believe that he would have been magnificent as Rhett Butler in "Gone With The Wind" which he lost reportedly, due to Betty Davis' refusal to make that movie with him in the leading role. "The Big Boodle" shows what a serious and outstanding actor he was in even a modestly budgeted film

For a touch of exotic atmosphere only 90 miles from the shores of the USA in a part of the world that shares a common Spanish Colonial heritage with much of the United States, you can view "The Big Boodle". The movie lacks depth but the atmospherics and locales of 1957 Havana are effective, and filmed with fine black and white cinematography.

Errol Flynn stars and looks every inch the movie star, although he appears thin and tired. Nevertheless he summons enough energy to move at a good pace- in fact the overall action moves at a rather fast pace, especially toward the end. Flynn's star quality was still intact although fading rapidly, and he is able to function well enough to carry the film.

Flynn portrays a croupier with a sketchy past who is thrust into some really heavy criminal goings-on. He is believable in the role and his acting (as always) is good. Gia Scala is OK as a young woman involved. Ms.Scala was one of the most remarkably beautiful women ever on film- its regrettable that her startling eyes cannot be shown here in color. Rosanna Rory is a cast member who is relatively obscure but is basically a capable Euro actress of the era. Pedro Armendariz is perfect as the cagey police chief. He was one of the finest screen actors ever and he is superb in this movie. Leading man type Carlos Rivas who you might recognize from the classic 50's monster film "Giant Scorpion" is also well-cast as a reckless and ambitious young Cuban.

Authentic atmospherics of pre-Castro Cuba, some decent acting, and the brisk pace will probably overcome any reservations you may experience from Flynn's obvious weariness and the B-movie nature of this film. I found it to be an entertaining departure into the long lost era of Errol Flynn and of late-50's Cuba.

"The Big Boodle" (1957)

I love movies about Cuba; "Godfather II", "Havana", "Our Man in Havana", and "Cuba". That must have been quite a big party place for North Americans to vacation to. Of course, if you were a resident, it must have been a totally different kind of place, and you could understand how Castro could get it's citizens to revolt from the powers-that-be.

"The Big Boodle" takes place in Havana, Cuba before Castro came to power. It's a suspenseful mystery movie that showcases the tropical beauty of Cuba.

Italian actress Rosanna Rory plays Fina Ferrer who passes some counterfeit (Boodle) money at the blackjack table to Ned Sherwood, played by Errol Flynn. Ned is a down-on-his-luck croupier, working at a Cuban casino. Normally a croupier is SOL if he gets bogus bills, and, as Ned says, they can only press it into their scrap book. Ned tries to give the money back to Fina without success.

That night Ned gets mugged by a bunch of thugs outside of his apartment, and when the cops question him, they find the Boodle in his pocket. The police Colonel Mastegui, played by Pedro Armendáriz ("From Russia With Love" and "The Three Godfathers") thinks that he's the counterfeiter, or at least he can help them find the counterfeiters.

Surprisingly, Ned is bailed out of jail by an anonymous benefactor. Now he finds that he's the target of the police, the counterfeiters (who think that he's got the printing plates) and other assorted characters. He feels that he needs to solve the mystery before he gets killed himself.

At 48 years old, Errol Flynn looks kind of burnt out. You can obviously tell when they bring in the stunt double to do his fight scenes, but other than that, he still seems in good enough physical shape to do this movie. He is playing a down-trodden character in a film noir movie, so he's playing it like we see it.

Of course one of the biggest stars of this movie is Havana itself. The beautiful palms, buildings and scenery are wonderfully photographed. The sound wasn't the best on the movie that I watched on Turner Classic Movies, but the music was great. Errol Flynn's character does a little bar-hopping, and you get to hear some of the old Cuban Jazz, Mambo, Conga, ChaChaCha; the salsa/reggaeton of the 50s. That was great!

Over all, it's a nice little film. It wasn't a real fast-paced actioner, but a nice little noir movie that showcases a paradise that we might be able to see again some day. It's well worth you taping, or if it ever comes out on DVD, owning.