Key Largo

A classic film noir, it features a great cast and a great storyline. Major Frank McCloud (Humphrey Bogart), a veteran of the Italian campaign in World War II, arrives at Hotel Largo in Key Largo, Florida in the Florida Keys after the war to visit the family of his friend George Temple (who died in the campaign). There he intended to visit George’s father James Temple (played by Lionel Barrymore) and his widow Nora Temple (played by Lauren Bacall). Complicating matters is the fact that a bunch of mobsters (or five mobsters and one friend) have rented the hotel, six people who claim at first to be there fishing but are really there for criminal activity. One of the six people is Edward G. Robinson’s character Johnny Rocco, a Capone-level notorious gangster who was exiled to Cuba and is trying to make a comeback in the United States. Also complicating matters is the fact that while all these people are in the hotel a hurricane strikes and a sheriff and a deputy keep coming around looking for two escaped prisoners (and running the risk of finding out far worse criminals are in that hotel). There was a lot to like about the film. Great tension and pacing, I liked the exploration of Johnny Rocco’s character, of him trying to recapture the lost glory of his powerful crime lord days during Prohibition, of being in obvious denial that that time has passed, that there isn’t money to be made in alcohol as there once was, that people don’t recognize him as they used to, and that the woman he loved, also at the hotel, is a washed up alcoholic (Gaye Dawn, played by Claire Trevor, in a surprisingly layered role with some strong acting). In fact all the gangsters seem to miss the Prohibition days. I also liked the exploration of Frank McCloud, that his stances on heroics and self-preservation are explored with regards to fighting Johnny Rocco. Does he fight Johnny because Johnny is a dangerous criminal? To save himself? Or to save others? It was interesting to see how Frank watched heroism in others, including from some surprising sources, and how this may have influenced him to act in the rest of the film. You don’t get a lot of Frank talking about his feelings but you see how he acts, how his stance on heroics appears to change as the film progresses, that it was never that he wasn’t a coward, it was more that he just didn’t care at first. There is a subplot with Native Americans that I found interesting. Mostly it is there to have a reason for the sheriff and deputy to be nosing around the hotel a lot, but there is some social commentary as well, subtle though in one brief scene at the end a bit more overt. It’s blink and you will miss it but it is there. Except for a few shots very early on the film is obviously on a soundstage. It isn’t bad but you can tell that isn’t the sea and they aren’t at the beach. Not distracting or anything, it was how things were done back then, but I wish they had filmed somewhere on location. Once the film is inside the hotel (which the bulk of the movie is) this is for me at least completely forgotten. One can also nitpick a little on the depiction of the hurricane but I think it was depicted in a way that served the plot.

excellent disc

Too mad Hollywood has lost much of the magic to make really great movies. My top ten movie favorites eight of which have Bogart in it.

"Key Largo"(1948) was the fourth and final film that Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall made together since they first ignited the screen four years earlier in "To Have and Have Not"(1944). It was also the final time that Bogart appeared with Edward G. Robinson, his gangster rival at Warner Brothers during their early Thirties crime films. One of those early crime films was "The Petrified Forest"(1936) in which Bogart plays the vicious gangster Duke Mantee who holds innocent people hostage in a roadside diner. "Key Largo" has a similar plot. Innocent people are held hostage in a hotel by a bunch of gangsters led by Johnny Rocco(Robinson). If that wasn't bad enough, both hostages and gangsters have to worry about an approaching hurricane which may destroy everything. There is enough tension and suspense to go around for everyone, including the audience. Warner Home Video through it's Archive Collection has now brought "Key Largo" to Blu-ray for the first time and the results are once again, outstanding. Digitally restored(by MPI) in 2K from a fine-grain master positive taken from the original nitrate camera negative, MPI has done a frame by frame restoration and given the film a high Bitrate(32.98) which makes for a pristine picture from start to finish. There are no vertical lines, dirt, torn or damaged frames and "Key Largo" probably hasn't looked this good since it's original theatrical release. Director John Huston used fellow director Karl Freund("The Mummy") as his cinematographer and Freund's use of shadows and lighting is really on display. Blacks, whites and grays are well balanced and contrast is equally impressive. This is very apparent in the middle of the film as the hurricane approaches the hotel and the lighting changes dramatically(after the electricity is knocked out) becoming darker and more foreboding which only adds to the suspense. This new Blu-ray brings out all the features of the once elegant but now run-down hotel which has seen better days. The acting is top notch with honors going to Robinson and Lionel Barrymore who both try to outdo the other in every scene they have together. Bogart plays his character more passively in contrast to Robinson so much so that everyone thinks he's a coward, including Bacall. He redeems himself heroically in the end. Claire Trevor gives the film's best performance as the alcoholic mistress of Johnny Rocco. Her heartbreaking rendition of the blues song "Moaning Low" which she is forced to sing by Rocco in order to get a drink is both heartbreaking, sad and tragic. Trevor rightly won the Oscar that year. "Key Largo" is 100 minutes(Aspect ratio: 1.37:1) and contains the following subtitles: English SDH, French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Czech and Polish. The Audio is English DTS-MA HD 2.0 and Dolby Digital for French, German, Japanese, Spanish and Polish. Special features only include the theatrical trailer. The Blu-ray disc itself is housed in a solid standard Blu-ray case(not an eco-cutout case). Warner's new Blu-rays of "Key Largo"(as well as "The Big Sleep") should be essential additions to fans of Bogart and Bacall as well as film collectors in general. Despite the lack of special features, "Key Largo" comes very highly recommended.

Great script and an all star cast.

Great digital copy. However, the dialog between Frank McCloud and Johnny Rocco concerning fixing the elections in Florida is MISSING. I guess some political party found that offensive. Otherwise, it would have been a five star review instead of just a four.

Un pur chef d'œuvre, digne de l'époque de l'âge d'or d'Hollywood avec de vrais bons acteurs (ça change…)! Mention spéciale à Edward G Robinson qui incarne un chef de gang plus vrai que nature. Cependant chaque rôle est d'une magnifique justesse et la réalisation est simple mais très efficace. Un vrai huis-clos version gangster!

Una obra maestra indiscutible del cine negro ahora con una imagen en alta definición insuperable. Compra obligada de uno de los clásicos del cine de todos los tiempos.

So wie beschrieben!

Magnifique film de John Huston qui a su réunir ici des acteurs de choix dans tous les rôles : le grand Humphrey Bogart et la belle Lauren Bacall bien sûr, et Arthur G. Robinson est vraiment magistral en chef de gang ainsi que son ex fiancée Claire Trevor, ici une alcoolique très émouvante. Mais Lionel Barrymore est exceptionnel dans le rôle du père vieillissant et handicapé. On voit que le réalisateur avait vraiment l'amour des acteurs. John Huston avait aussi toujours à coeur d'aller au-delà de l'histoire et des personnages, au-delà des apparences. Ici il nous offre une belle réflexion sur le courage et la lâcheté : qu'est-ce qu'un véritable héro ? A quoi sert le sacrifice ? A voir et à revoir.

magnifique distribution pour un chef d'oeuvre