Release date: May 9, 1936
Running Time: 109 minutes
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Rod Steiger, Jan Sterling, Mike Lane
Directed By: Mark Robson
1956 was a rough year for cinema goers used to seeing Humphrey Bogart grace screen several times a year. For nearly thirty years he had been a staple of the big screen, starting out in a few throwaway films before finding his niche as a gangster or other types of ne’er-do-wells. As his popularity grew he graduated through the ranks to lead gangsters and eventually to hero’s and anti-heroes. Several times a year there would be new Bogart films, most of them banking on the success of their lead actor. That would all stop in 1956. Bogart, diagnosed with esophageal cancer, was facing the real life possibilities of his death. While he survived into the following year, he didn’t survive long, succumbing to the illness in mid January of 1957. His final film, filmed as he was dying and in pain nearly constantly, is a true testament to his professionalism and determination. Many of his close-ups had to be filmed repeatedly to try and hide how much his eyes were watering from the pain.
The film, in and of itself, is nothing too memorable. Bogart plays Eddie Willis, a reporter out of work when his paper goes under, who is offered a position as PR man for Toro Moreno, a towering boxer from Argentina. The problem is, Toro is inexperienced and has a glass jaw. Boxing promoter Nick Benko (Rod Steiger) plans to use Toto’s hulking size as a gimmick to draw fans and pay his opponents to throw the fights. All of this is kept from Toro and his manager who honestly believe he is a talented boxer.
Eddie is not initially sold on the idea but the payday offered his convinces him to make a go at it, provided they focus on west coast fights where he has a better chance of selling Toro as an up-and-comer. The first fight goes badly wrong and the gig is almost up right from the start but Eddie pulls a few strings to avoid having the Boxing Commission open an investigation. More and more fights are arranged in Toro’s favor but Eddie knows eventually Toro will have to face a true opponent, one not so willing to take a dive. Meanwhile, Benko is pulling a fast one behind the scenes, looking to pull as much money from this cash cow as he can, even if it means cheating Toro out of his due pay.
Nothing new is explored in this film and if it weren’t for the ‘prestige’ of being Bogart’s final film it would probably not be well remembered. It has lots of pacing issues, running nearly twenty minutes too long. There is plenty of repetition, especially during the middle scenes, and nothing really comes as a surprise. Two things save it from complete mediocrities. Bogart sells the personal conflict his character faces. At first he is thinking primarily of the money he can make. He is down on his luck and this opportunity falls into his lap so he can’t help but jump on it. But as he gets to know Toro his conscience starts to cast doubt on his decisions and by the end he is no longer driven by how much he can make.
The second thing is Toro’s big fight with Brannen near the end of the film. Most of the boxing matches are so poorly staged that it seems unlikely anyone in the crowds would believe they were legit. Toro obviously has no skill in the ring and no ability to sell otherwise. The fight with Brannen, however, is so brutal that it is shocking and hard to watch. It is this fight that finally pushes Eddie over the edge and entirely on Toro’s side.
The film is not a classic. It is nowhere near Bogart’s best, but it is worth viewing. It is hard to watch Bogart, especially in the close-ups, because it is still apparent, even with all the attempts to hide it, that he is hurting. His performance hides it well but his eyes still give it away at times. The film released in May of 1956 and just over eight months later Bogart was dead. Cinema would never be the same without this dedicated professional, determined to finish out his last picture, no matter how much he was hurting.
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