Robert Osborne talked about this being one of Wild Bill Wellman's pre-code classics, so naturally, it immediately got my attention. But I wasn't prepared for this. An amazing story of a hooker played by Dorothy Mackaill who is sucked into "the life" by one of the most vicious, but underrated movie villains ever on screen. The quirky, psycho, delicious Ralf Harolde.
The story is unusual. Gilda the hooker falls in love with a sailor. He accepts her warts and all. She gets into confrontation with Ralf Rotten and thinks she killed him. Her sailor boyfriend helps her lam out to an island to hide out. They marry in a private ceremony and he ships out. Meanwhile, she is left to fend for herself on this island, surrounded by a half dozen lecherous criminals. She holds her own until Ralf suddenly shows up by accident. It seems he didn't die after all, but had to lam out himself after pulling off a scam. In an ironic twist, he tries for a rematch and she actually does kill him. Up till now, the story was almost poetic, but the last twenty minutes had my head spinning. She is about to be found innocent when she finds the Jefe de Policia is going to frame her for another crime and ravish her in his prison. In order to be true to her "husband" she convinces the court that she, in fact, is guilty of murder so she can be hanged. Her line to El Jefe is something like: "The only time you will touch me is when you put the noose around my neck." I've seen lots of pre-code movies. Mostly WB, and they can be pretty raunchy, but this one leads the pack. Dorothy Mackaill puts in an "A" performance in a decidedly "B" movie. It has the feel of the movie "Rain", but it seems less stylized and more authentic. I recommend it for a lot of reasons, but keep your eyes open for Ralf Harolde. Once you've seen him, I think you are going to want more.
The story is unusual. Gilda the hooker falls in love with a sailor. He accepts her warts and all. She gets into confrontation with Ralf Rotten and thinks she killed him. Her sailor boyfriend helps her lam out to an island to hide out. They marry in a private ceremony and he ships out. Meanwhile, she is left to fend for herself on this island, surrounded by a half dozen lecherous criminals. She holds her own until Ralf suddenly shows up by accident. It seems he didn't die after all, but had to lam out himself after pulling off a scam. In an ironic twist, he tries for a rematch and she actually does kill him. Up till now, the story was almost poetic, but the last twenty minutes had my head spinning. She is about to be found innocent when she finds the Jefe de Policia is going to frame her for another crime and ravish her in his prison. In order to be true to her "husband" she convinces the court that she, in fact, is guilty of murder so she can be hanged. Her line to El Jefe is something like: "The only time you will touch me is when you put the noose around my neck." I've seen lots of pre-code movies. Mostly WB, and they can be pretty raunchy, but this one leads the pack. Dorothy Mackaill puts in an "A" performance in a decidedly "B" movie. It has the feel of the movie "Rain", but it seems less stylized and more authentic. I recommend it for a lot of reasons, but keep your eyes open for Ralf Harolde. Once you've seen him, I think you are going to want more.