The Racket (1951)

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

I was surprised to see that the listed running time for "The Racket" is only 88 minutes, because the film feels MUCH longer. It's probably because there is so much plot and so many characters, too many, crammed into the brief running time. "The Racket" feels more ambitious than your standard noir because of its relatively epic scope, but that's also what I didn't care for. I like noirs when they're sleek and streamlined and focused. "The Racket" felt like it was all over the place, and it was difficult to feel truly vested in any one plot strand because there were so many vying for attention.I do give it credit for being a pretty gritty film for its time, and for unpredictably killing off a major character that in any other movie would have been ensured survival by the conventions of the genre.This film was a remake of the silent Lewis Milestone version from 1928, which happened to be nominated for Best Picture in the very first year of the Academy Awards. I've seen it, and from what I can remember the 1951 version bears little resemblance.Grade: B

When it comes to dead-seriousness, I thought this 1951 Crime/Thriller's take on that was absolutely priceless. In fact, I got such an enjoyable kick out of The Racket's poker-faced story-line that I sat through it twice.Containing a nice mix of snappy, mean-mouthed dialogue, aggressive shoving around, and unexpected day-time shootings, The Racket certainly seemed to have all the right elements required to carry it through (without much disappointment) to its inevitable "crime-doesn't-pay" ending.When it came to the likes of the 2 Roberts (that's Mitchum as the no-nonsense cop, Capt. Tom McQuigg, and Ryan as the nasty villain, Nick Scanlon), I thought that these 2 bad-boys of crime-cinema filled their respective roles as comfortably as a pair of well-fitting gloves.My one beef about this picture comes down to The Racket's token femme fatale and lounge singer, Irene Hayes. Played by the tone-deaf Lizabeth Scott, man, when this cheap canary performed her big number at the Paradise Club, I absolutely cringed at her utter lack of talent.Even though Irene did, indeed, get slapped around and royally insulted, once or twice, it didn't come anywhere near close enough to what I thought she actually deserved.

Slightly above average crime drama with Film-noir elements that has some outstanding highlights and some very pedestrian lowlights.A couple of realistic action pieces and a vile, nasty performance from Robert Ryan are negated by some contrived side elements and stiff political posturing, and very weak love interests.Surprisingly the real bad guy..."the old man" who is the head of the crime syndicate is never brought to justice, or for that matter even identified. This is an intentional cover-up by the filmmakers and deliberately deflected at the end. As if to say, no matter how many of these street thugs we arrest, the master criminals of the Racket are above the law.This was a bold "oversight" slipped in, from an industry that was hand-cuffed by a code that stated...CRIME DOES NOT PAY. Very clever.

During the 1940's and 50's it was easy to watch a crime/drama and with little effort, would be able to identify the good guys from the bad guys. This particular story called " The Racket " is based on the play written by Bartlett Cormack and was directed by John Cromwell. In it we have Robert Mitchum starring as Captain Thomas McQuigg, a no-nonsense, hard-bitten cop of the Old School who has decided to run a clean precinct. He does this by going after Nick Scanlon (Robert Ryan, who is at his best) as the most notorious mobster around. Scandlon believes his methods are fool proof and so effective he does not need to adapt. After all, he is backed up by 'The Big Boss', a corrupt District Atty. Mort X Welsh and an equally corrupt Det. Sgt. Turk (William Conrad.) The movie is standard Black and White 1950's drama with sufficient excitement to keep the characters alive and interesting. The audience is entertained and throughout the length of the story kept alert enough to learn the outcome. Excellent film fare. ****