Directed by Edward Dmytryk, "The Juggler" stars Kirk Douglas as Hans Muller, a German Jew who survived a German concentration camp during WW2. Muller is relocated to a temporary camp in Israel, where the newly formed nation state tries to rehabilitate him. As his experiences during WW2 have left Muller confused, emotionally scarred and suffering traumatic flashbacks, this proves a difficult task.
"The Juggler" was produced by Stanley Kramer, and feels more or less like another one of his schmaltzy "socially conscious message movies". It was written by Michael Blanfort, a screenwriter responsible for "The Caine Mutiny" and "Broken Arrow". With "The Juggler", however, Blanfort bites off more than he can chew, the film offering little insight into either Israel's bloody creation (and the philosophical questions it raises), WW2, the nature of concentration camps or the mind of a man ravaged by survivor's guilt.
Incidentally, the 1950s and 60s saw a number of films which were overtly or covertly about Israel's new-found independence. Most of these were written by blacklisted writers and filmed by once blacklisted directors, which is practically a reversal of how the radical left views Israel today (Dalton Trumbo would write "Exodus" some years later, which again starred Douglas).
Most of the films in this wave were also fairly cartoonish pictures, Americanizing the Holocaust and distorting early 20th century history, flattening it into fairly broad, easily digestible movements for Western audiences. We see this with "The Juggler" as well, Israel never rising above the level of a mother who assuages the pain of her brutalised flock. She is a pair of welcoming arms, a necessary haven, and nothing more.
For those interested in history: Edward Dmytryk was once blacklisted for "communist affiliations" (he joined the American Communist Party in 1944) and jailed for six months. He, like many directors (King Vidor et al), then made overtly patriotic flicks to curry favour with those in power, though to no avail. He remained blacklisted by studios and slowly went broke. In 1951 Dmytryk then went before the House of Un-American Activities Committee and provided the names of 26 former members of left-wing groups, all in an attempt to get his name off the blacklist. He succeeded, and immediately directed "The Juggler" and "The Caine Mutiny", the former a love-letter to Israel (perhaps, like his anti, anti-Semitic "Crossfire"), the latter a deliberate reversal of the message found in "Mutiny on the Bounty". Where "Bounty" justified the revolt of oppressed sailors against those in power, "Caine" does the opposite, portraying rebels as an irrational mob of silly, overly educated men. This period of Hollywood history, in which artists were effectively destroyed for their political beliefs, ostracised, blackmailed and forced to comply, is fairly well known. Less well known is how left-wing movements – an extension of Hitler's own paranoia vis a vis "Marxist Jews" - were murderously suppressed by the United States across most of Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, Europe and Asia (even Australia, with what was essentially a 1970's coup).
What's this got to do with "The Juggler"? In a way, Dmytryk's film is all about naming names and its own low-key witch-hunts. Characters must name names to convict Hans Muller, others must name names to prove his innocence, and a little girl is asked to both sell-out and provide photographs of Muller. "Sometimes, you have to give up your friends," one character then essentially says. The message? Stop running, stop hiding, tell the truth, obey, Daddy knows best.
6/10 – Douglas chews scenery well, though his vaudeville routines are at times cringe-worthy. This is surprising, as Dmytryk was the editor of "Duck Soup". See too Dmytryk's "Farewell My Lovely". Worth one viewing.
"The Juggler" was produced by Stanley Kramer, and feels more or less like another one of his schmaltzy "socially conscious message movies". It was written by Michael Blanfort, a screenwriter responsible for "The Caine Mutiny" and "Broken Arrow". With "The Juggler", however, Blanfort bites off more than he can chew, the film offering little insight into either Israel's bloody creation (and the philosophical questions it raises), WW2, the nature of concentration camps or the mind of a man ravaged by survivor's guilt.
Incidentally, the 1950s and 60s saw a number of films which were overtly or covertly about Israel's new-found independence. Most of these were written by blacklisted writers and filmed by once blacklisted directors, which is practically a reversal of how the radical left views Israel today (Dalton Trumbo would write "Exodus" some years later, which again starred Douglas).
Most of the films in this wave were also fairly cartoonish pictures, Americanizing the Holocaust and distorting early 20th century history, flattening it into fairly broad, easily digestible movements for Western audiences. We see this with "The Juggler" as well, Israel never rising above the level of a mother who assuages the pain of her brutalised flock. She is a pair of welcoming arms, a necessary haven, and nothing more.
For those interested in history: Edward Dmytryk was once blacklisted for "communist affiliations" (he joined the American Communist Party in 1944) and jailed for six months. He, like many directors (King Vidor et al), then made overtly patriotic flicks to curry favour with those in power, though to no avail. He remained blacklisted by studios and slowly went broke. In 1951 Dmytryk then went before the House of Un-American Activities Committee and provided the names of 26 former members of left-wing groups, all in an attempt to get his name off the blacklist. He succeeded, and immediately directed "The Juggler" and "The Caine Mutiny", the former a love-letter to Israel (perhaps, like his anti, anti-Semitic "Crossfire"), the latter a deliberate reversal of the message found in "Mutiny on the Bounty". Where "Bounty" justified the revolt of oppressed sailors against those in power, "Caine" does the opposite, portraying rebels as an irrational mob of silly, overly educated men. This period of Hollywood history, in which artists were effectively destroyed for their political beliefs, ostracised, blackmailed and forced to comply, is fairly well known. Less well known is how left-wing movements – an extension of Hitler's own paranoia vis a vis "Marxist Jews" - were murderously suppressed by the United States across most of Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, Europe and Asia (even Australia, with what was essentially a 1970's coup).
What's this got to do with "The Juggler"? In a way, Dmytryk's film is all about naming names and its own low-key witch-hunts. Characters must name names to convict Hans Muller, others must name names to prove his innocence, and a little girl is asked to both sell-out and provide photographs of Muller. "Sometimes, you have to give up your friends," one character then essentially says. The message? Stop running, stop hiding, tell the truth, obey, Daddy knows best.
6/10 – Douglas chews scenery well, though his vaudeville routines are at times cringe-worthy. This is surprising, as Dmytryk was the editor of "Duck Soup". See too Dmytryk's "Farewell My Lovely". Worth one viewing.