Reviews

I really enjoyed this old black and white talkie. At first I didn't recognize Harold Lloyd as Mr. Cobb, a missionary to China coming home to find a wife. There were many twists and turns in Mr. Cobb's attempts to clean up city hall. His methods of making the punishment fit the crime would likely be illegal, but this is not a movie based on reality. This would be a perfect movie for children except that there is female near nudity (pasties only on Grace Bradley)! The old telephones are enchanting. The only fault is a problem typical of the day - Caucasians are used to represent Chinese men. This is offset by the positive way the Chinese are portrayed. They are the wise, good and friendly guys. Trivia - a Bekins truck appears in the movie when the police run out of Black Marias.

This is not the most well-written script. Shame on you Leo Rosten of Yiddish Dictionary fame, if indeed you wrote some of this. However it is fascinating for all the famous actors in it. There is some racialism. The scene with the black valet "Saratoga" played by McDaniel, shining Bogart's shoes and being scolded for wearing his clothes is revealing of the times. To see Jackie Gleason in a bit part is disconcerting. Many others pop up, including Phil Silvers and William Demerest. Bogart and Lorre are handsomely young. On the other hand, the scene containing the toys, now antique, is very attention-grabbing for our times especially the action toys of the day. The simmering envy and anger of the unattractive Nazi woman (Dame Judith Anderson)after she is slapped,and her revenge is portrayed very dramatically, as in a Greek tragedy. The spy meeting is ridiculous. How the Nazis couldn't tell Bogart didn't know German, and was talking double-talk defies credibility. A very strange movie.

Although I did enjoy this movie, the gorgeous combo of Lopez-Clooney, and the realistic stumblebummery of the thieves, the phony snow was so bad. Since I live in true Upstate NY where we have 200 descriptors for snow, I have judged the snow in this movie to be totally unconvincing. Perhaps Out of Sight has lousy snow because it was filmed in Louisiana and Angola. But, even the 40s movie, It's a Wonderful Life, had better snow and it was filmed in Los Angeles. Lopez and Clooney may be at their most beautiful in this movie. It would be nice to see them together in another, ten years later. Many minor characters went on to greater fame.