Product Details

• Actors: George Raft, Jane Bryan, William Holden, Humphrey Bogart, Lee Patrick
• Directors: Lloyd Bacon
• Format: NTSC, Black & White
• Subtitles: English, French
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• Run Time: 82 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B001IYPSSQ
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #42,592 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Parolee Chuck Martin is going straight when he gets out of jail -- straight back to a life of crime. In lockup or out in the civilian world, he knows he'll forever wear a con's Invisible Stripes. As Martin, Humphrey Bogart continues to battle and sneer his way to career stardom in this volatile social-conscience crime saga adapted from a book by warden Lewis E. Lawes. Top-billed George Raft plays Martin's ex-Sing Sing yard mate Cliff Taylor, who vows to walk away from crime and be a role model for his kid brother (William Holden). But what awaits Taylor are suspicion, public disdain and joblessness. So he turns to a fellow con for help. Then, as now, he finds crime doesn't pay.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The end of the gangster genre at Warner Brothers, December 15, 2008

By 

Douglas M - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Invisible Stripes (DVD)

By 1939, when "Invisible Stripes" was released, the gangster cycle at Warner Brothers was coming to an end. The Hays Office had strangled the genre and the War was soon to take over. The film stars George Raft as an ex-con trying to go straight but unable to make headway due to the invisible stripes of being on parole. Raft was a wooden and unimaginative actor whose stardom was as much based on his notoriety as an ex-gangland figure as any magnetism he brought to the screen. He is arguably at his best here but that is not much of a compliment and he is outclassed by Humphrey Bogart in support as another ex-con. Classical British actress Flora Robson is miscast as his mother, a very young William Holden overacts as his young brother but the tender Jane Bryan is superb in a 2 dimensional part which she invests with great feeling. This is a Hal Wallis production so it is more expansive than many of its much more exciting predecessors. There is a sappy score which telegraphs every change of mood and lots of shots from the studio backlots. They really look like sets too - utterly 2 dimensional.

The DVD print is excellent and Warners Night at the Movies is included with cartoon, trailer, newsreel etc. The technicolour shorts are well done. One is in the series of Reader's Digest history lessons which Warners produced regularly. This one tells of the circumstances which resulted in the Monroe Doctrine and some fine actors appear. The other is a musical satire on Hollywood, another in a series starring Fritz Feld in a take off of director Michael Curtiz. The cartoons are good too. One is set around a prison break with a send up of Hugh Herbert as the warden. The other is a predecessor of Bugs Bunny who is more like Daffy Duck at this stage than the Bugs who evolved. The best feature is the comprehensive and enlightening commentary. Two erudite commentators share the honours. At the same time as placing the film in its place as a prototype Warner Brothers product, they cleverly point out how it signifies a progression from the gangster genre to a precursor of film noir. Also, they explain how the censorship affected the story. Raft's character is devoted to his mother, only returns to crime for the most altruistic of reasons but still gets his just deserts, because, above all, he is a criminal. This is good listening.

The DVD is best value if purchased as part of the Warner's Gangster Collection Volume 4.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars "They always put your picture in the paper when they grab ya, but they never do when they spring ya"...Bogey, February 22, 2011

By 

J. Lovins "Mr. Jim" (Missouri-USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Invisible Stripes (DVD)

Warner Bros. Pictures presents "INVISIBLE STRIPES" (1939) (82 min/B&W) (Fully Restored/Dolby Digitally Remastered) -- Starring George Raft, Jane Bryan, William Holden, Humphrey Bogart, Paul Kelly & Flora Robson

Directed by Lloyd Bacon

Cliff (Raft) and Chuck (Bogart) leave prison together. Cliff tries the straight life but falls back into crime with Chuck and his gang. When he makes enough to enable his brother Tim (Holden) to buy a garage and marry his sweetheart, Cliff quits crime again. But when he tries to help Chuck later on, he's implicated again

George Raft helped Bogey in his career by always turning down good roles, such as "High Sierra", "The Maltese Falcon" and later "Casablanca". Raft and Bogart went on to make one more film together in 1940's "They Drive By Night", where they share equal billing as brothers involved in wildcat trucking, which was another Warner Bros. winner for the two headliners.

Here is a good example of the cast being better than the script--which is a shame. This could have been a better film with a message, but the studio for some unknown reason chose to take another path. For this reason my rating is three stars.

BIOS:
1. Lloyd Bacon [aka: Lloyd Francis Bacon]
Date of Birth: 4 December 1889 - San Jose, California
Date of Death: 15 November 1955 - Burbank, California

2. George Raft (aka: George Ranft)
Date of birth: 26 September 1895 - New York City, New York
Date of death: 24 November 1980 - Los Angeles, California

3. Jane Bryan [aka:Jane O'Brien]
Date of Birth: 11 June 1918 - Los Angeles, California
Date of Death: 8 April 2009 - Pebble Beach, California

4. Humphrey Bogart
Date of Birth: 25 December 1899 - New York City, New York
Date of Death: 14 January 1957 - Los Angeles, California

5. William Holden [aka: William Franklin Beedle Jr.]
Date of Birth: 17 April 1918 - O'Fallon, Illinois
Date of Death: 16 November 1981 - Santa Monica, California

Mr. Jim's Ratings:
Quality of Picture & Sound: 3 Stars
Performance: 3 Stars
Story & Screenplay: 2 Stars
Overall: 3 Stars [Original Music, Cinematography & Film Editing]

Total Time: 82 min on DVD ~ Warner Bros. Pictures ~ (01/25/2005)

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars FINALLY!, April 7, 2009

By 

David W. Wagner - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Invisible Stripes (DVD)

This crime classic was ignored on video, so this is indeed a welcomed release. This release is in the 4th DVD collection of "Gangsters" and it's worth your time. It captures the era of the Warner 'mugs' and fans of the genre will recognize old friends like Marc Lawrence, Paul Kelly and Al Hill sprinkled throughout the cast. Leonard Maltin wrote that the "subdued acting is effective" and he's so right. Star George Raft plays a released convict trying to edge his way back into society. At the dawning of his career, William Holden (in a role that John Garfield turned down), registers well as the frustrated younger brother that wants to improve his lot. Bogie was far down on the Warner Bros ladder at this time, but was surely working his way up. Picture and sound quality are first-rate, as well.