Product Details

• Actors: George Raft, Claire Trevor, Signe Hasso, Lowell Gilmore, Hoagy Carmichael
• Format: Black & White, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• VHS Release Date: April 25, 1990
• Run Time: 79 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6301327691
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #270,984 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Raft at Sea, February 23, 2010

By 

Bobby Underwood "starlighthotel" (Manly NSW, Australia) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Johnny Angel [VHS] (VHS Tape)

A good story and fine supporting cast surround George Raft in this easy to take RKO mystery. Based on Charles Gordon Booth's 'Mr. Angel Comes Aboard' this was a perfect fit for Raft. Casting him as a ship's Captain in New Orleans investigating his father's abandoned vessel allowed his somewhat wooden acting style to mesh with the character. The atmosphere of the French Quarter and a lovely Signe Hasso keep things interesting for mystery fans, and photographer Harry S. Wild gives the film a nice look.

The S.S. Emeline is discovered afloat with no hands onboard while on route back to New Orleans from Casablanca. Johnny Angel (George Raft) attempts to discover what happened, knowing his father, the Captain, would not have been involved in anything shady. He tracks down a female stowaway named Paulette (Signe Hasso), but she bolts before Angel can get a handle on what's going on. Songwriter Hoagy Carmichael had one of his colorful supporting turns as easygoing cabbie Celestial. He gets to sing 'Memphis in June' while helping both Angel and Paulette; the latter when someone tries to do away with her.

That 'someone' doesn't want Angel to know what his father took onboard or what happened once he did. Once Paulette learns she can trust Johnny things point to the Jewel Box, a nightclub run by Sam Jewel (Lowell Gilmore) which is frequented by Lilla (Claire Trevor), the wife of his boss, Gusty (Marvin Miller). She has the hots for Johnny who plays along while he stashes Paulette with Celestial. A double cross over gold and a momma's boy at his breaking point make for a good climax to the mystery, while director Edwin L. Marin lets romance have the last word.

Signe Hasso is easy on the eyes and acquits herself nicely for this type of film, while Raft is solid in a role well suited to his acting style. Margaret Wycherly also does a nice job portraying Gusty's assistant and mother figure. Just enough action peppers this atmospheric mystery to merit it being classed as a real winner in the genre. The opening music by Leigh Harline is beautiful, and Roy Webb's score highlights a nice romantic subplot between Johnny and Paulette. Hoagy Carmichael's pencil propeller will leave an impression and set this above many others in the cycle. An RKO classic.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Johnny Angel (1945) ... George Raft ... RKO Radio Pictures Film Noir", March 18, 2007

By 

J. Lovins "Mr. Jim" (Missouri-USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Johnny Angel [VHS] (VHS Tape)

RKO Radio Pictures present "JOHNNY ANGEL" (1945) (79 mins/B&W) (Dolby digitally remastered) --- Starring George Raft, Claire Trevor, Signe Hasso, Lowell Gilmore & Hoagy Carmichael --- Directed by Edwin L. Martin and released in December 27, 1945, our story line and film, this is a twisty plotted film noir involving smugglers and a double-cross that is set on the dimly lit docks and in the swinging French Quarters of New Orleans. George Raft plays his trademark tough guy role to perfection, as the sea captain Johnny Angel who works for the Gustafson Steamship Line, where his father also works as a captain. Johnny discovers in the sea fog a ghost ship and is alarmed to find no crew and a ship that shows signs of a battle taking place, as it's riddled with bullet holes and broken furniture is strewn across the deck while its cargo of African mahogany is still suspiciously on board. It's an intriguing film noir tale about avenging a murder of a loved one, a femme fatale getting her man to do her foul deeds, and of the two men struggling to hold their own against the gigantic shadows of their fathers.

Under Edwin L. Marin (Director), William L. Pereira (Producer), Jack J. Gross (executive producer), Charles G. Booth (Novel Mr. Angel Comes Aboard), Steve Fisher (Screenwriter), Frank Gruber (Adaptation), Leigh Harline (Original Score), Harry J. Wild (Cinematographer), Les Millbrook (Editor) - - - - the cast includes George Raft (Johnny Angel), Claire Trevor (Lilah 'Lily' Gustafson), Signe Hasso (Paulette Girard), Lowell Gilmore (Sam Jewell), Hoagy Carmichael (Celestial O'Brien), Marvin Miller (George 'Gusty' Gustafson), Margaret Wycherly (Miss Drumm), J. Farrell MacDonald (Capt. Angel), Mack Gray (Mack, the Bartender) - - - - - Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe Hollywood crime dramas that set their protagonists in a world perceived as inherently corrupt and unsympathetic...Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as stretching from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...Film noir of this era is associated with a low-key black-and-white visual style that has roots in German Expressionist cinematography, while many of the prototypical stories and much of the attitude of classic noir derive from the hard-boiled school of crime fiction that emerged in the United States during the Depression...the term film noir (French for "black film"), first applied to Hollywood movies by French critic Nino Frank in 1946, was unknown to most of the American filmmakers and actors while they were creating the classic film noirs..the canon of film noir was defined in retrospect by film historians and critics; many of those involved in the making of film noir later professed to be unaware at the time of having created a distinctive type of film ... featuring top performances from the '40s and '50s with outstanding drama and screenplays, along with a wonderful cast and supporting actors to bring it all together ... another winner from the vaults of almost forgotten film noir gems

SPECIAL FEATURES BIOS:
1. 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

2. Claire Trevor (aka: Claire Wemlinger)
Date of Birth: 8 March 1910 - New York, New York
Date of Death: 8 April 2000 - Newport Beach, California

3. Edwin L. Marin (Director)
Date of Birth: 21 February 1899 - Jersey City, New Jersey
Date of Death: 2 May 1951 - Los Angeles, California

Hats off and thanks to Les Adams (collector/guideslines for character identification), Chuck Anderson (Webmaster: The Old Corral/B-Westerns.Com), Boyd Magers (Western Clippings), Bobby J. Copeland (author of "Trail Talk"), Rhonda Lemons (Empire Publishing Inc), Bob Nareau (author of "The Real Bob Steele") and Trevor Scott (Down Under Com) as they have rekindled my interest once again for Film Noir, B-Westerns and Serials --- looking forward to more high quality releases from the vintage serial era of the '20s, '30s & '40s and B-Westerns ... order your copy now from Amazon where there are plenty of copies available on VHS, stay tuned once again for top notch action mixed with deadly adventure --- if you enjoyed this title, why not check out VCI Entertainment where they are experts in releasing B-Westerns and Serials --- all my heroes have been cowboys!

Total Time: 79 min on VHS ~ Turner Home Video ~ (4/25/1990)