Customer Reviews

Johnny Eager [VHS]

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The gangster genre is not one that you would normally associate with MGM. It has always been closely associated with the more hard edged Warner Broswho ruled this genre during the golden age of gangster movies in the early thirties usually with James Cagney cutting down those who got in his way and Joan Blondell playing the poor girl with the heart of gold. In "Johnny Eager" we see an altogether different type of Gangster flick furnished with a high 1940's gloss care of MGM and a set of costars that have a polish about them unheard of from the great days of Warner Bros production in this genre.

"Johnny Eager" boasts the only teaming of Robert Taylor and Lana Turner. At the time the advertising went something like "T & T burn up the screen in a sizzling romance" and indeed that is what you get here, a first class production with a sophisticated story and above all else two costars who really do burn up the screen together so complete is their screen chemistry. The film tells the story of a cold and quite ruthless mobster Johnny Eager who leads a double life of being supposedly a taxi driver while in actual fact having his hand in many a seedy operation, in particular a dog track that is being threatened with closure. Into his life comes Lisbeth Bard the daughter of the crusading judge John Farrell,(Edward Arnold in another of his strong supporting performances) who is determined to put Eager behind bars again which is the fate he feels he deserves. Johnny and Lisbeth have an instant attraction for each other and ignite plenty of sparks in their meetings however being the eternal racketeer Johnny decides to use the girl as a means of blackmailing Farrell into reopening the track. He frames Lisbeth on a phoney murder rap which is all staged so that her father will fall in with his plans which is what actually happens. However Johnny doesn't count on the influence of his drunken but wise friend Jeff Hartnett (Van Heflin in an Oscar winning performance)who makes Johnny realise the pointless direction his life is heading in and what a decent girl Lisbeth really is. After a visit from former girlfriend Mae Blythe (Glenda Farrell in a small but very touching performance) where a few home truths are spelled out to Johnny about his attitiude to people and life in general he then finds himself feeling love for the first time in his life and decides to get Lisbeth out of his low life with the help of her former fiance respectable Jimmy Courtney (Robert Sterling in a very early performance).

"Johnny Eager" sees Robert Taylor bringing his by now seasoned talents to the lead role in a performance filled with much emotion and it is far from his usual bland leading man type roles. He is very effective as the hardened mobster who is prepared to use anyone and anything whether it be extortion, blackmail or even murder to get his way. He has a wonderful screen chemistry with Lana Turner and rarely has there been a more handsome looking couple on screen. Their love scenes exude a real sexual tension and one film critic at the time said they were some of the sexiest love scenes of that year. Lana Turner so often dismissed as the "Sweater Girl" here I believe gives an honest performance as the priveledged young girl who despite herself, falls in love with an underworld figure much to her father's distress. While her great roles such as "The Postman Always Rings Twice" were still ahead of her, Turner definately reveals a star potential here and the numerous loving close ups reveal one of the most glamourous appearances by an actress in the 1940's. Edward Arnold, one of my favourite character actors delivers his usual powerhouse performance as Turner's father who is caught in Johnny's blackmail scam and sacrifices everything for the sake of his daughter. Arnold who I will always remember for his outstanding work as Joan Crawford's drunkard husband in "Sadie McKee"is excellent in his work with Robert Taylor and all his hatred and loathing for everything that Johhny stands for is put across in a superb performance.

Being a product of MGM "Johnny Eager" benefits from the care in every department that the studio lavished on it's "A" features. It benefits greatly from the able direction of the talented Mervyn LeRoy who was responsible for discovering Lana Turner when both were working over at Warner Bros in the late 30's. He manages to weave an exciting story in with interesting against- type characters and certainly under his direction Robert Taylor shines as he rarely did before. The period look of the film is also of the highest calibre and while it might not be up there with such gangster classics as "Public Enemy" or "Little Caesar", "Johnny Eager" is a fine late entry into this field just as the world was slipping into World War Two and is very entertaining . Enjoy "T & T" electricity on screen when stars where really stars.

This film is fast and slick. Possibly the first of the film noirs it has everything you want in a forties film. The casting was perfect as well as the acting. Taylor and Turner were hot. Van Heflin steals the show. I love the way they used music in this film and the shiny look of the night scenes. It is filled with symbolism and the ending is terrific!!! There is even a dog that steals all the scenes he is in. If you love film noir you MUST have this one.

5 star fast paced flick reminiscent of Cagney gangster pics but a little classier. Lana Turner /Rbt Taylor melt the screen with their tart, tight quips and hot romance. Studio should have paired these two more often. One of my all time faves! Fans of old B/W 40's wont be disapointed!

... in this movie! First, it has beautiful Robert Taylor playing one of those guys who can charm anyone. Nobody ever claimed he was a great actor, but it's hard to imagine a better portrayal of this kind of guy. Secondly, it has a lot of early Fruedean psychological references, especially by Van Heflin who really made his mark as the alcoholic sidekick/greek chorus.See if you don't think Heflin's performance is amazingly modern for its day. And lastly, what can you say about the young Lana Turner, except that she's never been sexier. No, its not really film noir, but it is necessary viewing for film noir-lovers.

I love love love this movie. I saw it once on TMC or something and instantly fell in love with it. It has an exciting story about a thug gang member trying to get over his hard knock life and trust people instead of fight to survive at any cost. Bonus, Lana Turner is gorgeous! This movie has one of my favorite monologues of all time by Robert Taylor when he is talking to his friend about their life and their place in the world.

I was interested in seeing this movie because of Van Heflin's Best Supporting Actor award. I came away with an appreciation of an award well-deserved. Heflin supports an interesting leading cast of Robert Taylor and Lana Turner. This is one of those on-screen romances that seems to generate a fair amount of electricity. The movie moves along at a pretty good clip and has a fairly decent though generally predictable plot. Taylor is a pretty smooth ex-con who's secretly back in the business. Behind the congenial exterior we soon discover a man who cares about no one but himself. The closest thing he has to a friend is the generally inebriated Heflin who spouts philosophical advise in between drinks. The movie has some interesting twists and turns (especially one involving a particular police officer) but it eventually flows into the standard plot format; a power struggle, the discovery of love when it's too late, the noble sacrifice, etc. It would be hard to give anything away that you wouldn't have seen coming ahead of time. The acting is pretty good and, although Robert Taylor is no Robert Mitchum, he's still a pretty smooth operator. I'm glad I watched "Johnny Eager" but I doubt I'll watch it again.

This is a good attempt at Film Noir but the consensus has it falling just out of being a true 100% noir picture. Check out the dvdbeaver web site and you will find that it does not fully meet the criteria. Great movie other wise; you can't go wrong with a purchase

Robert Taylor had one of his very best roles as Johnny Eager, a cold hearted soulless thug and ex-convict not above using everyone and everything to get what he wants. Lana Turner (gorgeous but lousy) is the society girl who falls head over heels for him. The film was advertised as TNT: Taylor 'N Turner and they do have a nice chemistry together. The direction by Mervyn Leroy (I AM A FUGITIVE FROM A CHAIN GANG) is slick and quick which is good because the material needs some punching up. A good example of the old glossy MGM glamour style of movie making, even if it is a gangster's tale. Warners would have cast Bogart or Raft instead of Taylor and given it more grit and less polish. Co-starring Van Heflin in his Oscar winning performance as Eager's alcoholic best buddy, Robert Sterling, Patricia Dane, Edward Arnold, Barry Nelson, Paul Stewart and in her one and only scene, Glenda Farrell gives the kind of performance that usually gets Oscar nominations (she didn't).

The Warners Archive MOD DVD is a nice B&W transfer.

Oh, those minority opinions! This reviewer agrees with previous writer Keehn in giving a 3.5 rating to "Johnny Eager". JE falls short of noir or true crime superiority: As the film opens, Robert Taylor is a hard working cabdriver, meeting with his avuncular parole officer (A.J. Verne) and trying to stay straight after a spell in the Big House. It quickly-all too quickly-becomes clear that the cab is a front. Taylor is actually operating a dog track! This reviewer deemed RT a bit too debonair to play a hood-or to be pushing a hack. (That is an old New York term!). One also might wonder how the real life Law could fail to catch the ruse. Are the cops asleep? Is anybody watching? Credibility is a flaw with JE. That aside, there are some solid points to this MGM release. Production values are high; scenes flow smoothly. This is a professional movie, capably directed by Mervyn LeRoy with gloss, sophistication and polish. The fast pace may conceal the holes in the plot. In fact, the production virtually overshadows the cast. Taylor is a real operator here, smoothly pulling off 2 mean and cynical setups on Edward Arnold and Lana Turner. These accolades are not enough to carry the movie. If we remember Taylor from "Ivanhoe" and "Knights of the Round Table" it is difficult to picture the guy as a paroled con, masking as a cab driver while running a dog track. On a positive note, most other reviews are positive. Keep scrolling to get a fuller round of opinions on "Johnny Eager".

The untamed personality of Johnny Eager always finds a door for his own ambitions and nothing is capable to stop him in this pursuit. But what it really nourishes this early Noir resides in the characters: Jeff hartnett as the lawyer who believed in him ,making feel himself as a perverse and morbid human being; on the other hand we have the angelical figure of that sociology student Lisbeth Bard who is mesmerized by that underworld razor' edge and the excitement it generates.

So in this fast attempt to climb the higher mountain, Johnny threatens the owner of a nightclub and realizes that Lisbeth is the daughter of John Benson Farrell , the district attorney who sent him to prison. This is according him his golden situation, because it's not easy to him to make Lisbeth falls in love with him and at the same time to become her accomplice, thanks to a very clever trick in which one of his partners has been supposed murdered by Lisbeth after a pretended fight among them.

But the noblest side of Johnny simply remains as a claw in his conscious, due she will be shocked due that incident. So his redemption will consist about trying to convince her all was a fake, no matter the prize he had to pay, for her to recover his mental health.

At first sight it appears as simple melodrama, but there is much to explore beneath the script.

One of my favorite cult Noir films of the Forties.