Bullets for O'Hara

Psychopathic gangster Tony Van Dine (Anthony Quinn) is insanely possessive of his pretty, charming wife, Patricia (Joan Perry), who happens to be friends with beautiful Elaine Standish, (Maris Wrixon), whose hospitality is abused. A clever plot is hatched by gumshoe Mike O'Hara (Roger Pryor) to nab the brute. Many antique cars appear in the film, including two in an exciting chase. At 50 minutes, it moves along crisply and Tony Quinn is as menacing a crook as Robinson, Cagney, or Bogart. Dick Purcell and William Hopper are included in the cast and movie pioneer Hobart Bosworth makes one of his last appearances. The actions are simple and direct and the plot concise.

When Warner Brothers first did this story as Public Enemy's Wife I said it was mediocre, but the cast somehow put it over. I'm here to tell you that it didn't improve with five years of aging.

In fact, but for the presence of Anthony Quinn as the public enemy this film would truly be in the dustbin of cinematic history. Quinn is quite the charmer and after a whirlwind courtship he marries Joan Perry. He passes himself off as a Brahmin blue blood from Boston if you can believe that. And he'll be going back to work soon.

But work is that of a society thief and he robs Richard Ainley and Maris Wrixson the folks who have been hospitable to him. Only then does Joan realize what she's married.

Quinn has to bail on her when the cops are closing in, but he says don't be thinking about leaving him, she's his forever. I mean really, if he wants another woman as a blind front there are plenty around whom he could charm into it.

And what does Perry do, but marry Roger Pryor the cop who nabbed her and just missed nabbing Quinn. He figures Quinn will come after her which the dope does of course.

It was claptrap before and it's still claptrap.

Bullets for O'Hara (1941)

** (out of 4)

Low-budget crime picture from Warner has a jewel thief (Anthony Quinn) getting away with his crime but a detective (Roger Pryor) nabs his wife (Joan Perry). The wife claims she didn't know what the husband was really up to so after she's granted a divorce, she marries the detective so that the ex will come after them. BULLETS FOR O'HARA is a very silly movie that doesn't have much going for it so it's only going to appeal to those "B" movie fans who enjoy watching these things that usually turn up on Turner Classic Movies just before dawn. At just 50-minutes the shocking thing is that the film runs way too long. Yes, even this short running time manages to be quite slow and at around the thirty-minute mark it was clear that the film was going nowhere. The story itself is pretty silly because you have to wonder why the jewel thief really cared since he jumped ship on the wife, didn't check on her during an entire trial and then decides to walk into a trap months later. It was also funny to see the thief getting himself in good with the people he's going to rob, which isn't something you normally saw in crime pictures like this. Both Perry and Pryor are decent in their roles but neither one of them really jumps off the screen. Quinn is good in his early role as the thief but sadly he isn't given too much time. Dick Purcell has a small supporting bit as a chauffeur. BULLETS FOR O'HARA is certainly a miss that's going to have a limited appeal.

O'Hara (Roger Pryor) is a detective in the Miami police department. His latest case involves tracking down notorious jewel thief Tony Van Dyne (Anthony Quinn). To facilitate his latest brazen robbery, Van Dyne had seduced and married nice girl Patricia (Joan Perry), who he used to get close to his wealthy targets. After Patricia is arrested by police for being an accessory, O'Hara comes up with the "genius" plan of marrying Patricia in a very public wedding in order to make Tony jealous and bring him out of hiding.

This B-movie quickie runs less than 50 minutes. It would have made for a forgettable episode of 50's television. The goofy plan (which works, of course) is only one of several dubious moments, and judging by his work here, Detective O'Hara isn't exactly a gifted lawman. There's an unintentionally hilarious moment late in the film where the people being held at gunpoint keep switching: first O'Hara has Tony at gunpoint, then Tony's man shows up and turns the table, then one of O'Hara's pals, then another of Tony's arrives, etc. Etc., so that the gunbarrels switch direction at least 5 times.

Anthony Hopkins tells the story of working with Katherine Hepburn on A LION IN WINTER, how she said "Don't speak the line, just say it." In this largely uninteresting second feature -- or third feature, we see evidence that advice is good advice. Almost everyone speaks their lines portentously, in an effort to give them weight and importance. Only third-billed Anthony Quinn just says his lines, as if they had just occurred to him, and he is present in the moment and much more intelligent in presentation than everyone else. He steals the show from first-billed Joan Perry and eponymous, second-billed Roger Pryor.

I cannot recommend this movie particularly, but if you feel a need to see it, you'll enjoy it for Quinn.