The Big Steal

Robert Mitchum and Jane Greer co-star in this film about a wrongfully accused man being chased by the bad guy, while chasing the other bad guy. Mitchum and Greer are both charming and warm, Mitchum with his cool demeanor and lazy eyes, Greer with her charismatic presence and radiant smile. William Bendix offers a terrific performance as the bad guy chasing down Mitchum. Fast, fun and not to be missed.

Wow--talk about a strange but likable combination. This film is sort of like a mixture of film noir, and adventure film, a comedy and it's all set in Mexico. While this unusual melange might seem to make no sense, it actually works very well and it supremely watchable. Much of the reason for this was the excellent script that provided enough twists to keep a simple idea humming and another were the likable leads, Robert Mitchum and Jane Greer.

The film begins with Robert Mitchum being confronted by William Bendix on a cruise ship. Bendix has a gun on Mitchum and you aren't sure what the context is for this. Who is the good guy and who is the bad and what has happened up until this time? Instead of making this clear, the film deliberately keeps this all rather vague--a very good choice in hindsight. Since Mitchum is the studly male lead, you aren't particularly surprised when he manages to overpower Bendix and escape.

Once Mitchum escapes, he goes looking for a man (Patric Knowles) and apparently Jane Greer is also looking for the same con man. However, again and again, Knowles slips through their hands and the film consists of a road trip across Mexico to get their hands on Knowles. He evidently stole something--but what? And what about Bendix? Tune in and find out for yourself.

As I mentioned above, the story works well due to the writing and acting. Greer and Mitchum are a good pair and their dialog is actually quite snappy and funny. I also appreciated how the Mexicans were portrayed--they were normal folks--something unusual for 1940s Hollywood.

Overall, an exciting and fun film from start to finish and a next followup from their last film together, OUT OF THE PAST. However, according to the accompanying featurette (a DVD extra), Greer was not the first choice but Lizbeth Scott refused to star in the film with Mitchum following his arrest for marijuana possession.

'The Big Steal' sees Robert Mitchum and Jane Greer team up again after their earlier Noir classic 'Out Of The Past', which is still one of the greatest Film Noirs ever made. 'The Big Steal' isn't as good, that's a fact, but it's a very different kind of movie, and comparing the two is a bit unfair. It's much lighter in tone and approach. Still Mitchum and Greer make a great team and it's a pity they didn't work together more. Director Don Siegel went on to make 'Invasion Of The Body Snatchers', 'The Killers' and 'Dirty Harry', all great favourites of mine, but 'The Big Steal' is just as good and is not to be overlooked. It's a great piece of entertainment and also features a very good performance by William Bendix, who I also really enjoyed in Hitchcock's underrated 'Lifeboat'. Forget about 'Out Of The Past' and just enjoy 'The Big Steal' for what it is, a thriller that is a great fun film.

Jane and Duke meet in Vera Cruz, where they have both come to find Jim Friske – Jane because she is missing $2000, Duke because Friske has stolen hundreds of thousands that Duke has been accused of stealing. Duke himself is being pursued by Captain Blake to get the money back and bring him to justice. Duke gives Blake the slip but Friske gets away from all of them; believing Jane to know more than she is letting on Duke limpets to her to get to Friske, only for both of them to get pulled in front of the local Inspector General Ortega. All these players dance around one another as each tries to get what they want while also protecting themselves from the others.

Opening with a couple of sudden slaps and punches I assumed this was going to be a very rough pot-boiler but in fact it turned out to be not only tough but also pretty amusing and slick. The basic plot is a bit contrived and requires all the characters to be able to move around one another without getting an easy solution. This does produce some amusing interactions as the story stays quite tight on the way to a nicely twisty conclusion. It isn't dark enough or strong enough to be classed as a serious crime thriller or noir (which it absurdly is listed as by this site) but it is certainly entertaining and tough enough to be worth checking out.

The cast really help and seem to "get" the tone of the material. Mitchum is tough but has a good humour about him that sets up the rest of the film; he has judged it well and his easy charm gives him chemistry with Greer. She is also good – light and sassy without straying too much outside of the role of needy female. Bendix is tough and flustered in a good way while Knowles makes for quite a nice relaxed thief that sits well with the playing that the script requires him and the other characters to do. Novarro is a fun addition and he works well as the observer in the background.

Overall this is not a tough gritty noir that it may appear to be from the period and those involved but it is still a fun crime drama. It is occasionally quite rough while also having a slight caper feel to it but the overall impact is one of quite a slick and enjoyable film that makes up for in fun what it loses in grit.

A rogue's runaway with the cash, a payroll, there's quite a backlash, Duke Halliday's on the hook, accusations that he took, ran away with the wages in a flash. There's Joan who's been conned by Jim Fiske, a fiancé she thought had no risk, but he's off with her cash, her hard earned saved stash, his escape is increasingly brisk. Captain Blake's on the tail of them all, along tracks, along trails he trawls, a man on a mission, with a mean disposition, intent on recovering the haul.

I's entertaining fayre, with a chase around the highways and byways of Mexico, with the delightful Jane Greer stealing the show.