Under My Skin

A career which began in 1937 and which is still buoyant today in 2010! Micheline Presles was one of the greatest French actresses of all time whose longevity is rivaled only but that of Danielle Darrieux.(both actresses were featured in the delightful comedy "Le Jour Des Rois" in the nineties).

Although she was fluent in English, she was not as lucky in her American movies : her work with Fritz Lang was downright disappointing and this one (ridiculous French title :" La Belle De Paris" !!!)is hardly better. However John Garfied is one of my favorite American actors (not a star,a true artist)and it's him and his co-star who give this parboiled melodrama substance ;the screenplay looks like a cross between "the champ " (thirties version ) and "the set up ", a jockey instead of a boxer.

The races take place in Chantilly and in Auteuil ,two racecourses (racetracks) famous here in France .Jean Negulesco shows respect for the audience :French people speak French between them and Presles begins to teach her first language to the jockey's son.She also sings songs in French and in English:I do not know if she was dubbed.

Considering the two leads' talent,"under my skin" is watchable but not particularly memorable.

Based on Ernest Hemingway's short story, "My Old Man," the 1950 screen adaptation directed by Jean Negulesco, "Under My Skin," is a passably entertaining film; unfortunately, the film's prime asset, star John Garfield, made only two more movies after this before his early death at age 39. Garfield is widowed expatriate Dan Butler, a jockey with shady dealings and an unhealthy relationship with a corrupt gambler played by Luther Adler. Actually, Butler is not the nicest guy, and his relationships with his son and girlfriend are not healthy either. Garfield's physique does not make him physically convincing as a jockey, although his tough guy persona is ideal for the caddish part he plays. His rough and neglectful treatment of his son, Joe, is borderline abusive; he drags the kid through a life in hotels, leaves him alone and hungry, and pushes him away emotionally and physically. Butler's tough girlfriend, played by Micheline Presle, is overly tolerant of his loutish behavior; while inexplicably melting for Butler, Presle sings French ballads in a nightclub, which does little but further slow already slow scenes.

Filmed on the 20th Century Fox back lot, Negulesco over uses obvious rear projection and long shots of doubles on location to suggest the story is set in France, where Garfield, Presle, and Adler are definitely not; unfortunately, the efforts to fake Paris create an artificial backdrop to some unconvincing drama. The personal relationships also seem fake; Presle's tender feelings for Garfield in particular fail to convince, and the son, played by Orley Lindgren, has the looks and demeanor of having grown up with another father entirely. When Garfield utters "I love you," to Presle the phrase seems to have popped out of nowhere, and the son's persistent blindness to his father's faults strains credibility.

Despite his miscasting and difficulty expressing warmth, Garfield owns the film, and he is the primary reason to see it. The horse-racing scenes are fairly good, although Garfield's training of a difficult horse into a winner largely occurs off screen. Other than the racing, the pace is leisurely, and Adler and his henchmen bark softly and scuff up, rather than rough up. Despite the film's flaws, Garfield is always worth watching, and his unlikeable Dan Butler fits him well.

I think that if John Garfield had lived he might have gone abroad as did so many of his peers did in the McCarthy era and such projects as Under My Skin might have had followups. The film is based on an Ernest Hemingway story about an exiled jockey living in Europe with his son, father and son being played by Garfield and Orley Lindgren.

It might have started out as a Hemingway story, but a seasoned film buff will recognize bits from Broadway Bill/Riding High, National Velvet, and The Champ. Garfield and Lindgren have to beat it out of Italy as he crosses up gangster Luther Adler and they flee to Paris. Where they take up with songstress Michelline Prelle and look for work, but Adler follows them there with an offer he thinks they can't refuse.

The shame and stigma for Garfield having been a cooperating witness at the HUAC hearings is roughly parallel to his role as a crooked jockey. Under My Skin is as much an explanation film for Garfield as On The Waterfront was for Elia Kazan. I think there's more Garfield/Jean Negulesco the director than Hemingway in this, Hemingway was never as sentimental as this film is.

Still it's not a bad one and I think Garfield may have done more projects like this had he lived.

More proof that John Garfield was a vastly underrated actor,great story of jockey torn between easy money and the respect he risks from those who love him. It may shake your faith in racing industry but top notch cast makes it ring true.

Back during the era when there was a Production Code, folks who were wicked HAD to be punished and the leading men had to be nice guys. That's just the way it was. However, over the years, this code began to ease just a bit--and in the case of "Under My Skin" it seems to have eased a lot, as the leading character, Dan (John Garfield) is with barely a single redeeming quality through much of the movie.

The film begins with Dan and his young son running away from bookies in Italy. It seems that he double-crossed one of them (Luther Adler) and now he and the kid are hiding out in France. Always looking for an angle, Dan is looking for that one score to make it big...but at heart he's just a cheap hustler. His son, on the other hand, doesn't yet realize the sort of guy his dad is...but you know sooner or later he will.

For once, Dan has a chance to do the right thing. He's gotten a horse who is a winner and he can take this horse to the top...if it wasn't for the bookie. This scum has finally caught up with Dan and threatens to kill him if he doesn't throw his next race. What's Dan to do-- take it safe or work, finally, for some self-respect?

Despite being a very downbeat film, this is a very good movie. It's quite unique and the acting is excellent. My only gripes are technical. Although I really liked this film, I was NOT impressed by having Garfield play a jockey. Sure, he's not exactly tall but he's way too tall and bulky to be believable. It's a shame, as he was otherwise excellent in the film. Additionally, some of the scenes are sloppy--such as the opening scene where the guy running is pretty obviously NOT Garfield and the horse race scenes where Garfield is clearly NOT riding a real horse but is acting against a rear- projected bit of footage (in a few, however, such as the BIG race near the end, it's done MUCH better). For these reasons, I couldn't score the film a bit higher--but it still is well worth seeing. Just don't expect a feel good film!!