User reviews

"Illegal" is an intelligent and nimble little crackerjack of a crime thriller starring Edward G. Robinson as a D.A who's maybe a little too smart - and smart-assed - for his own good. He's ruthless because his job requires him to be. He wins cases. That's what he's paid for. He's quick of wit and tongue. He's ambitious, canny and - technically, at least - in compliance with the law. He's, at heart, a good man, and he's in the public eye, but he's not universally well-liked. One day, he sends the wrong man to the chair. And he comes undone.

This sets in motion a plot that winds and twists without becoming outlandish. The picture, which doesn't strike me as a "noir", moves at a nice clip, each of the broad spectrum of characters is painted with a defining brush stroke, and the dialogue is efficient and snappy. It's the kind of movie that hooks you and hooks you good. It did me.

"Illegal" is, above all, an Edward G. Robinson picture. It doesn't seem like a star vehicle. Robinson shares the screen with everyone, yet he is such a forceful presence and creates such a complex and complicated character, sympathetic yet warped, you search him out in every scene. You want to watch him. He's magnetic. I'm becoming a real Edward G. Robinson fan on the strength of his 40's and 50's films alone, some of them comic reminders of his earlier gangster persona. He's as good in this movie as he is in "Scarlet Street", which I saw recently for the first time and which, well... kinda sorta blew my mind. I've lived a little and can recognize the truths that some of these lively, well-written B-movies shine a light on.

This movie reminded me of how great an actor Edward G. Robinson was. His performance is absolutely brilliant as the tough crime-fighting D.A. who sends an innocent man to the electric chair, then drowns his sorrows in the bottle and morphs into an unscrupulous attorney for the Mob.

There is some terrific dialog, like when he admonishes the new D.A. with: "When you sit in that chair and have a thought, just remember, I sat there too and had it before you."

Although the remainder of the cast deliver good performances, the movie is basically a showcase of Robinson's incredible acting talent. He dominates every scene he is in -- except where the gorgeous Jayne Mansfield is present, who plays the crime boss's classy mistress.

Mansfield is poetry-in-motion, a screen goddess, and much better than Marilyn Monroe ever was. This is her film debut and she only appears in a few short scenes - which she totally steals - but is absolutely stunning eye candy. It's worth noting that although Mansfield is portrayed as a dumb blonde, in real life she had an IQ of 163, spoke 5 languages, and was an accomplished pianist - a talent she splendidly shows off in the movie by playing and singing for the crime boss.

The direction and cinematography are good. There are some nice plot twists and Robinson finally redeems his character in an unexpected ending. This movie is classic noir and not to be missed.

Victor Scott (Edward G. Robinson), a highly accomplished prosecuting attorney becomes disillusioned when he learns that the man he was responsible for sending to the electric chair (DeForest Kelly) has finally been exonerated and found to be innocent after all.

With his reputation now in tatters he hits the bottle ending up on skid row. But he slowly picks himself up from the gutter becomes a defence lawyer and a "fixer" for racketeer Frank Garland (Albert Dekker.)

Edward G. Robinson delivers a cracker of a performance yet again as an ambitious D. A with a perfect track record of winning cases, but unknowingly sends an innocent man to the electric chair, and turns to demon alcohol as his career goes down the doldrums, and then gets embroiled into dirty mob politics. The plot is taut, the dialogue and the performances are sharp -it's a gripping legal noir thriller without misstepping into dullness.

"Illegal" is a fantastic drama about crime, justice, the courts, criminal law and big time crime. Much of what makes this such a superb film is the great performance by Edward G. Robinson. His Victor Scott goes from the top prosecutor of crime as a District Attorney, to a defender of the guilty, including the big time operators who have the money. The change comes about when Scott resigns as DA after an innocent man dies in the electric chair, whom he had prosecuted.

All is not lost, of course, in spite of Scott's claim that he always has to win - no matter what side he is on. The nice turns of events throughout the film happen with Scott's cunning and mastery of the law. That, and his background in coming from a rough neighborhood himself.

Nina Foch has a nice role as Ellen Miles, an associate DA, whom Scott promised her father to help and look after. That's after her dad, who was a judge, gave Scott breaks and helped him get ahead. The rest of the supporting cast fill their parts nicely in this very entertaining and interesting film. It's not a great mystery, but it has a tinge of that - always about what will happen next with Victor Scott.

Mostly, this is a masterful performance by the wonderful E. G. Robinson. It's even interesting to note that the famous paintings that are in the movie, and that Scott admires on the wall of Frank Garland's pad, were actually loaned to Warner Brothers for the movie, by Robinson himself. He was a known collector and somewhat expert on great art works.

I can't imagine anyone not enjoying this film. In one scene, a courtroom breaks out in applause at Scott's stupendous closing statement and the judge has to gavel them down. Here are a couple of favorite lines from this film.

Victor Scott, "How can a lawyer help anyone who won't tell him the truth?"

Victor Scott, "As for me, I'd rather see a hundred guilty men go free than convict another innocent man."

I never watched a movie with Edward G. Robinson. But this movie captured my attention by the clean acting and filming. I like to watch old movies as an escape from today's world. It has to be a good presentation to capture and hold my attention. Very good movie!