The Moonshine War

After reading Mr. MacIntyre's review about "The 1932 Moonshine War" I'd have to conclude that Mr. MacIntyre's review of this movie was 80 percent ignorance and 20 percent assumption.

The movie is based in the last days before the repeal of the 18th Amendment of the U.S. Constitituion which made it a crime to import, buy or drink alcohol. A complete failure in regard to legislation. The principle of the movie revolved around a LARGE stash of 8 year old whiskey owned by Alan Alda's char acer that distributors would of paid twice their weight in gold for. What Mr. MacIntyre's missed was that the time and place were during the Great Depression in the Kentucky, the American South, which was triple-poor compared to the rest of the world. Alan Alda's character was not part of a family, but a member of a community who made whiskey to sell to the rest of the country because the soil of their farms could produce little else to keep them from going hungry. It was choice many people made during those times. The whiskey for Alda's character was a legacy from his father and his ticket out of the poor house along with his lady friend. Part of the dialog was leaving to go live in California, the eternal promise land even by today's standards.

Patrick McGooan's character was CROOKED, as in criminal, Federal officer looking to make himself rich from his old Army buddy "Son Martin's" whiskey. He was anything, but hard working and when confronted by the black man with the shotgun, even less so. Thus, his contact with Richard Widmark and his gang. When the gang found they no longer needed McGooan's character they turned on him. In turn Alda's neighbors turned on him, when the gang, posing as MORE Federal officers started raiding his neighbors stills and homes. They refused him service and credit at the local store among other things. I saw this flick as teenager and the storyline has remained with me for decades. It seemed that much of the story revolved around the old nursery rhyme about Chicky Licky who no one wanted to help make the bread, but they sure wanted to help eat it. The same thing is definitive in this movie, but the ending was beautiful in the destruction of the bad guys and the reconciliation of the neighbors. I'm surprised this movie isn't out on DVD or VHS.

This is one crazy bizarre film. Not so much the story, but the casting. Patrick McGoogan as the corrupt prohibition guy is just hilarious, I was waiting for him to yell out "Who is number one?" just for fun. Richard Widmark was also funny, as the bad guy working with Patrick McGoogan. It was weird to see Alan Alda playing the role of the dude with all of the moonshine. One crazy thing if it is 1932, why is there a countryish pop song that sounds like it is from the late 60's playing through this picture? Maybe to be funny. This movie is sometimes fun to watch, but it may annoy some. It was made during that down period at MGM, when studio hands were changing. Maybe Warner Archives will put this out on DVD.

It's a damn shame this cheering slice of deep-friend southernsploitation fun seems to have slipped through the cracks of b-movie cinema for good. Adapted by Elmore Leonard from one of his books, this story, taking place during the end of Prohibition and two months before Roosevelt's election, of a gang of bootleggers led by a middle-aged Richard Widmark trying to get ahold of a large amount of whiskey stashed away by hillbilly Alan Alda, is as unassuming as it is riveting in its own pulpy way. Certain moments of distinctly Leonard-esquire badassitude, such as a scene where Widmark's top dog, played by songwriter Lee Hazlewood of all people, makes a couple strip in a cafe, is right up there with the 'ticket scene' in HOMBRE. Ex-film noir star with a prolific career behind him, Richard Widmark in the role of gang leader Dr. Emmett Taulbee seems to be having the time of his life, Patrick McGoohan is quite good in a role screaming for Warren Oates and Alan Alda is kind of lost in the general excitement. Nothing out of the ordinary here, just a solid, unpretentious, southern-flavoured b-movie, with a crackling script and some good performances, it would probably develop a cult following if it had a DVD release.

Prohibition enforcement agent Patrick McGoohan shows up and tries to track down Alan Alda's reported stash of moonshine, thousands of gallons he is aging in anticipation of Roosevelt's election and legalization of booze. When Alda says no, McGoohan brings in bootlgeer Richard Widmark, who starts a war with Alda for the liquor.

It's filled with thoroughly unlikable characters, with Widmark returning to his early, sociopathic roles, McGoohan utterly corrupt, and Alda very convincing as an unlikable moonshiner. Quine, who had been riding high in the 1950s, was near the end of his string, and was clearly trying to get some of that Bonnie-and-Clyde vibe, but everything is too clean for the back-end setting of hillbilly country just before the 1932 election. Still, it's a fine opportunity to see some classic supporting actors in brief bits, including Will Geer, Harry Carey Jr., and Max Showalter, and some players becoming well known inbits, including Teri Garr, John Schuck, and Tom Skerritt. Despite these small pleasures, it's a thoroughly and probably deliberately nasty movie. Elmore Leonard scripted from his own novel.

I suppose I was fortunate enough to see The Moonshine War in that garden spot of the earth, Fort Polk, Louisiana when it first came out. With all the southern recruits around me, that audience certainly identified with. Would they only have known at the time what a liberal Alan Alda would turn out to be.

Alda is miles from Hawkeye Pierce in this film. He's a young moonshiner who's got some of the finest product around, comparatively speaking. And in those last days before America came to its senses and repealed Prohibition, he's got a short window of opportunity to get rid of his stash before legal liquor goes on the market again.

Trouble is that two people want his product real bad. One is gangster Richard Widmark, back again in those villainous roles that first brought him stardom. The second is treasury agent Patrick McGoohan, one of those despised revenuers that the hillbilly folk don't like.

McGoohan is no Eliot Ness, in fact he's more typical of the treasury agents from back in the day, crooks themselves trying to take advantage of an unpopular law. Yet even with gangsters gunning for Alda, the hill folk won't give McGoohan the right time of day.

The Moonshine War was an entertaining film, nothing special about it, but no disgrace to anyone involved. Except for the ending which was a classic of its kind. I can't say more, but if for no other reason see this film to see how Mr. Widmark and cronies are dealt with.