The Mob

I sometimes find myself thinking about actors who are playing actors, or one's who are playing detectives or other people pretending to be somebody else. There's a balancing act to be done, because they're playing somebody playing somebody - and if they are really good actors there's a danger that they'll do a better job than what their character would ordinarily have done. Broderick Crawford has this balancing act to do as Johnny Damico in The Mob. Johnny is a police officer who has missed a trick and let a big-time murderer and gangster off the hook after witnessing a murder he commits. This murderer, Crime Boss Blackie Clegg, becomes the target of Johnny's undercover stint - a dangerous job given to him to make up for the fact he let Blackie go - Blackie having tossed Johnny a badge before running off claiming he was going to "call the murder in" at a local store. Johnny is sent to New Orleans with the intention of working his way back home as Tim Flynn - a tough guy who will no doubt attract attention and hopefully work his way into prospective employment by Blackie. He'll in the meantime be framed for murder, investigated by federal agents and get into many scrapes. It's a tough, deadly job - but it's one that Johnny is well and truly up for.

The Mob is all about Broderick Crawford and his performance - he'd just recently won an Oscar for playing Willie Stark in All the King's Men, and his turn here is so powerful and energetic you'd have to say that Johnny Demico was born to either go undercover or become an actor himself. He plays a confident, streetwise, cocky, defiant hood like he was born to be the best of them - doing almost too well in the role, for the crooks he comes across are suspicious of his apparent skill in the criminal arts. However that goes for Johnny in the movie, it works out fantastically for us in the audience because Tim Flynn is an entertaining character of the highest order, and watching him is exceedingly enjoyable and a whole load of fun. His cheek and various methods of speech make him an endearing man - but only because we know for a fact that this is all an act, and that the man is not only innocent, but a brave soldier on the front lines of law and order. Broderick Crawford went on an extensive publicity tour in support of The Mob, and everything worked out well for the film - his tour de force performance and commitment enough to make the public sit up and take notice. His sheen remains attached to the movie to this day.

For modern day audiences, The Mob also sticks out for the appearance of two future stars. First we see Charles Bronson in only his third ever film appearance - uncredited here, and only a bit part, but he had enough going for him to win a few lines which is always the currency of the eager young actor. Knowing Bronson as we do now, one almost expects his character to become a large part of the plot - but soon enough we're reminded of his obscurity when he disappears as soon as he showed up. Later on, in a larger (and credited) role a young Ernest Borgnine swaggers along as mid-level crime boss Joe Castro - an early foe for Johnny/Tim Flynn, and one who is certainly dangerous and difficult to deal with. Borgnine really developed a cuddly kind of aura in his later years, but during this phase of his career he'd often get casted in villainous roles simply because of his ugly (sorry Ernest) imposing look and heavy build. It was a good part for Borgnine, and he gets a fair bit of screen time and occasion to joust with our lead actor/character. Other performers, such as Neville Brand, were very much of the time and big in film noir, westerns and the like - Brand plays heavy Gunner - Joe Castro's hatchet man, and a big worry for the heavyset Johnny who at first doesn't look like a capable man in a fight (he'll fix that impression as the film advances.)

For us filmgoers director Robert Parrish and co set up a whole lot of tension, suspense and mystery in the film, and the pace keeps us propelled forward without the moving images losing their grip on us. So many scenes have that "Oh no!" hook to them, and see Johnny in situations where he has to think fast, or hang on and hope for the best - but he also gets to exhibit his knowledge of the way cons and criminals operate, and his finely developed strategies for dealing with the various tricks they pull. He has little comfort, for he's exposed and will damn well never snitch on himself as far as being undercover goes - even as we start to wish he would. The threat of violence hangs over the movie like a heavy cloud, emphasised from the very start with the callous murder that sets events into motion. How much of this faithfully follows the events in the novel Waterfront, by Ferguson Findley, I do not know - but it suits a snappy 86-minute film noir format to a tee and is very enjoyable. There's a bold clearness to the narrative that steeps almost every step Johnny makes as one through a minefield of dangerous subterfuge, discovery and counter-move. It's so easy to follow, and easy to become gripped by. It also features "modern" crime fighting techniques that are innovative and interesting.

So, The Mob was a very fine little crime movie that I'd never heard of before and one that really hasn't aged all that badly really - something that you could nearly translate into a modern feature without too much about it really changing, if the time period it's set in stayed in the mid-20th Century range. You imagine what might happen to Johnny if his cover is compromised, and those he ends up rubbing shoulders with would obviously hurt him - a mix of spoiler-heavy characters with surprises in store for a first-time viewer. It's one hell of a punishment for missing the chance to nab a killer (reminding me of the punishment battalions armies would use during the Second World War, in which the likes of Neville Brand, Richard Kiley, Ernest Borgnine and Charles Bronson fought.) These crime thrillers seem built as almost disposable box office fodder, but when you go back and watch them they can have surprising value despite that - especially when there's an inspired performance the likes of which we get from Broderick Crawford here. Not one that would be showered with film awards or recognition, but one which cements the movie as something good and worthwhile. Real heroes don't have to be built like Superman, or even be handsome in a conventional way - yet they can be smart, dedicated, clever and obviously able to act the part to win the day.

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