This melodramatic romantic film has its four leads in typecast archetypes rather than real flesh and blood characters. Ricardo Montalban is the typical hard-working Mexican immigrants, his only goal working so he can get an honest day's pay, Wendell Corey as the American who cheats him, Claire Trevor as the sexually frustrated wife (who wouldn't be with Corey as their husband?) and Shelley Winters as the sad and cynical drunk whom Montalban is determined to save from herself. Violence erupts between Montalban and Corey when failed attempts to get paid result in a frame up by him and his wife. It's obvious, however, that the same flea Montalban will prevail and walk into the sunset after he rescues the drunken maiden in distress.
The performances are all very good even if the characterizations aren't sharp. Even the soulless eyes of the dreary Corey works with his nasty character, and Trevor, in spite of playing the same character that she had basically played in her Oscar-winning performance in "Key Largo", is mesmerizing to watch. The problem is that her basic look is very similar to Winters so it might have worked to have had someone different looking in one of the other female roles.
There was always the sense on screen that Montalban was basically playing a character very close to himself, handsome and noble and a fighter for justice. on those rare occasions where he played villains, it was basically a slap in the face to the audience. When his character get angry here, there is no way the audience could root against him. His temper is hinted at even more in a memorable brief bit when he intrudes on Winters, now working as a dancehall hostess, cutting in on the sailor who has just given her another ticket.
Winters is always fascinating to watch, call bruton character cynical and initially hateful to Montalban, mocking him for his incessant nobility, but realizing that she has hit pay dirt when it comes to the man she falls in love with. Whether or not there romance is believable as it grows is up to the viewer to decide, but I chose to give them the benefit of the doubt even though there are definite holes in the plot. Winters is perfect at playing these emotionally lost women who have been beaten by life because no matter the ridiculousness of the story, she throws herself in 100% to make you root for her no matter her station in life or how trashy the character seems to be.
In smaller roles as Mexican Americans, José Torvay and Jack Elam are very good as Dave show the influence in which they have aided Montalban in remaining straight and only fighting for what is naturally do to him. The build-up to how Corey and Trevor get their comeuppance is nice and suspenseful. This is a second string MGM melodrama that attempts in its own way to be profound in dealing with injustice, but the script weekends it from fully succeeding in its goals. For veteran director William A. Wellman, it's not one of his most well-known directorial credits, but she does build up the tension to aid the final to keeping the audience involved.
The performances are all very good even if the characterizations aren't sharp. Even the soulless eyes of the dreary Corey works with his nasty character, and Trevor, in spite of playing the same character that she had basically played in her Oscar-winning performance in "Key Largo", is mesmerizing to watch. The problem is that her basic look is very similar to Winters so it might have worked to have had someone different looking in one of the other female roles.
There was always the sense on screen that Montalban was basically playing a character very close to himself, handsome and noble and a fighter for justice. on those rare occasions where he played villains, it was basically a slap in the face to the audience. When his character get angry here, there is no way the audience could root against him. His temper is hinted at even more in a memorable brief bit when he intrudes on Winters, now working as a dancehall hostess, cutting in on the sailor who has just given her another ticket.
Winters is always fascinating to watch, call bruton character cynical and initially hateful to Montalban, mocking him for his incessant nobility, but realizing that she has hit pay dirt when it comes to the man she falls in love with. Whether or not there romance is believable as it grows is up to the viewer to decide, but I chose to give them the benefit of the doubt even though there are definite holes in the plot. Winters is perfect at playing these emotionally lost women who have been beaten by life because no matter the ridiculousness of the story, she throws herself in 100% to make you root for her no matter her station in life or how trashy the character seems to be.
In smaller roles as Mexican Americans, José Torvay and Jack Elam are very good as Dave show the influence in which they have aided Montalban in remaining straight and only fighting for what is naturally do to him. The build-up to how Corey and Trevor get their comeuppance is nice and suspenseful. This is a second string MGM melodrama that attempts in its own way to be profound in dealing with injustice, but the script weekends it from fully succeeding in its goals. For veteran director William A. Wellman, it's not one of his most well-known directorial credits, but she does build up the tension to aid the final to keeping the audience involved.