Key Largo (film)
Encyclopedia
Key Largo is a 1948 film noir
directed by John Huston
and starring Humphrey Bogart
, Edward G. Robinson
, Lauren Bacall
, Lionel Barrymore
, and Claire Trevor
. The movie was adapted by Richard Brooks
and Huston from Maxwell Anderson
's 1939 play of the same name
, which played on Broadway for 105 performances in 1939 and 1940.
Key Largo was the fourth and final film pairing of married actors Bogart and Bacall. Trevor won the 1948 Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance.
) visits a Key Largo
hotel run by James Temple (Lionel Barrymore
), the father of McCloud's World War II
buddy, and his daughter-in-law Nora (Lauren Bacall
), the friend's widow, to pay his respects. Temple is deep in grief over the death of his son, and is under the impression that he died a hero in Italy. McCloud does not disabuse him of this, and at Temple's urging he relates exactly the story Temple wants to hear, although it is apparent that McCloud was the actual hero. Nora later confirms this, having had a letter from her husband with the true story.
McCloud finds out that the visitors who are staying at the hotel, supposedly on a fishing trip, are actually notorious fugitive gangster Johnny Rocco (Edward G. Robinson
) and his gang. The gangsters have crossed by boat from Cuba
, where Rocco is living in exile, to make a "delivery". Once Rocco's identity is revealed by McCloud, the mobsters drop the pretense and take over the hotel, keeping McCloud, Temple and Nora at bay with the threat of violence; meanwhile, a hurricane is brewing up, heading in the direction of the Key.
After a local deputy is subdued and captured by the gang, Frank rejects an apparent opportunity to kill Rocco when the gangster throws him a pistol and dares him to shoot. McCloud's unwillingness to act raises doubts about his courage, but Rocco's abasement of his alcoholic mistress, singer Gaye Dawn (Claire Trevor
), and his hand in the murders of the deputy and two local Indians convinces Frank that Rocco must be stopped. His chance comes when Rocco forces Frank to pilot the gang's boat back to Cuba. Once at sea, Frank kills off each member of the gang one-by-one, ending with Rocco. The gang dead, he turns the boat back to Key Largo, where Nora awaits him.
. In the play, the gangsters are Mexican bandidos, the war in question is the Spanish Civil War
, and Frank is a disgraced deserter who dies at the end.
Robinson had always had top billing over Bogart in their previous films together. For this movie, Robinson's name appears to the right of Bogart's, but placed a little higher on the posters, and also in the film's opening credits, to indicate Robinson's near-equal status. Robinson's image was also markedly larger and centered on the original poster, with Bogart relegated to the background. In the film's trailer, Bogart is repeatedly mentioned first but Robinson's name is listed above Bogart's in a cast list at the very end.
Exterior shots of the hurricane that delays the gang's getaway were actually taken from stock footage
used in Night Unto Night
, a Ronald Reagan
melodrama
made the same year by Warner Bros.
discussed "where Claire Trevor sings the song 'Moanin' Low.'" The song is "about a woman who's trapped in a relationship with a very cruel man. And ... you see [Trevor as Gaye] realize that that's exactly her real life situation. [Trevor's performance] slowly break[s] down, and her voice falters and she sings off key." Robinson is dismissive but "Bogart pours her a stiff drink, walks it over ... under gunpoint ... and gives it to her and says 'You deserve this' -- it's just a great dramatic scene, [and] it's a wonderful use of a song in a non-musical picture. [Trevor] won [the Academy Award] based purely, I think, on that performance."
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
directed by John Huston
John Huston
John Marcellus Huston was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics: The Maltese Falcon , The Treasure of the Sierra Madre , Key Largo , The Asphalt Jungle , The African Queen , Moulin Rouge...
and starring Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
, Edward G. Robinson
Edward G. Robinson
Edward G. Robinson was a Romanian-born American actor. A popular star during Hollywood's Golden Age, he is best remembered for his roles as gangsters, such as Rico in his star-making film Little Caesar and as Rocco in Key Largo...
, Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall is an American film and stage actress and model, known for her distinctive husky voice and sultry looks.She first emerged as leading lady in the Humphrey Bogart film To Have And Have Not and continued on in the film noir genre, with appearances in The Big Sleep and Dark Passage ,...
, Lionel Barrymore
Lionel Barrymore
Lionel Barrymore was an American actor of stage, screen and radio. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in A Free Soul...
, and Claire Trevor
Claire Trevor
Claire Trevor was an Academy Award-winning American actress. She was nicknamed the "Queen of Film Noir" because of her many appearances in "bad girl” roles in film noir and other black-and-white thrillers...
. The movie was adapted by Richard Brooks
Richard Brooks
Richard Brooks was an American screenwriter, film director, novelist and occasional film producer.-Early life and career:...
and Huston from Maxwell Anderson
Maxwell Anderson
James Maxwell Anderson was an American playwright, author, poet, journalist and lyricist.-Early years:Anderson was born in Atlantic, Pennsylvania, the second of eight children to William Lincoln "Link" Anderson, a Baptist minister, and Charlotte Perrimela Stephenson, both of Scots and Irish descent...
's 1939 play of the same name
Key Largo (play)
Key Largo was a play written in blank verse by Maxwell Anderson that became the basis for the 1948 film by the same name.-Plot:A deserter of the Spanish Civil War played by Paul Muni redeems himself in death by defending the family of a true war hero against some bandits on the tiny island of Key...
, which played on Broadway for 105 performances in 1939 and 1940.
Key Largo was the fourth and final film pairing of married actors Bogart and Bacall. Trevor won the 1948 Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance.
Plot
Ex-Major Frank McCloud (Humphrey BogartHumphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
) visits a Key Largo
Key Largo, Florida
Key Largo is a census-designated place in Monroe County, Florida, United States, located on the island of Key Largo in the upper Florida Keys. The population was 11,886 at the 2000 census. The name comes from the Spanish Cayo Largo, or "long key"...
hotel run by James Temple (Lionel Barrymore
Lionel Barrymore
Lionel Barrymore was an American actor of stage, screen and radio. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in A Free Soul...
), the father of McCloud's World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
buddy, and his daughter-in-law Nora (Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall is an American film and stage actress and model, known for her distinctive husky voice and sultry looks.She first emerged as leading lady in the Humphrey Bogart film To Have And Have Not and continued on in the film noir genre, with appearances in The Big Sleep and Dark Passage ,...
), the friend's widow, to pay his respects. Temple is deep in grief over the death of his son, and is under the impression that he died a hero in Italy. McCloud does not disabuse him of this, and at Temple's urging he relates exactly the story Temple wants to hear, although it is apparent that McCloud was the actual hero. Nora later confirms this, having had a letter from her husband with the true story.
McCloud finds out that the visitors who are staying at the hotel, supposedly on a fishing trip, are actually notorious fugitive gangster Johnny Rocco (Edward G. Robinson
Edward G. Robinson
Edward G. Robinson was a Romanian-born American actor. A popular star during Hollywood's Golden Age, he is best remembered for his roles as gangsters, such as Rico in his star-making film Little Caesar and as Rocco in Key Largo...
) and his gang. The gangsters have crossed by boat from Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, where Rocco is living in exile, to make a "delivery". Once Rocco's identity is revealed by McCloud, the mobsters drop the pretense and take over the hotel, keeping McCloud, Temple and Nora at bay with the threat of violence; meanwhile, a hurricane is brewing up, heading in the direction of the Key.
After a local deputy is subdued and captured by the gang, Frank rejects an apparent opportunity to kill Rocco when the gangster throws him a pistol and dares him to shoot. McCloud's unwillingness to act raises doubts about his courage, but Rocco's abasement of his alcoholic mistress, singer Gaye Dawn (Claire Trevor
Claire Trevor
Claire Trevor was an Academy Award-winning American actress. She was nicknamed the "Queen of Film Noir" because of her many appearances in "bad girl” roles in film noir and other black-and-white thrillers...
), and his hand in the murders of the deputy and two local Indians convinces Frank that Rocco must be stopped. His chance comes when Rocco forces Frank to pilot the gang's boat back to Cuba. Once at sea, Frank kills off each member of the gang one-by-one, ending with Rocco. The gang dead, he turns the boat back to Key Largo, where Nora awaits him.
Cast
- Humphrey BogartHumphrey BogartHumphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
as Frank McCloud - Edward G. RobinsonEdward G. RobinsonEdward G. Robinson was a Romanian-born American actor. A popular star during Hollywood's Golden Age, he is best remembered for his roles as gangsters, such as Rico in his star-making film Little Caesar and as Rocco in Key Largo...
as Johnny Rocco - Lauren BacallLauren BacallLauren Bacall is an American film and stage actress and model, known for her distinctive husky voice and sultry looks.She first emerged as leading lady in the Humphrey Bogart film To Have And Have Not and continued on in the film noir genre, with appearances in The Big Sleep and Dark Passage ,...
as Nora Temple - Lionel BarrymoreLionel BarrymoreLionel Barrymore was an American actor of stage, screen and radio. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in A Free Soul...
as James Temple - Claire TrevorClaire TrevorClaire Trevor was an Academy Award-winning American actress. She was nicknamed the "Queen of Film Noir" because of her many appearances in "bad girl” roles in film noir and other black-and-white thrillers...
as Gaye Dawn - Thomas GomezThomas GomezThomas Gomez was an American actor.Born Sabino Tomas Gomez in New York City, Gomez began his acting career in theater during the 1920s and was a student of the actor Walter Hampden...
as Richard "Curly" Hoff - Harry Lewis as Edward "Toots" Bass
- John RodneyJohn RodneyJohn Rodney is a retired American actor, who worked in film and television. He also used the name John Flynn.-Career:He was born in Brooklyn, New York and his career spanned from the 1940s until the 1960s, with over a dozen significant movie roles. He is probably best known to audiences as Deputy...
as Deputy Clyde Sawyer - Marc LawrenceMarc LawrenceMarc Lawrence was an American character actor who specialized in underworld types. He has also been credited as F. A. Foss, Marc Laurence and Marc C...
as Ziggy - Dan SeymourDan SeymourDan Seymour was a character actor who frequently played villains in Warner Bros. films. He appeared in several Humphrey Bogart films, including Casablanca, Key Largo, and To Have and Have Not....
as Angel Garcia - Monte BlueMonte BlueMonte Blue was a movie actor who began his career as a romantic leading man in the silent film era, and later progressed to character roles....
as Sheriff Ben Wade - William HaadeWilliam HaadeWilliam Haade was an American film actor. He appeared in over 250 films between 1937 and 1957.He was born in New York, and died in Los Angeles, California.-Selected filmography:* The Invisible Menace...
as Ralph Feeney - Jay SilverheelsJay SilverheelsJay Silverheels was a Canadian Mohawk First Nations actor. He was well known for his role as Tonto, the faithful American Indian companion of the Lone Ranger in a long-running American television series. -Early life:...
as John Osceola - Rodd RedwingRodd RedwingRodd Redwing , , was a Native American actor, noted for being the world’s greatest quick-draw artist with six-guns...
as Tom Osceola
Production
The script was adapted from a 1939 play by Maxwell AndersonMaxwell Anderson
James Maxwell Anderson was an American playwright, author, poet, journalist and lyricist.-Early years:Anderson was born in Atlantic, Pennsylvania, the second of eight children to William Lincoln "Link" Anderson, a Baptist minister, and Charlotte Perrimela Stephenson, both of Scots and Irish descent...
. In the play, the gangsters are Mexican bandidos, the war in question is the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, and Frank is a disgraced deserter who dies at the end.
Robinson had always had top billing over Bogart in their previous films together. For this movie, Robinson's name appears to the right of Bogart's, but placed a little higher on the posters, and also in the film's opening credits, to indicate Robinson's near-equal status. Robinson's image was also markedly larger and centered on the original poster, with Bogart relegated to the background. In the film's trailer, Bogart is repeatedly mentioned first but Robinson's name is listed above Bogart's in a cast list at the very end.
Exterior shots of the hurricane that delays the gang's getaway were actually taken from stock footage
Stock footage
Stock footage, and similarly, archive footage, library pictures and file footage are film or video footage that may or may not be custom shot for use in a specific film or television program. Stock footage is of beneficial use to filmmakers as it is sometimes less expensive than shooting new...
used in Night Unto Night
Night Unto Night
Night Unto Night is a 1949 drama film directed by Don Siegel, based on the 1944 novel by Philip Wylie.-Cast:* Ronald Reagan - John Galen* Viveca Lindfors - Ann Gracy* Broderick Crawford - C.L. Shawn* Rosemary DeCamp - Thalia Shawn* Osa Massen - Lisa...
, a Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
melodrama
Melodrama
The term melodrama refers to a dramatic work that exaggerates plot and characters in order to appeal to the emotions. It may also refer to the genre which includes such works, or to language, behavior, or events which resemble them...
made the same year by Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
Song
Author Philip FuriaPhilip Furia
Philip George Furia is an American author and English literature professor. His books focus on the lyricists of the Tin Pan Alley era.- Biography :...
discussed "where Claire Trevor sings the song 'Moanin' Low.'" The song is "about a woman who's trapped in a relationship with a very cruel man. And ... you see [Trevor as Gaye] realize that that's exactly her real life situation. [Trevor's performance] slowly break[s] down, and her voice falters and she sings off key." Robinson is dismissive but "Bogart pours her a stiff drink, walks it over ... under gunpoint ... and gives it to her and says 'You deserve this' -- it's just a great dramatic scene, [and] it's a wonderful use of a song in a non-musical picture. [Trevor] won [the Academy Award] based purely, I think, on that performance."
Awards and Nominations
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes and Villains:
- Johnny Rocco - Nominated Villain
- AFI's 10 Top 10AFI's 10 Top 10AFI's 10 Top 10 honors the ten greatest American films in ten classic film genres. Presented by the American Film Institute , the lists were unveiled on a television special broadcast by CBS on June 17, 2008....
- Nominated Gangster Film
In popular culture
- The 1981 song "Key LargoKey Largo (song)"Key Largo" is a popular song recorded by Bertie Higgins in 1981. Released as a single in September 1981, the song became Higgins' only Top 40 hit in the United States in early 1982, when it peaked at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song spent 17 weeks in the Top 40 and was certified Gold by...
", by singer-songwriter Bertie Higgins, draws heavily on influences from the film. This song hit the Top 10 on the pop chartBillboard Hot 100The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
in the United States and went to #1 on the adult contemporary chartHot Adult Contemporary TracksThe Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
. - One scene in the "Vapors" episode of seaQuest DSVSeaQuest DSVseaQuest DSV is an American science fiction television series created by Rockne S. O'Bannon. It originally aired on NBC between 1993 and 1996. In its final season, it was renamed seaQuest 2032. Set in "the near future", seaQuest mixes high drama with realistic scientific fiction...
during the second season showed Tim O'Neill and Lonnie Henderson coming out of an interactive theme park version of the film.
External links
- Key Largo at Film Virtual History
- Radio adaptation of the film by Lux Radio Theater, originally broadcast on November 28, 1949 and hosted at the Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...