THE GUN RUNNERS

Hemingway hero: Audie Murphy

THE GUN RUNNERS (1958). Director: Don Siegel.

Sam Martin (Audie Murphy of World in My Corner) has a charter boat operation that is barely squeaking by, and a pretty wife named Lucy (Patricia Owens of The Fly). One day a supposed fisherman named Hanagan (Eddie Albert) charters his boat and brings along his girlfriend, Eva (Gita Hall, who was introduced in this film). Hanagan makes Sam a proposition: to take him on an illegal voyage to Cuba, Sam is wary, but his boat is on the verge of being dispossessed, so he agrees, but he has his regrets as bodies begin to pile up.

Audie Murphy and Gita Hall

The Gun Runners is yet another adaptation of Ernest Hemingway's novel "To Have and Have Not," originally filmed as To Have and Have Not and later under the title The Breaking Point, the best and most faithful version of the three. On its own terms The Gun Runners -- even without Bogie and Bacall -- is at least as entertaining as To Have and Have Not. Murply's acting got better with each picture, and he's fine as an essentially decent man who makes some unfortunate decisions. Eddie Albert [On Your Toes], cast against type, is superb as the villain of the piece, and makes the most of his very nasty portrayal.

Everett Sloane

Another actor who almost steals the picture is Everett Sloane [The Big Knife], generally cast as executives and solid citizen types, herein also cast-against-type as an old rummy, Sam's alcoholic first mate, Harvey; he is outstanding. Alas the ladies in the cast don't fare as well. Patricia Owens simply doesn't have enough screen time to really register, and Gita Hall, although sexy and adequate in her femme fatale role, made only one other movie the same year and had one television credit fifty-five years later! Also in the cast are Richard Jaeckel and Paul Birch.

Verdict: Not the best version of the story, but Murphy makes an appealing and more-than-competent leading man. **1/2.

THE PRICE OF VALOR: THE LIFE OF AUDIE MURPHY

THE PRICE OF VALOR: The Life of Audie Murphy, America's Most Decorated Hero of World War II. David A. Smith. Regnery; 2015.

Audie Murphy, a poor farm boy who became the most decorated hero of WW2, beat the odds in combat and then also beat the Hollywood odds by becoming a movie star.  Murphy was never considered any kind of Laurence Olivier, but he gave convincing performances in films that employed his limited range and made good use of his pleasant but often angry and bitter demeanor. Murphy suffered from what today we would call PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder), which made it tough on his two wives, the first of which was actress Wanda Hendrix [The Admiral Was a Lady].; he also had a fling with actress Jean Peters [Vicki]. The first half of the book recounts Murphy's adventures as a soldier overseas, the campaigns he was part of, and the bravery he showed which led to him taking, and saving, many lives. At first he was contemptuous of other soldiers who broke down or cried in sheer terror, but he eventually developed some compassion for them. Never anxious to be seen as a "hero," his survivor guilt insured that he thought the real heroes were the men who died overseas.  As an actor Murphy appeared in the film version of his self-effacing memoir To Hell and Back, starred in John Huston's The Red Badge of Courage, and in addition to a variety of western films, appeared in everything from Bad Boy to The Unforgiven. Forever seeking the excitement of his early years, he developed a gambling addiction, suffered from perpetual nightmares, and always carried a gun. As he got older, Murphy found that times had changed to such an extent that he was seen as a a mere World War 2 relic; even his beloved westerns had undergone a psychological change. Ironically, after surviving so much during the war, he died in a plane crash at the age of 45. The Price of Valor is probably not the last word on Murphy, but it is a readable, fast-paced book that gives the reader most of the facts. Not a film historian, author Smith briefly covers the films but the book can't really be considered a career study.

Verdict: Informative look at the life of Audie Murphy. ***.

THE UNFORGIVEN (1960)

Murphy, Lillian Gish, Doug McClure, Audrey Hepburn  

THE UNFORGIVEN  (1960). Director: John Huston.

A mysterious man named Abe Kelsey (Joseph Wiseman) wanders around the ranch of the Zachary family, and his presence causes consternation in old Mattilda Zachary (Lillian Gish). Apparently Abe is spreading stories that Mattilda's adopted daughter, Rachel (Audrey Hepburn), is not white but a "red injun." Members of the Kiowa tribe seem to think the stories are true, and want Rachel returned to them. Neighbor Zeb Rawlins (Charles Bickford) wants the truth, too, or there'll be no more business dealings with the Zacharys. Then one of Zeb's sons is murdered, Abe Kelsey is captured, and the whole thing comes to a boil ... The Unforgiven has a fascinating but ultimately contrived premise that doesn't make nearly enough of the situation and operates on an almost shamefully superficial level. There are some powerful scenes in the movie, but too many questions remain unanswered. It all ends in a bloodbath wherein the one-dimensional Indians are pretty much picked off like flies and a supposedly "happy" ending is tacked on. For a movie that some feel is about racial intolerance, it is staggeringly racist itself. The acting is generally good, although of the once-removed Hollywood variety, which is particularly evident in the climax. Wiseman is excellent as Abe, demented by loneliness and grief, and Gish [The Cobweb] has a tremendously good moment confronting him for what turns out to be the final time. Burt Lancaster plays Rachel's step-brother, who is secretly in love with her, this being one of the new breed of psycho-sexual westerns (while still being stubbornly old-fashioned as regards Native Americans). Doug McClure overdoes the boyish posturing a bit as Lancaster's youngest brother, but Audie Murphy is effective as his other brother, Cash. John Saxon also makes his mark as a cowboy who may be an Indian, as does Carlos Rivas [The Black Scorpion] in a nearly silent role as a tribe member who may be Rachel's true brother. Kipp Hamilton [War of the Gargantuas] is also good as Zeb's daughter, who is anxious to marry one of the Zacharys, and June Walker is excellent as her mother, Hagar. For obvious reasons, Audrey Hepburn was hardly the best casting choice for the role of Rachel. The attack on the ranch at the climax is admittedly exciting and well-staged, but in some ways unconvincing, while Franz Planer's widescreen cinematography doesn't make the most of the settings, and Dimitri Tiomkin's score, aiming for the unusual perhaps, is one of his worst, only serving to muff some sequences that could have been moving. Apparently director John Huston was hampered from really making the film he wanted to make, resulting in this rather hypocritical exercise.

Verdict: Hollywood Cowboys and Indians -- when it could have been so much more. **.   

WORLD IN MY CORNER

Audie Murphy and Jeff Morrow

WORLD IN MY CORNER (1956). Director: Jesse Hibbs.

Tommy Shea (Audie Murphy of Bad Boy) is a hot-tempered guy from the wrong side of the tracks who has a chip on his shoulder and a desire to make good. He goes to work for wealthy Robert Mallinson (Jeff Morrow) and trains for the ring with Mallinson's employee, Dave Bernstein (John McIntire). Tommy has a couple of fights, but his friend, Ray (Tommy Rall), gets him involved with crooked fight promoter Harry Cram (Howard St. John of Strait-Jacket);Tommy refuses to take a dive, however. Meanwhile he and Mallinson's daughter, Dorothy (Barbara Rush of Flight to Hong Kong), are falling in love. Dorothy hates the fight game as much as she hates her father, but she is still rooting for her boyfriend during the climactic bout. World in My Corner makes use of the familiar boxing cliches, but it has an interesting script, some well-written dialogue (by Jack Sher), fairly exciting fight scenes, and some very good acting. Audie Murphy had just starred in the film version of his autobiography, To Hell and Back, which was also directed by Jesse Hibbs, and he is more than competent in this picture, and very charming, with an easy, casual manner, a good way with a line, and a convincingly "bitter" persona. Rush is wonderful in the movie, as is Morrow. McIntire, St. John and a highly personable Tommy Rall also have their moments.Tragically, after all he went through during the war, Murphy died in a plane crash before his 46th birthday.

Verdict: Creditable if minor boxing saga with interesting aspects and a very likable Murphy. ***.

BAD BOY

Audie Murphy

BAD BOY (1949). Director: Kurt Neumann.

Danny Lester (Audie Murphy) is an incorrigible, nasty young man who beats, shoots and robs and is nearly sentenced to a reformatory or prison. However Marshall Brown (Lloyd Nolan) is convinced, without any real basis, that Danny's anti-social tendencies stem from something that happened in his youth. [Danny acts like a sociopathic creep, so it's a question if what happened in his youth even matters, but in movies like Bad Boy there has to be some dubious psychological explanation.] Brown importunes Judge Prentiss (Selena Royle) to take Danny under his wing and bring him to the Variety Clubs Boys Ranch in Texas, where he steals, acts all bitter, and has the boys so mad at him that they all give him the silent treatment. Can this boy be saved...? In his first starring role Murphy, the most decorated soldier in WW2, proves not to be a "great" actor, but is more than competent, displaying charisma and surliness in equal measure; he would develop in time. Jimmy Lydon of the Henry Aldrich series plays another student, Ted, and is excellent, as is James Gleason [The Girl Rush] as Brown's more cynical associate, "Chief." Jane Wyatt [The Man Who Cheated Himself] is Brown's wife; Martha Vickers is Danny's half sister; and Rhys Williams [The Corn is Green] is his step-father. There are some fairly interesting developments in this but the movie never really amounts to much. Murphy would go on to better things. Murphy single-handedly held off a squadron of German soldiers while standing atop a tank that could have exploded at any second -- it's safe to say Hollywood couldn't have scared him that much!

Verdict: Half-baked melodrama. **1/2.