Hunmphy Bogey stars as Frank McCloud, a former army major coming to meet the family of a man who died in his service. The man's widow is Lauren Bacall, and his father is Lionel Barrymore. They live in and run a hotel in Key Largo, a small island close to Florida. As Bogey arrives, however, so does Edward G. Robinson as Johnny Rocco, a notorious gangster. He has a money scam going on at the island, and he is there on business with his cronies. They stumble into his ex girl, Gaye Dawn (my new drag name) and when a storm starts moving in, the gangsters take control of the little group in the hotel.
We have a few plots going on it this movie and it stays interesting. Bogey being an army man has a natural leadership and a natural disdain for the criminals. The criminals are aware of this, and they challenge him as well as show they respect him in different ways. Bacall and Barrymore rely on him, and are unsure of exactly the kind of man he is, and in the meantime the mob boss Rocco is a thorough scumbag, arresting them all with his immediate threat. It's very well managed in that respect.
Directed by venerable classic John Huston, this hits all the marks and when the movie gets down to the end, it's really quite dark and I'd say realistic. The ending was quite unorthodox for the time, and though it is different from the play and book, it was still really strong. I'd say I liked it in that dark, nihilistic sense.
If I knew of more dark, character driven, fast paced movies like this, I'd for sure watch them. This was a very strong piece. I give it a 4.
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