Beat the DevilBogart is Billy Dannreuther, a man hired to purchase land by a group of swindlers wanting to buy African land rich in uranium. The movie revolves around the exploits of a gang of swindlers- they are a great looking bunch of guys, let me assure you that there are enough moustaches, eyebrows, accents and cigarette holders to make the girls blush and the boys want to imitate them. Throw in an Italian diva and a blonde bombshell and the drama/romance section is covered. The usual story, the blonde falls for the leading man's sexy American voice and charm but what made this movie stand out for me was the use of comedy especially with the scenes involving the girls. This film does not contain over the top thigh slapping humor, but witty jokes that some might not pick up on. The Italian diva is a caricature of epic proportions: her breasts have as much personality as her face and are used in a cliched but comical way that can rival Jayne Mansfield in The Girl Can't Help It. Miss Gwendolyn (the blonde) seems to be some what of a pathological liar, and pulls off an intelligent Marilyn Monroe like quality. Considering it is usually the blonde who uses their body to lure men, I liked the fact that it was different from the usual stereotype of 'the blonde bombshell'. The gang of misfits and molls travel on a ship to Africa, the ship sinks and they wash up on some unknown land. They are taken captive and questioned by an African man. They are let free partially on the grounds that Billy convinced the man that he does indeed know Rita Hayworth. They make their way back to Italy to be confronted by a policeman from Scotland Yard who is making enquiries about a murder. From here people come back from the dead, and everyone ends up with the man/girl that they want. And presumably the gangsters end up in jail after Gwendolyn rats them out. Beat The Devil has been labelled many things: Bogart's best movie (despite his looks) and has been classified as many of the following genres: film noir/crime/comedy/drama/romance; it portrays so many of these genres brilliantly and is a film I could not slot into one category. This film is filled with style and aphorisms, quotes ranging from Lord Byron to Hitler and last but not least many of the characters memorable lines. Sure the film is flawed and is a little vague in some areas, I think people who hate it with a passion do not get that it is satire- for me it was a fun film with style and I would highly recommend it.
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