dougdoepke No movie actor inflects lines from the script better than John Garfield. That plus a flawlessly staccato delivery that cuts through dialogue like a buzz saw, distinguish his tough guy performances. These abilities are on superb display in this boxing melodrama, one of the liveliest on that sinister sport. The best parts are those dealing with the struggle for Davis's (Garfield) soul, with Lloyd Goff's super-slick fight fixer as Satan. It's the classic contest pitting money against virtue, and while Davis is quick to grasp the rules of the ring, he's slow to understand the price he is paying. Not exactly cutting-edge material, but slickly and memorably done. The weakest parts are a seemingly miscast Lilli Palmer, a shade too refined to be believable, and Ann Revere's hair that looks like a flour-spraying crop duster gave it a quick pass. The film contains one truly memorable scene, when the washed-up black fighter, Canada Lee, at last confronts his tormentors. It's an emotion packed opportunity that really reaches gut-level. I guess the reason so many from cast and crew were later blacklisted is because of the film's communist inspired message – namely, that money is not the most important value in life. Good thing those investigators never got around to the religious community.

Lee Eisenberg Robert Rossen's look at the unbridled pursuit of wealth and prestige casts John Garfield as a man who goes into boxing, only to see his egotism cause tragedies for those around him. It's worth noting that a number of the people involved in the production later got blacklisted. No doubt HUAC saw the movie's condemnation of greed as anti-American (and the Bill O'Reilly types probably STILL think so). Garfield, once a popular actor, saw his career ruined and remains mostly forgotten today.On its own, "Body and Soul" is a gritty focus on the underworld of boxing. It's close to a film noir, with sultry women and sleazy thugs. But more than anything it's a good movie. Watch it and see if you don't feel as if you're walking on eggshells.PS: William Conrad (Quinn) later narrated "Rocky and Bullwinkle". Crew member Robert Aldrich later directed "The Dirty Dozen" and "The Longest Yard", while crew member Nathan Juran later directed "Attack of the 50-ft Woman" and "Jack the Giant Killer".

wes-connors Thirty-five year old middleweight boxing champion John Garfield (as Charlie aka Charley Davis) wakes up from a nightmare shouting "Ben!" like Orson Wells called for "Rosebud" in "Citizen Kane" (1941). Mr. Garfield drives quickly to his old New York neighborhood, where he is treated like the plague by stone-faced mother Anne Revere (as Anna) and sweetheart Lilli Palmer (as Peg Born). Lounge singer Hazel Brooks (as Alice) is a little nicer. We learn Garfield is about to fight in the proverbial "fixed" championship bout. A flashback reveals how a poor boy gives up night school for the boxing ring...In some quarters, "Body and Soul" has a reputation for being revelatory in subject matter; on close inspection, this is a dubious assertion. The storyline follows familiar territory. It is distinctive in excellent direction from Robert Rossen and photographer James Wong Howe. Garfield leads the cast in performing exceptionally; he received an "Academy Award" nomination, and was the "New York Film Critics" #2 choice for "Best Actor" of the year. The Parrish-Lyon editing won. Also watch for fine "Supporting Actor" performances by Joseph Pevney (as Shorty Polaski), Canada Lee (as Ben Chaplin) and William Conrad (as Quinn).******** Body and Soul (8/22/47) Robert Rossen ~ John Garfield, Lilli Palmer, Joseph Pevney, Anne Revere

bkoganbing Body and Soul was the first of several free lance productions that John Garfield did after his contract with Warner Brothers was concluded. He certainly didn't take any artistic chances because the role of Charlie Davis, the Jewish middleweight boxing champion from the Lower East Side of New York was something Garfield could identify with. He'd played a fighter in his second film, They Made Me A Criminal to great acclaim. And he'd appeared in the original production of Golden Boy though not in the lead. He'd be doing that on stage at the time of his demise in 1952.But while Body and Soul didn't blaze any artistic trails for Garfield, it did give him a great role that earned him a second Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. Garfield lost to Ronald Colman that year in A Double Life.Garfield has the feel for the heart and soul of Davis because that was his background. Another reviewer suggested that the Davis character is based on the famous lightweight champion Benny Leonard who would have been a hero to a Jewish kid like Julius Garfinkle growing up first on the Lower East Side and then in the Bronx. Leonard also died around the time Body and Soul was being made and movie audiences would have known that and the film would have a special poignancy for them.The story is told in flashback as Charlie Davis dozes off in the training room before a defense of his middleweight crown. He's in a depression about the death of someone named Ben. Ben turns out to be Canada Lee former champion himself who was Garfield's trainer. We see how Garfield who at first listened to his mother Anne Revere not to fight, but then when father Art Smith dies, economics forces him into the ring. Garfield gets involved with two women, artist Lilli Palmer and nightclub singer Hazel Brooks. He also gets involved with a manager who eventually turns on him in William Conrad and a sleazy promoter in Lloyd Gough. If you're a fan of boxing films I think you can figure out where this will all end up.But the ride is a good one. Besides Garfield's nomination, Body and Soul got another Oscar nomination for Original Screenplay by Abraham Polonsky. And it won the Oscar that year for Best Film Editing. That's for the great work in that department during that final boxing match.For fans of John Garfield, Body and Soul is a must. Besides all that there's that great Johnny Green-Edward Heyman song from the Thirties that got a revival because of this film.