Terrell-4 Pat O'Brien, to my way of thinking, was always an interesting actor. He was one of that breed of Thirties men who almost blasted self-confidence. He was fast-talking, always ready with a quick comeback and a one-two punch. He was hard to deflate. Think of others such as Chester Morris, Lee Tracy and Lloyd Nolan. O'Brien played up the Irish charm like a poster. Unlike those others, O'Brien made it to the big time in the Thirties. He was great friends with James Cagney and starred with Cagney in nine films. But with opportunities to be a leading man, O'Brien just sucked the air away from anyone else in the room. He was dynamic to a fault, in my view. When he tried to do comedy line reading, he usually came across as emphatic and irritable. When he was playing tough, he could come across as emphatic and unmovable. With Slightly Honorable, a 1940 film directed by Tay Garnett, O'Brien plays John Webb, a strong-willed, fast-talking lawyer who is determined to bring down Victor Cushing (Edward Arnold), the leader of a corrupt political machine, a man responsible for rigging highway construction bids and using shoddy materials. Even the district attorney is part of Cushing's operation. Webb's only helper is his law associate, Russ Sampson (Broderick Crawford). There is the attempted corruption of an 18-year-old singer, two murders by dagger and two attempted murders, and a tense political debate in the state capitol where we learn how much pressure it takes to crumble second-rate concrete. There's even a climactic scene at night in a foggy, isolated cemetery, with old tombstones being read by flashlight and a thrown dagger coming very close to permanently ending Webb's law practice. And this is a comedy...or, at least, an attempt at a comedy mystery. The background music is jaunty. The repartee is quick and sometimes witty (and sometimes awful: "Well," says Webb, "it looks like the good old frameroo."); the 18-year-old lamb chop is cute, ditzy and dumb; there's a souse on a barroom floor and a black elevator attendant who roles his eyes and does shuffle steps. Eve Arden even shows up as Miss Ater, Webb's ironic secretary. The result teeters close to being a mess, but a fast-moving one. O'Brien, with his high- energy line delivery and no nonsense style, dominates the proceedings. Even Edward Arnold, smooth, avuncular and good-humored as Mr. Big, isn't able to steal any scenes from O'Brien. Ruth Terry as Ann Seymour, the young singer who wants to be John Webb's girl friend, is fine delivering a song and dance, but doing young and ditzy she sounds like a motor mouth Shirley Temple on amphetamines. She survives the plot and manages to win Webb, but after a while I started hoping she'd be one of the victims. Broderick Crawford does a fine job as Webb's partner, younger, not as sharp but ready to stand up and be counted. There are two problems with Slightly Honorable. The first is that as a leading man Pat O'Brien can get tiresome. The second is that Tay Garnett couldn't make up his mind whether he was directing a comedy or a crime drama. The movie is often fun to watch but it keeps veering from one style to the other. It's hard to believe that a few years later Garnett would direct one of the most satisfying, well-made and depressing crime noirs ever filmed, The Postman Always Rings

secragt Macroscopically, this movie is surprisingly entertaining, with crackling dialogue and charming performances by O'Brien and Crawford. Under closer scrutiny, the plot really doesn't hold up, nor do a number of character's motivations, but O'Brien's effortless cool covers a multitude of sins and the THIN MAN comparisons are apt. Overall, an underrated old-fashioned big ensemble good time the way they used to craft them back in the 40s. This isn't as good as Garnett's THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE and you won't gain much insight into the human condition or require a handkerchief, but you will laugh and you will be amused. One of the highlights from a 50 - pack of public domain crime dramas called "50 Dark Crimes" currently available for super cheap (how I discovered it), and like that inexpensive offering, worth far more than the price of admission.

Pleasehelpmejesus What a surprise. This film, which showcases the under-remarked comic skills of Pat O'Brien is a genuine treat which belongs right up there with "The Front Page" (with O'Brien and James Cagney) its remake "His Girl Friday" and the best of the 'Thin Man' series. Director Tay Garnett is probably best known for directing some of the better series in the early days of television ("Bonanza", "The Untouchables" "Naked City", "Rawhide")and at least two film classics ("The Postman Always Rings Twice" , "A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court"). After seeing this film one can only guess that the reason his name is not as well known as that of Sturgess or Capra or even Wilder is that he moved to television at a time when that medium was seen as a real threat to the film industry and thereby encountered some resentment. How else to explain the fact that "Slightly Honorable" is not mentioned on more 'Best' lists?O'Brien is probably more likable (and believable as a semi-romantic lead) here than in almost any of his other films. Always effective in serious dramas he reminds us of how versatile some of our greatest stars of middle period American cinema (Cagney, John Wayne, Katherine Hepburn,Clark Gable) were-switching effortlessly from drama to comedy in a way that seems to be beyond the scope of some later stars.Much the same can be said for Ruth Terry who would own this film were it not for the strength of her co-star's performances. Terry retired before she was 45 years old. By that time she was reduced to bit parts but a look at her work here will have you shaking your head in wonder at how that happened.A great performance from Broderick Crawford and standout supporting turns from Eve Arden and Claire Dodd (among others) crackerjack pacing and set design,snappy clever and first rate dialogue combine to make for a wonderful hilarious film that deserves a wide audience and a restoration treatment to enhance the sometimes muddy soundtrack and occasional glitch in the currently available print. Do NOT hesitate to rent this one.By the way, contrary to IMDb's spell checking feature "dialogue" is NOT a misspelling. Look it up.

deng43 this is one of those pleasant surprises that makes buying cheap films you've never heard of before so much fun. the first thing that came to mind as this film unreeled was how much fun the dialogue was. this is the blue collar version of the thin man. what it lacks in dry humor and sly irony, from nick and nora, is made up for in sheer fun. ruth terry is terrific as pat o'brien's wannabe girl. her energy is almost manic, and o'brien plays off it perfectly as the straight man to her ditzy rambles. the rest of the cast doesn't let you down either. arnold, arden and broderick crawford play their parts without flaw. the mystery, per se, is pretty average; realizing that you must wonder why more 'average' plots don't fall into the hands of talented directors, writers and cast and go on to be really good films. my only sorrow is in the DVD i have, the alpha video version #alp4644d. if you can find another print, get it. the visuals are OK, at least i have seen much worse, but the sound track is dreadful. about half of the film i couldn't understand, and i still loved it.