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Beat the Devil

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Beat the Devil

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Summary

Comedy thriller starring Humphrey Bogart and Jennifer Jones. An eccentric group of characters sets out from a Mediterranean port to Africa, all desperate to lay claim to land which they believe contains a rich source of uranium.

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Review

A star rating of 3 out of 5.

Tony Sloman

This sophisticated international romp (co-scripted by Truman Capote and John Huston) must have been more fun to make than to watch. Nevertheless, the splendid cast ensures that the jokes play and the romance works. The spoof on Huston's masterpieces The Maltese Falcon and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is there for those who recognise it, tipped off by the casting of Peter Lorre as well as Humphrey Bogart working again here with Huston. Particularly good are Jennifer Jones as the wife of oh-so-English Edward Underdown, she a pathological liar, he an "is-he-or-isn't-he" member of the peerage, and goonish gangsters Robert Morley and Ivor Barnard. Not terribly well appreciated in its day, this quirky one-off has achieved something of a cult status, and is well worth catching up with. Trivia buffs may like to note that the uncredited production runner on this film was a young Stephen Sondheim.

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6.4/10

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Credits

Cast

rolenameBilly DannreutherHumphrey BogartGwendolen ChelmJennifer JonesMaria DannreutherGina LollobrigidaPetersenRobert MorleyO'HaraPeter LorreHarry ChelmEdward UnderdownMajor RossIvor BarnardCID InspectorBernard LeeRavelloMarco TulliPurserMario PerroniCharlesAldo Silvani

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Crew

rolenameDirectorJohn Huston

Details

Theatrical distributor

Romulus Films Ltd

Languages

English | Arabic | Italian

Available on

video and DVD

Formats

Black and white

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