Bogey himself called it a mess, but it's a delightful mess that doesn't spoil things by making it's characters go for outright comedy. The humor is in the cleverly written and subtly delivered lines, often catching up with you in the next scene and suggesting you hit the rewind button. The Alpha Video DVD I picked up probably offers a better copy than many reviewers in this forum have mentioned, I found it to be acceptable enough though slightly washed out.
Bogart's character is Billy Dannreuther (uniquely pronounced like the famed newscaster's name), married to Gina Lollobrigida, and in cahoots with an international band of swindlers. They must be up to no good according to Gwendolen Chelm (Jennifer Jones), because after all, they don't even look at her legs. Gwen's husband Harry (Edward Underdown) fancies himself an upper crust Brit, who plays at it effectively enough to con the main hoods into thinking he's a member of landed gentry, instead of someone who's just landed.
The crooks are a colorful lot, led by Robert Morley in what would have been the Sydney Greenstreet role if this were a class reunion. A dozen years since "The Maltese Falcon" seems to have filled out Peter Lorre's frame to ample proportions, while the rest of the evil quartet is rounded out by Ivor Barnard as The Galloping Major Ross, and Marco Tulli's Ravello. Each seem to have their own unique charm, except Ross, who relies on his swagger dagger a bit too much.
While playing at international intrigue, the Dannreuther's and Chelm's also play at a little spouse swapping. You never completely figure out if Mrs. Chelm is off her rocker or not, but she describes herself best with - "I'm something of a witch, my old Spanish nurse said I could have been professional". That's why the film's payoff with the bad guys led off in chains seems a bit forced, Gwendolen's soliloquy on her husband's disappearance sounds like the ramblings of a nut case. For reasons unknown, Bogey's character gets away with it, but what IT is, I don't know.
"Beat the Devil" may be one of Bogart's quirkier films, but by no means his weirdest. On that score, I would point to "Swing Your Lady" and "The Return of Dr. X", a bit hard to find since they're not commercially available. This one is at the far other extreme, a public domain film that can be found anywhere and everywhere, and worth the trouble of rounding up for it's offbeat cast and story.
Bogart's character is Billy Dannreuther (uniquely pronounced like the famed newscaster's name), married to Gina Lollobrigida, and in cahoots with an international band of swindlers. They must be up to no good according to Gwendolen Chelm (Jennifer Jones), because after all, they don't even look at her legs. Gwen's husband Harry (Edward Underdown) fancies himself an upper crust Brit, who plays at it effectively enough to con the main hoods into thinking he's a member of landed gentry, instead of someone who's just landed.
The crooks are a colorful lot, led by Robert Morley in what would have been the Sydney Greenstreet role if this were a class reunion. A dozen years since "The Maltese Falcon" seems to have filled out Peter Lorre's frame to ample proportions, while the rest of the evil quartet is rounded out by Ivor Barnard as The Galloping Major Ross, and Marco Tulli's Ravello. Each seem to have their own unique charm, except Ross, who relies on his swagger dagger a bit too much.
While playing at international intrigue, the Dannreuther's and Chelm's also play at a little spouse swapping. You never completely figure out if Mrs. Chelm is off her rocker or not, but she describes herself best with - "I'm something of a witch, my old Spanish nurse said I could have been professional". That's why the film's payoff with the bad guys led off in chains seems a bit forced, Gwendolen's soliloquy on her husband's disappearance sounds like the ramblings of a nut case. For reasons unknown, Bogey's character gets away with it, but what IT is, I don't know.
"Beat the Devil" may be one of Bogart's quirkier films, but by no means his weirdest. On that score, I would point to "Swing Your Lady" and "The Return of Dr. X", a bit hard to find since they're not commercially available. This one is at the far other extreme, a public domain film that can be found anywhere and everywhere, and worth the trouble of rounding up for it's offbeat cast and story.