This is one of the few MGM "gangster" pictures I've seen from the era of great Warner Bros. entries, and while it mostly kept my interest, I was somewhat disappointed. One of the main insights this film gave me was what made the Warner Bros. gangster films so great in comparison to those from other studios like MGM's Johnny Eager. It was their gritty believability. The stars (Robinson, Cagney, Muni, Raft, and Bogart) importantly looked like they could actually BE gangsters. Their love interests weren't just pretty faces, but were generally "hard boiled" dames who were attractive in a rougher sort of way. The dialog was sharp, witty, and crackled. All that said, I found Johnny Eager (where did they come up with that name?) to be a paler imitation of the genre. Though he was really too "pretty" for the role, I thought Robert Taylor did a fine job of playing against type, and probably impressed me the most among the cast. I thought Lana Turner's character should have been better fleshed out, in order to better show why she was so attracted to Eager in the first place. I got the impression that an attempt may have been made to do so, but was lost in the film's editing. Van Heflin's Oscar-winning supporting role was a disappointment. While he had some of the best lines in the film, I found his character unlikeable and pathetic, making me wonder how he and Eager ever connected in the first place. The dialog was a mixed bag, delivered crisply, and with some good zingers, but also with some ridiculous lines that made me laugh out loud. This may have been considered a good MGM entry to the gangster film genre, but compared to the best work from Warner Bros. , it doesn't stand up.
Review of Johnny Eager
