RyothChatty ridiculous rating

YouHeart I gave it a 7.5 out of 10

Hayleigh Joseph This is ultimately a movie about the very bad things that can happen when we don't address our unease, when we just try to brush it off, whether that's to fit in or to preserve our self-image.

Celia A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

iamyuno2 Reminiscent of - and perhaps a precursor to - Casablanca, this pre-Casablanca movie has all of the atmosphere of the later film it might have inspired for all I know, and a great story line and cast of actors to boot. While it doesn't quite rise to the greatness of Casablanca, it is a fine film in its own right, and a must-see film, for many reasons, not to mention the fine performance put in by Charles Boyer (perhaps his best film next to Gaslight and Love Affair - two other must- see films). With the darkness almost of a film noire movie, you can almost smell the exotic spices undoubtedly wafting down the cramped streets of Algiers' worst neighborhoods as the incredibly taught action plays out. A nail-biter as well as a tragic romance, you won't be disappointed!

secondtake Algiers (1938)Take the teaming alleys of the old town of Algiers in North Africa, cramped and multi-national, filled with intentional mystery, and you have the basis of a great movie. A great, exciting, unique, visually gorgeous one.And it delivers on some of those scores. But why is it also a bit clumsy and forced all he way through? Two main reasons, I think. First, some of the secondary characters are comic caricatures (like Gene Lockhart), and as if to confirm this, they are given some silly lines as well. Second, the direction, under John Cromwell, which is clumsy and patchwork. Some of the most ordinary lines are delivered with avoidable awkwardness. I don't think Charles Boyer is a very convincing Arab kingpin, nor is the chief policeman from Paris a bit believable. All of this stacks the movie against its terrific setting.The highlight might actually be the simplest to understand--the photography by the great cameraman James Wong Howe. Right behind, but most accounts, is the presence of Hedy Lamarr as a kind of sophisticated femme fatale, bejeweled and bewitching. At least from the point of view of Boyer, who at one point is transfixed by her bracelet, her pearls, and her smile, in that order. The sure sign of a doomed man.The drama does become more intense, and both the police pressure and the crossed lovers percolate a bit. Boyer remains perplexing as the leading man, as if always aware he's the leading man more intent on being charming (in that 1930s French way) than playing the part of a supposed boss. And just wait for the scene where he breaks into song and everyone comes around to listen. Good thing the photography never relents--you can watch the movie for the visuals alone.I'm not sure what gives this movie its reputation, but I'll throw up a red flag against it. The exotic local, the mix of nationalities, the odd assortment of actors, and the central romance might make seem to presage Casablanca (in those ways) but the comparison ends there. Don't be discouraged by the first twenty minutes, which is the weakest part. By the end the mood has changed enough to work.If you're wondering, this is a low budget production from Walter Wanger, a year before he produced John Ford's "Stagecoach." And the filming occurred in Algiers itself, which is part of the interest. Give it whirl. Try to find a sharper version than the lousy one Netflix streams.

writers_reign After reading several of the comments on this one my immediate reaction was they've got to be kidding; to give them a break it appears that most of them hadn't seen the great Duvivier movie Pepe Le Moko which was released the previous year. We tend to think of Hollywood retreads of French Classics as something comparatively new but they were at it seventy years ago and they've yet to equal let alone eclipse even one French original. Adding insult to injury the credits nowhere mention that this in fact is virtually a scene-for- scene, shot-for-shot remake with the odd minor change here and there - like the ending and omit all mention of the great Henri Jeanson who supplied the dialogue for the original classic. The only thing that Charles Boyer and Jean Gabin had in common was that both were French; Gabin was, at times, a cross between Bogie and Cagney whilst Boyer is a cross between a second-rate baritone and Narcissus. Okay, it's well shot and some of the support is out of the right bottle but all of that applies to the original plus, of course, the definitive Pepe in Gabin. Like the man said, if it ain't broke ...

dbdumonteil It was made just one year after Duvivier's classic ,which even Godard (Godard!)mentioned in his "Pierrot LE Fou".Although I hate God'Art about as much as I love Duvivier,I must admit that a film that can transcend the New Wavelet's contempt possesses something magic a la "Casablanca" .I was skeptical about the lead:aristocratic Charles Boyer replacing plebeian Gabin?I was wrong :Boyer,who began his career in France after all ,was up to scratch.And I 'd go as far as to write that Hedy Lamarr is much more attractive than Mireille Balin in the original.All that remains is faithful like a dog: except for the scene when an old singer (Frehel) bursting into tears when she hears one of her old recordings,all the important sequences were kept.Cromwell's directing is efficient ,although it never recaptures the intensity (and the director's pessimism) of its model ,is a good film one can recommend to people who cannot get "Pepe Le Moko" .Objections: the scene of Pierrot 's letter and the punishment of the informer is much too long and lacks suspense.Biggest gaffe is this ditty ("C'est La Vie" ) which Boyer sings and which seems out of a musical :in what is primarily a film noir,it's thoroughly incongruous.Many of the great lines of the French classic can be heard ,notably the famous "I'm an informer,I'm not a hypocrite",and the Boyer/Lamarr pairing displays a special chemistry .The black and white makes a good use of shadows and lights.If all the remakes were made with care like this one.....