Nonureva Really Surprised!

Comwayon A Disappointing Continuation

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Bessie Smyth Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

HotToastyRag The Racket is very exciting, and it pins Robert Mitchum against Robert Ryan. It's hunk versus hunk, and only the audience can pick their favorite! Poor Robert Ryan, always playing the villain, even when paired with other bad guys; he's always the even bigger bad guy!It's film noir, suspenseful, gritty, and even has elements of romance with Lizabeth Scott. Robert Mitchum stars as a police chief on the lookout for notorious gangster Robert Ryan. The trouble is, Robert Ryan has much of the police force in his back pocket, so Robert Mitchum doesn't get a lot of help from his coworkers as he tries to nab the bad guy. And when Lizabeth Scott enters the picture, he and the audience have to determine whether she's really falling for him or she's just been ordered to distract him. . .The Racket is extremely entertaining and reminds me of the grit of Pickup on South Street, so if you're a fan of that Richard Widmark flick, rent this one on a rainy afternoon. It's perfect for a girls' night, too, since you've got both Roberts to drool over! If someone forced me, really forced me to choose, I'd pick Robert Mitchum, but I'd hate to hurt Robert Ryan's feelings. What about you?

dougdoepke The 80-minutes has the cast elements of a memorable crime drama—Ryan, Mitchum, Talman, Conrad. Then too, RKO's head honcho Howard Hughes actively participated, along with a narrative of city corruption that's handled in some revealing detail. So why aren't the results more memorable than I think they are. To me, the screenplay is more congested than it should be. For example, Liz Scott's role is clearly there for marquee value, adding nothing to the plot, other than crowding up the many characters and sub-plots. Considering the number of writes, rewrites, and re-shoots (IMDB), perhaps the crowding is understandable. All in all, the number of production fingerprints fail to blend into an impactful whole, leaving a movie of a few memorable parts.Ryan, of course, is Ryan, scary in his intensity, and wholly convincing in his criminal belligerence. Mitchum, however, is cast against type as the unwavering precinct captain. In fact, Captain McQuigg runs his precinct much like Scanlon's (Ryan) territorial tyrant. Thus McQuigg is more like a competing territorial chief than a neutral enforcer of the law, (note how McQuigg unlawfully tears up a legal writ.). The film's worth watching for its outlining of how corruption works in a city environment. District Attorney Welch (Collins) and Sgt. Turk (Conrad) betray their public trust by allying with the crime syndicate, becoming instrumental as go-betweens and influence-peddlers. This was a period in the country's history (1951) when organized crime was getting headlines thanks to Sen. Kefauver's investigation committee. So Hollywood's response is not surprising. I just wish the movie had lived up to its potential, but I guess there's a lesson here about too many cooks.

LeonLouisRicci Slightly above average crime drama with Film-noir elements that has some outstanding highlights and some very pedestrian lowlights.A couple of realistic action pieces and a vile, nasty performance from Robert Ryan are negated by some contrived side elements and stiff political posturing, and very weak love interests.Surprisingly the real bad guy..."the old man" who is the head of the crime syndicate is never brought to justice, or for that matter even identified. This is an intentional cover-up by the filmmakers and deliberately deflected at the end. As if to say, no matter how many of these street thugs we arrest, the master criminals of the Racket are above the law.This was a bold "oversight" slipped in, from an industry that was hand-cuffed by a code that stated...CRIME DOES NOT PAY. Very clever.

kenjha A crime boss has all the city politicians on his payroll, but must contend with an honest police captain. Saddled with an extended and talky exposition, this film takes a while to get going, but then turns into a solid crime drama. As the crime boss, Ryan is a mean, sneering, and intimidating figure, a type of role he could have played in his sleep. Mitchum is fine as the cop who has the guts to take on Ryan. As a nightclub singer, Scott not only looks like Lauren Bacall but also displays the toughness typical of Bacall in her films with Humphrey Bogart, including "Dead Reckoning," which was also directed by Cromwell. It is helped by a good supporting cast.