The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

A somewhat disappointing film from the hands of ace director John Farrow (especially when compared with Leslie Fenton's somewhat similar Ladd vehicle, Saigon, made the following year). Of course he was hamstrung by a somewhat indifferent script whose writer was breathing down his neck as producer (although the script has some interesting characters who are particularly well-acted, the plot is wholly predictable and thus almost completely lacking in suspense); and by the casting of Gail Russell in a pivotal role. She is 100% inadequate, and is not too flatteringly photographed either.All the same, Farrow does what he can: the introductory scenes of the film are put across in short snappy takes, but the scene in which Don Beddoe tells Ladd of Cunningham's death is handled very effectively in one long take with the camera almost stationary except for a short pan at the beginning and end of the scene. Other long takes follow - the scene in the morgue, the scene at police headquarters, but there is less reliance on this device than usual, as Miss Russell was unable to retain her lines without the use of an idiot board.The sets are impressive, but they do not come up to the exotic standard of those in Saigon.On the other hand, Miss Duprez does make a fabulous second lead.

Alan Ladd and William Bendix are cargo pilots in the far East. Shortly after their friend and fellow pilot John Whitney announces a surprise marriage, he's found murdered. Ladd decides to investigate the murder himself. Through nightclub singer June Duprez he tracks down the fiancée, Gail Russell, who seems very evasive. When he finds out her wedding present is a necklace Whitney could not possibly afford, he digs deeper, and slowly uncovers a smuggling ring, that might or might not involve Russell, who he is getting quite close to. The movie is a mixed bag, in almost every way. The story wants to be a mystery, relying too much on peripheral characters who seem important but aren't, such as Edith King as the owner of a jewelry store. Gail Russell's ('Moonrise') casting as a femme fatale seems like a potential goldmine, as she is one of the least likely actresses to play one. But she doesn't fully convince me, part of her appeal is her (real life) fragility and it doesn't mesh well with the more conniving aspects of her character. Duprez ('And Then There Were None') fits her role much much better, it's a shame it's such a minor role. Ladd ('This Gun For Hire') on the other hand is great, altho chances are this part was written with him in mind anyways. He could portray tough and tenacious as well as anybody else. And he has excellent chemistry with Bendix ('The Dark Corner'), who is always solid. There's a funny scene early on in the movie with Ladd and Bendix stranded after mechanical issues. Ladd is bare chested, covered in dirt and sweat (I imagine some ladies in the audience wanted this scene to go on forever), while Bendix is still wearing his shirt and is barely sweating. The movie's competently made, but director John Farrow ('The Big Clock') and DoP John F. Seitz ('Double Indemnity') have done way better and more remarkable movies. It makes the movie even more frustrating, so much talent in front of the camera as well as behind, and the end result (despite being a box office hit on release) is rather bland. Maybe if a better print surfaces I will enjoy it a bit more, but as it stands, it's only a 6/10

Here we have Alan Ladd investigating the death of a close friend in Calcutta when India was still part of the British Em-Pah. Assisting him are his close pal, fellow pilot William Bendix. The two men fly cargo and passengers over the hump from India to China. That close friend used to be a pilot as well but he discovered some smuggling was going on and was strangled -- in Thugee fashion, with the garrote. The deceased may also have been particeps criminis but it's not clear. The explanation of this twisted tale, when it comes, comes in a torrent and is a little hard to follow.What's not hard to follow is two of the most beautiful women of the movies of 1940, the exotic June Duprez and the girlish and vulnerable Gail Russell. Neither gets the treatment they deserve. Duprez, in love with Ladd, is "a good guy," except when he's casually boffing her. Russell, miscast as a liar and manipulator, acts and sounds as if she'd recently been snatched out of Santa Monica High School, given a few acting lessons, and thrust before the cameras, which she was.There is a scene at the end, when Ladd confronts Russell with evidence of her guilt in the smuggling scheme. They've been more or less attracted to one another and have spent at least one night together. It's a blanched echo of the similar but far more intensely moving scene at the climax of "The Maltese Falcon." Alan Ladd is not Humphrey Bogart and Gail Russell is not treacherous. And in "Falcon," the dialog consists mostly of excerpts from Dashiel Hammet's novel, while here the screenwriter, Seton I. Miller, and the director, John Farrow, have turned it leaden. Ladd slaps Russell around to get her to talk. It's unpleasant.I don't want to make the film sound like a total failure because it's not. A lot depends on individual taste. The Calcutta in which the tale takes place is Hollywood's idea of a foreign city. The "white men" wear uniforms or white suits. A few pith helmets are in evidence. We see one -- count 'em, one -- woman dressed in a sari but there are a plenitude of turbans. The streets are crowded but not full of garbage. The "white people" visit night clubs of a sophistication and decor that would be hard to find in New York City. They wear evening clothes. There are no cockroaches or mosquitoes, though there are one or two mosquito nets. I didn't see any beaded curtains and missed them terribly.The movie is a bit sluggish. As is usual in these dramas, Ladd visits (or is visited by) one colorful character after another, all of their values ambiguous. One stand-out is the fat lady dressed like Mae West who smokes cigars and evidently runs some kind of whorehouse.It's Hollywood craftsmanship. Not at its best, but at its most typical for the period. I rather enjoyed it.

I like Alan Ladd but this is one of his weakest films. No plot. No excitement. Gail Russell is attractive but couldn't act if her life depended on it. She has the same facial expression throughout the film regardless of the scene. When she's told her fiancé has been murdered-no expression. When she's making out with Alan Ladd- no expression. If only Veronica Lake had been available. Ladd is always good. This was still at a time when they had him take off his shirt in every movie. And the Calcutta we see is entity on the Paramount backlot. Maybe with some decent writing, some villains, maybe a plot, this could have been something Quite a bore.