THE GREAT MCGINTY

THE GREAT MCGINTY - 1940

RATED - NR but probably PG for adult themes and non-graphic violence.

RATINGS - 664 IMDB (7.7/10), 4,571 Netflix (3.6/5)

STARRING - Brian Donlevy, Muriel Angelus. Preston Sturges directorial debut.

AWARDS - ACADEMY AWARD for Best Screenplay (Preston Sturges)

THEMES - Political satire, political corruption.

STORY - The film begins in a night club in a Banana Republic somewhere. The opening screen states that two men cross paths-one who lived a life of dishonesty and for a minute became honest and one who lived a life of honesty and for a minute became dishonest. A businessman away from home is drunk and tempted to do something that he will regret. The club singer gets him over to the bar to help sober him up and there they both listen to the story of regret (told in flashbacks) of the bartender who was once a successful and wealthy politician, although his career in politics started as a bum. He was offered $2 in a bread line if he would go and vote in the mayoral election for the incumbent. The Mayor's campaign chairman rationalized that a lot of people who wanted to vote just couldn't get out to vote and they were casting the vote they would have wanted to vote. Not only does he vote but he votes 37 times. The politicians see this good looking (when he gets all cleaned up) guy as a potential candidate, someone who can be manipulated for money to do whatever they want. He is more than willing to play the role. Part of the role is to find him a wife to play the role. This 'arranged ' marriage eventually turns into the real thing and he actually falls in love with his wife. He works his way up to Governor of the state where he can really deliver the goods to his political cronies. But his wife begins to have an influence on his conscience. He struggles with the decisions he's made and the relationships he's developed. While, it is clearly too much to assume all politics is this way, it is not too much to believe that it happens more than we would like to admit. Preston Sturges apparently got much of the ideas for the film from a judge who gave him real life cases. Read John Grisham's latest novel, THE APPEAL, for more inside political tricks. When you consider all the 'earmarks' that are added to the bills President Bush has signed over the years, it makes you wonder how many McGintys we have in Congress. Lu G. for Lu's Reviews 03/02/2008

LINKS - IMDB , AMAZON