IT CAME FROM THE BOTTOM SHELF!

It is a story often repeated, but if you’ll indulge me, I’ll re-tell it for the uninitiated.  In the late 1930’s, Preston Sturges was one of the most respected screenwriters in Hollywood, but he was increasingly displeased with the way his material was handled by other directors.  Having finished a script of which he was especially proud, Sturges offered to sell the script to Paramount for $1 if they would allow him to direct it himself.  The studio bosses decided that $1 made them look cheap, so they agreed to pay Sturges $10 for the property.  The studio expected Sturges to fail, and they thought $10 was a small price to pay to get the idea of directing out of the screenwriter’s system.  Quite unexpectedly, the finished film, The Great McGinty, was a modest hit, which also went on to win the Best Original Screenplay Oscar.  Sturges had succeeded, and he paved the way for every writer-director that followed.

The Great McGinty tells the story of a homeless man, Dan McGinty (Brian Donlevy), who is offered $2 to vote illegally for the mayor.  Deciding that $74 is better than $2, McGinty votes 37 times.  This gets the attention of the local political Boss (Akim Tamiroff), who hires McGinty as muscle.  McGinty rises up through the crooked organization until he eventually becomes Governor of the state.  However, when his wife (Muriel Angelus) talks McGinty into using his power to help others and do what’s right, he is forced to flee the country.  The moral: “If you’re a crook.  Be a crook.”

Sturges did not think small when helming his first film.  The screenplay is incredibly subversive and complex, and its central theme is gleefully cynical.  While Sturges doesn’t argue that graft is good, he is honest with the audience, showing that some benefits (such as employing thousands of construction workers) do stem from illegal deals; and the crooks at the center of the film are so colorfully depicted that you can’t help but root for them.  Throughout his career Sturges would celebrate and reward bad behavior; and the 1940s audiences let him get away with it, because the films were so damned funny.

While Sturges screenplays have been deservedly celebrated, I don’t think he has ever received his proper due as a director.  From his very first film, he seemed to know instinctively how to stage a scene to achieve the best comedic or dramatic effect.  The limits on the budget can be felt in a couple of scenes in McGinty, such as in the minimal set decoration on locations that are only used a single time.  However, more often than not, the film looks much more polished and ambitious than you would expect from a first-time director.  The South American scenes that bookend the main narrative (which is told in flashback), include moments that are as darkly dramatic as any film noir, and they are as effective as the comedy that follows.  There is also a fantastic montage during the scene where McGinty votes 37 times.  Throughout the film, Sturges skips the easy route in staging the action, using either complex camera shots or subtle background action to sell the joke.  He was absolutely right in believing that he would be the best director of his own material.

The performances are fantastic across the board.  Brian Donlevy, an actor often relegated to small supporting roles, shines in the lead, displaying a much greater range than he usually had the opportunity to display.  Muriel Angelus, an actress I wish had worked more often, has a unique presence that is somehow both sharp and soft at the same time.  The always reliable Akim Tamiroff steals every scene he appears in.  Finally, the rest of the cast is rounded out by extremely colorful character actors that Sturges used again and again (first and foremost, the incomparable William Demarest).

The Great McGinty is more than great.  It’s stupendous!  It’s phenomenal!  It’s one of the great comedies of all time!  If you haven’t seen it, you’re missin’ out, brother.  Trust me.  Life is better with Preston Sturges in it.

USA/B&W-67m./Dir: Preston Sturges/Wr: Preston Sturges/Cast: Brian Donlevy, Akim Tamiroff, Muriel Angelus, William Demarest, Louis Jean Heydt, Allyn Joslyn, Arthur Hoyt, Harry Rosenthal, Steffi Duna

For Fans of: If you like smart comedies of any sort, I’m confident you’ll like The Great McGinty.  I also think that fans of film noir will find the themes and style of McGinty falls in line with their sensibilities.

Video: Kino Lorber Studio Classics released a beautiful Blu-ray of The Great McGinty, sourced from a new 4K scan.  I owned a previous DVD release (from which the low-res photos in this post are derived), and the Blu-ray is a big step up in quality. The picture is a little brighter than the DVD, and the image is sharp, clear, and film-like, with intact grain.  Scratches and debris have been digitally cleaned up, but you will detect an occasional defect where cleaning might also erase important photographic detail. In short, the restoration has been expertly handled.

The DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel mono audio also sounds great. Both Sturges’ delightful dialogue and the score by Friedrich Hollaender and John Leipold are well supported.

Special Features include:

• A new audio commentary by film historian Samm Deighan — As usual, she provides well-researched, thoughtful, and entertaining observations.  I don’t agree with all of her opinions; but what two humans agree about everything?  It doesn’t matter.  It’s a fantastic listen.
• The original theatrical trailer for The Great McGinty (1940), as well as bonus trailers for Christmas in July (1940), The Good Fairy (1935), Death Takes a Holiday (1934), and Road to Morocco (1942).

Streaming: At the time of this review, The Great McGinty was unavailable to stream on any of the major subscription services.  It was also unavailable to download as a digital rental or purchase.

More to Explore: You haven’t experienced the best of classic film comedy until you’ve seen all of Preston Sturges’ masterpieces the followed The Great McGinty, including Christmas in July, The Lady Eve, Sullivan’s Travels, The Palm Beach Story, The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek, and Hail the Conquering Hero.

Trivia: Preston Sturges had Brian Donlevy and Akim Tamiroff reprise their roles of McGinty and The Boss in The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (1944).  However, the scenes involving their characters do not fit within the timeline of the earlier film.

For More Info: Three collections of Sturges’ scripts, with background on the productions, have been released by University of California Press.  The script and “behind the scenes” information for The Great McGinty is in the collection Five Screenplays by Preston Sturges.  The other two books in the series are Four More Screenplays by Preston Sturges and Three More Screenplays by Preston Sturges.