Playing with Fire (1957)
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | play with the fire |
| Original title | Fire down below |
| Country of production | USA , UK |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1957 |
| length | 115 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 16 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Robert Parrish |
| script | Irwin Shaw |
| production |
Albert R. Broccoli , Irving Allen , Ronald Kinnoch |
| music |
Arthur Benjamin , Douglas Gamley , Ken Jones , Vivian Comma |
| camera | Desmond Dickinson |
| cut | Jack Slade |
| occupation | |
| |
Playing with Fire (Original title: Fire Down Below ) is an American - British adventure film from 1957 with Rita Hayworth , Robert Mitchum and Jack Lemmon in the lead roles. The novel of the same name by Max Catto served as a literary model .
action
Smugglers friends Tony and Felix conduct illegal business in the Caribbean with their boat, the "Ruby". They are supported by their loyal partner Jimmy Jean. One day a contact introduces her to an American businessman who assigns her to take the attractive European Irena to another island while he has to travel back to Detroit himself . Since Irena has no papers, she is forced to flee from island to island to avoid deportation. Due to the high risk, Tony and Felix initially reject the contract, but they change the promised remuneration of 1,000 US dollars.
When Irena boarded the Ruby the next morning, Felix couldn't hide his dislike for her presence. While Tony feels more and more drawn to the mysterious woman on the crossing, Felix's distrust of her grows all the more. The situation becomes so tense that the two men get into an argument and almost kill each other, which Jimmy Jean can just prevent. One evening when they are attending a festival on an island, Tony and Irena party with the locals, while Felix watches them dance. When Irena returns to the boat, Felix follows her below deck and hugs her passionately. However, it eludes his grasp and makes him understand that it neither wants to be treated roughly, nor is it so easy to get.
Once at the destination, Felix once again treated Irena very negatively. Tony despises his ex-boyfriend's behavior and eventually ends his partnership with him. Tony stays in a hotel with Irena. But when the owner of the hostel learns that Irena does not have a passport, he threatens to hand her over to the authorities if she is not willing to join him in his bedroom. To escape the tricky situation, Irena packs her bags that night. When Tony asks her to marry him, she tries to make it clear that sooner or later it will only bring him bad luck. But Tony perseveres and is determined to start a new life with her. For this venture, however, he needs money. To do this, he suggests that Felix undertake a final joint coup, sell the boat and then share the profit. Felix doesn't want to help him, but leaves the "Ruby" to him and Jimmy Jean. When Tony and Jimmy Jean are out with their contraband, the Coast Guard approaches them. To avoid arrest, both jump into the water and swim to the nearest island. Tony is certain that it was Felix who put the Coast Guard on them and swears vengeance.
First, however, Tony hires on a Greek freighter, which collides with an ocean liner shortly after leaving port and catches fire. Tony gets under a steel beam and is unable to free himself. Port doctor Dr. Called Blake to the still-burning ship to treat Tony. There he finds a photo that shows Tony together with Felix, Jimmy Jean and Irena. Meanwhile, the fire department fails to bring the flames under control. The US Navy finally comes to the rescue to rescue Tony with a crane. When this too fails and the ship threatens to explode due to its highly explosive cargo, Dr. Blake proposes an amputation of Tony's legs, which Tony firmly refuses. He has come to terms with his fate. When Dr. Blake goes ashore again, he meets Jimmy Jean and recognizes him from the photo. In the hope that Tony's friends can persuade him to amputate the doctor, Jimmy Jean takes him to Felix and Irena.
In the meantime, the harbor master arranges for the burning ship to be brought out of the harbor to the open sea, in order to then leave it to itself. When the ship left port, Dr. Blake, Felix, Jimmy Jean and Irena take the landing stage together and set off in a speedboat to the freighter. Together with Dr. Blake goes on board Felix. He then tries to convince Tony of the amputation and promises that he and Irena will look after him and take care of him. When Tony refuses, Felix asks the doctor to go. Now that they are alone, he confesses to Tony that he tipped off the Coast Guard because he was jealous of him. In Irena he recognized the woman who, like him, had been cast out from society and with whom he could imagine a life together. At that moment, an explosion shakes the ship, the beam comes loose and Tony is free. Felix takes him on his shoulders, jumps overboard with him and swims to the waiting boat. The freighter explodes and goes down in flames. Tony is then taken to a hospital.
Some time after the incident, Irena and Felix, who have since become a couple, are sitting together in a bar when Jimmy Jean joins them to warn them: Tony has left the hospital and is armed with a rifle. Shortly afterwards, Tony appears in the bar and demands to speak to Irena alone. When she kisses Felix, Tony realizes that he has lost her to his rival and that talking to her would be pointless. He orders a drink, pays for the entire round and leaves the restaurant.
background
Cast and filming
Playing with Fire was a comeback attempt by Rita Hayworth after a four-year absence from the big screen. It was screenwriter Irwin Shaw's idea to cast Hayworth as Irena after Ava Gardner turned down the offer for the role. In order to win Hayworth for the project, director Robert Parrish went to the actress in a Paris hotel, where she had retired after her divorce from singer Dick Haymes . "I came to her when she was going through a personal crisis in her life and the film gave her the opportunity to work on an island for a few months, away from her personal troubles in Paris," Parrish later said. The director was looking forward to working with her: "She had a unique beauty, just the structure of her face was wonderful to look at."
The shooting went accordingly positively. “All three of us, Bob, Jack and I, admired her. We took her under our wing, fooled around and sympathized with her, ”Parrish said. Hayworth got on so well behind the scenes with the director and her two screen partners, Robert Mitchum and Jack Lemmon , that she invited them to her 1958 wedding to the film producer James Hill .
Play with Fire was shot mostly on the island of Tobago . Interior shots and post-production then took place in London . Both Jack Lemmon and Robert Mitchum were inspired by local music on Tobago: the film's harmonica melodies are from Lemmon; Mitchum, in turn, released the album Calypso - is like so… in 1957 .
Concept change
The plot of the film should actually begin with a doctor being brought to a burning ship to treat Jack Lemmon, who is trapped by a steel girder. Then the love triangle between Mitchum, Hayworth and Lemmon should be told in flashbacks, until the film turns back to the present with the injured Lemmon and Mitchum prepares to save him. Director Robert Parrish, who won an Oscar for Best Editing in 1948 , edited the film in London and then sent it to Columbia Pictures in Hollywood . However, the studio had the film completely edited and the concept of flashbacks was discarded. Each scene was finally placed in chronological order. Hence the critics' verdict that the film started well, but flattened in the middle at the latest and had structural problems.
Remarks
- Albert R. Broccoli , who later became the co-producer of the James Bond series, can be seen here in a cameo as a smuggler.
- Bernard Lee , the Dr. Blake later became famous for the role of secret service chief M in eleven James Bond films.
- For Edric Connor , born in Trinidad , it was the fourth feature film in which he took part.
- Playing with Fire premiered in the UK in May 1957 . The German premiere took place on August 30, 1957.
- The film is in no way related to the 1997 US action film Fire Down Below with Steven Seagal .
Reviews
For the lexicon of international film , playing with fire was “an adventure film that was unfortunately a bit clumsy with good actors in a gloomy atmosphere”. The film magazine Cinema criticized "[t] the clichéd script", through which the actors had "only presented mediocre performances". The conclusion was: "This triangle affair is not a round thing."
According to Time , "the good beginning" will be "brought to an abrupt end" in the middle of the film, as two of the main characters would disappear "for half an hour in the middle of the plot". Hayworth, "whose role is a kind of comeback after four years and a temporary dispute with Columbia", and Lemmon are however "both wide awake" and have provided "solid, realistic ideas". Variety even found at the time that Hayworth was "outstanding" "as a graceful woman who is always just one step ahead of the law". Lemmon, in turn, shows "clearly that he can master a dramatic role, while Mitchum, as a tough man of the world, has presented one of his better ideas".
For Bosley Crowther of the New York Times , apart from the “wonderful scenery and camera work”, the only thing that stood out was the supporting actor Edric Connor, whom he described as “astute” in the role of the Caribbean sailor - because there was “no reason to play with him Fire to call the fire brigade ”. For example, screenwriter Irwin Shaw "pulled the plug halfway through the film [...]", Hayworth is "pushed into the background" and "all that's left is hot air".
In retrospect, Craig Butler from All Movie Guide also attested Irwin Shaw's screenplay “structural problems”, but “the bigger problem is its banality”. The characters are “poorly drawn”, the situations “far too familiar” and the dialogue fluctuates between “mindless and ridiculous”. Robert Parrish's direction, however, is "a little better" in that he kept the pace "quite brisk" while benefiting "enormously from the beautiful setting and Desmond Dickinson's experienced camera work". Robert Mitchum and Rita Hayworth are "solid in their roles, with Hayworth showing one of their most provocative dances", but it is Lemmon who leaves "the best impression".
German version
The German dubbed version was created in 1957 at Ultra Film Synchron in Berlin . The dialogue book was written by Alfred Vohrer , who also directed the dubbing.
| role | actor | Voice actor |
|---|---|---|
| Irena | Rita Hayworth | Gisela Trowe |
| Felix Bowers | Robert Mitchum | Curt Ackermann |
| Tony | Jack Lemmon | Herbert Stass |
| Harbor master | Herbert Lom | Horst Niendorf |
| Lieutenant Sellars | Bonar Colleano | Peter Mosbacher |
| Dr. Sam Blake | Bernard Lee | Wolfgang Lukschy |
| Jimmy Jean | Edric Connor | Arnold Marquis |
| captain | Peter Illing | Werner Peters |
| Miguel | Anthony Newley | Wolfgang Gruner |
| hotelier | Eric Pohlmann | Erich Fiedler |
| American | Lionel Murton | Ernst Wilhelm Borchert |
Web links
- Playing with fire in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Playing with fire at Turner Classic Movies (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ "I came to her at a time of personal crisis in her life and the film gave her a chance to work on an island for a couple of months, secluded and away from her personal problems in Paris." Quoted from John Kobal: Rita Hayworth: The Time, The Place and the Woman . WW Norton, New York 1977, p. 260.
- ↑ "She had a unique beauty, just the structure of her face alone was exciting to look at." Quoted from John Kobal: Rita Hayworth: The Time, The Place and the Woman . WW Norton, New York 1977, p. 260.
- ↑ “All three of us, Bob, Jack and myself, adored her. We took care of her, joked with her, understood her. " Quoted from John Kobal: Rita Hayworth: The Time, The Place and the Woman . WW Norton, New York 1977, p. 260.
- ^ A b John Kobal: Rita Hayworth: The Time, The Place and the Woman . WW Norton, New York 1977, pp. 259-262.
- ↑ Playing with fire. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed February 19, 2020 .
- ↑ cf. cinema.de
- ↑ “Its proper beginning seems uncomfortably wedged in its middle. Two of the three principals disappear in the midst of the story for half an hour. [...] Rita, whose role is in the nature of a comeback after four years of sporadic squabbling with Columbia, and Jack Lemmon are both wide-awake, turn in solidly realistic performances. " Time quote after Gene Ringgold: The Films of Rita Hayworth . Citadel Press, Secaucus 1974, p. 202.
- ^ "Hayworth is excellent as the comely femme who is always just one step ahead of the law. Lemmon shows plainly that he can handle a dramatic type role while Mitchum, as the tough man of the world, contributes one of his better portrayals. " See Fire Down Below . In: Variety , 1957.
- ↑ “No need to call the Fire Department to handle Fire Down Below […]. Right in the middle of the picture, Mr. Shaw pulls the plug, Miss Hayworth is sloshed into the background and all that's left are some smoke and steam. […] Say this, however, for the picture: the scenery and photography are superb and an actor named Edric Connor, as a West Indian sailor, is keen. " Bosley Crowther : Screen: A False Alarm; 'Fire Down Below' Goes on View at Astor . In: The New York Times , August 9, 1957.
- ↑ “Irwin Shaw's screenplay has structural problems […] but the bigger problem is its triteness. The characters are poorly drawn, the situations are overly familiar, and the dialogue alternates between dull and ridiculous. Robert Parrish's direction is somewhat better, as he manages to keep the pace fairly brisk, and he's aided enormously by both beautiful on-location scenery and expert Desmond Dickinson's camerawork. Mitchum and Hayworth are solid, with Hayworth turning in one of her patented sexy dance numbers, but it's Lemmon that makes the greatest impression. " Craig Butler, cf. omovie.com
- ↑ cf. synchrondatenbank.de