adamshl Bette Davis looks as though she was rested (after her hiatus involving litigation) and raring to sink her teeth in a juicy part. Well, she got her wish in this finely directed Lloyd Bacon gangster drama.Davis is alert, focused, and driven here, putting her all into the dance hall hostess. It's one of her best roles in a film unfamiliar to many movie goers.The film is notable for some fine work by most talented character actors, and for an unusual "good guy" role for Humphrey Bogart. This crusading D.A. on a mission is skillfully etched by Mr. B. and his scenes with Davis are particularly engaging.Everyone knows the true life basis for this drama, and the exclaimer at the start doesn't fool anyone. This is a mean expose of some very callus criminals, and has the feel of that period's current newspaper headlines.A well made drama, worth checking out.

moonspinner55 Mob czar takes over swanky nightclub and turns it into a "clip joint", keeping the hostesses on to tempt and tantalize the male clientèle and using his gorillas as bouncers; when a customer is murdered after trying to skip out on his bill, the Chief Prosecutor hopes one of the working girls will rat her bosses out in the courtroom. Thinly-veiled chronicle of Thomas E. Dewey's real-life legal showdown with Lucky Luciano, now with much of the emphasis placed on Bette Davis' role as tough-talking broad-cum-caring big sister. Screenplay by Robert Rossen and Abem Finkel is unusually taut, while Lloyd Bacon's direction manages to be compact and yet artistically solid. Humphrey Bogart's attorney isn't the dynamic character one is expecting, and his performance seems a little slow and dull. Davis, on the other hand, is at full-throttle, with big, incredulous eyes, nifty costumes, and a flip, exasperated manner. She's the reason to watch. **1/2 from ****

delibebek After watching this film, I'm surprised it was released as late as 1937. Given that the main characters are call girls and this fact is central to several plot points, I expected to find it was pre-code. Still, thinking back on it, this fact is made clear without direct references. The most direct notice of the nature of their work is given by the reaction of the little sister when this is made a point in court by the defense attorney.Another point in my casual mis-dating of this film is the quality of the picture. There is a black haze that rounds out the corners, but this may be due to the way the film was stored so many years ago. It gives the movie a sense of being a few years older than it is. Call it character.Bette Davis gave a good performance in this movie, walking the line between under and over-acting, with a very balanced treatment of the main role. She was also prettier than I've ever seen her. Humphrey Bogart had a bit of dash in his appearance as the clean cut assistant District Attorney, spending much of his time arguing the case for the prosecution..It's interesting to look back a the way the trial was handled. There isn't a lot of excess drama in those scenes. They are very direct in their approach to the necessary exposition, treating it almost as quick action which gets to the heart of the story. Besides some last minute badgering of a sobbing witness, there isn't much to compare to the stirring soliloquies of more modern courtroom scenes. Even the way the cameras shot the scene is pretty basic, with only the occasional interesting perspective.The plot is easy to follow, revolving around a minor crime lord, a group of call girls and the ability of the court system to triumph. The ending is satisfying in terms of plot, but this is the biggest clue that this is a reflection of the direction Hollywood went in the mid to late 30s. Good always wins. The ending for the characters is not so certain and this is one of the most dramatic parts of the film as the characters go their separate ways to uncertain destinies.

Michael_Elliott Marked Woman (1937) *** (out of 4) A prosecutor (Humphrey Bogart) tries to get a key witness (Bette Davis) to testify against her gangster boss. The first hour of this film was only so-so but it certainly picked up in the final half hour when the gangsters start going after Davis and her younger sister. I think the story is just standard Warner stuff but the performances by Davis and Bogart makes this a small classic that makes for a good time. Davis is very good in her role, although I felt she came off a tad bit campy whenever she was playing anger. A few of her anger scenes made me smile but for the rest of the time she's on fire. Bogart is also very good in his role and it's always fun seeing him play a clean good guy without any baggage. The supporting cast is also in good form and features nice performances from Lola Lane, Isabel Jewell, Eduardo Ciannelli and Mayo Methot (future Mrs. Bogart). Cagney's buddy Allen Jenkins has a fun cameo. The final courtroom scenes are very well handled with some nice cinematography including a great shot during Bogart's closing statement where the camera swoops down on him.