Softwing Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

ReaderKenka Let's be realistic.

Phonearl Good start, but then it gets ruined

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

dougdoepke Plot--As a youngster Johnny Columbo vows to crack the criminal organization in New York's Little Italy, the Black Hand, after they've murdered his father. As an adult he seeks to carry out his pledge among the teeming streets, where people are mostly too intimidated to help out. Eventually, he allies with the fearless Louis Lorelli. But will that be enough. It's a well-produced crime drama from MGM. I suspect the film was approved under the general aegis of Dore Schary who was replacing Louis B. Mayer as studio head. Under Mayer the studio typically turned out sunny escapism that came to define Hollywood as the Dream Factory. But the sunny themes of Andy Hardy were out of synch with a traumatized post-war audience, so studio adjustments such as Schary's darker vision was needed. Black Hand typifies the noirish themes that came to dominate the period that Schary's former studio RKO specialized in.Looks like actor Kelly was also hoping to expand his range into the new period. I had some difficulty viewing him as an Italian immigrant, but he manages the lingo smoothly enough even though I kept expecting a soft shoe at any moment. The movie itself creates some suspense even though director Thorpe films in impersonal style. Unfortunately, that minimizes the many dramatic highlights that more close-ups and edgier acting would have underscored. Nonetheless, the shabby settings and shadowy lighting impart an appropriate mood. Columbo's moral predicament at the end is a poignant one, a culmination of the shadowy mood.Overall, the result fails to give enough bite to the drama implicit in the material. My guess is Schary should have brought some of RKO's crime specialists with him.

st-shot After his father is murdered for standing up to the mob Johnny Columbo swears to avenge his death. Well entrenched in Little Italy the Mafia uses violence and intimidation to keep the community in its grip and Columbo finds it difficult at first to get assistance in breaking the code of silence that solidify's their grip. When he enlists the help of detective Louis Lorelli things begin to happen and the mob responds harshly.Gene Kelly in an off type role as Johnny is a slight stretch (it begs for Richard Conti) but convincing enough. It is J. Carroll Naish as intrepid detective Lorelli though that runs away with the film. It's nice to see J. center stage and noble given his career as a venal and craven weakling in many of his films hanging on the edge of scenes, ready to pounce on someone's misfortune.Workman like director Richard Thorpe more than once allows his scenes to drag in spots but cinematographer Paul Vogels excellent camera work fills the suspense lapses with excellently lit exteriors and some nice subtle tracking work. There are Lang like moments as well with Thorpe eschewing suspense music in favor of silence and ambient noise to heighten scenes but his poor pacing and moments of incredulity prevent the film from reaching full potential. There is certainly more ugly truth to be found in the film Black Hand that deals with the same topic of the Mafia as the more sophisticated violently romantic Godfather films. Pale in comparison to the production values, vaunted cast and and directing styles of the saga it still delivers moments that rival.

jotix100 This film is a curiosity because of the casting of the main role, Johnny Columbo, played by Gene Kelly, an talented actor better known for his contribution to musicals, and for direction. A seldom film these days, "Black Hand", is at best a crime picture about the turn of the century mafia groups that preyed on decent folks eking a life in their adopted country.Directed by Richard Thorpe, and with a screen play by Luther Davis, the picture presents an urban drama in which a powerful organized machinery wrecks havoc among Italians. Johnny Columbo had seen his own father killed a the hand of a criminal element that had a lot of power and seeks to avenge his father, as well as to expose the bandits that controlled the extortion and crime.Gene Kelly does what he could in a role that asked a lot of him in a dramatic way. J. Carrol Naish, a wonderful character actor, is seen as Louis Lorelli, a police detective who wants to help the community, only to become a target for the mafiosi that wanted him out of the picture."Black Hand" offers a glimpse of the mafia in action during those early days.

lastliberal When I think of Gene Kelly, I think of "Singing in the Rain" or "An American in Paris," as I imagine most would. I would never expect to see him playing an Italian who comes back from the old country to avenge the death of his father. Casting him as an Italian was way off base. They couldn't find an Italian to play an Italian? This miscasting affects the whole movie.You should not look for something that resembles "The Godfather" here as there is a similar revenge story. This was done in 1950 and people were obviously more gullible. Imagine that he was able to pick up a lit cigarette with his feet and use it to light a fuse. Imagine that he could do that, without even imagining the fact that he did it in a room full of people. Incredible! The one redeeming part of the movie was the part played by J. Carrol Naish, as a police detective who figures out a way to beat the mob.Of interest as the predecessor to the films that we all love today about the Mafia.