Sat 24 Jan 2015
PIER 13. 20th Century Fox, 1940. Lynn Bari, Lloyd Nolan, Joan Valerie, Douglas Fowley, Chick Chandler, Oscar O’Shea, Adrian Morris. Director: Eugene Forde.
In this semi-spritely remake of Me and My Gal, a 1932 film starring Spencer Tracy and Joan Bennett, and directed by Raoul Walsh, it’s the chemistry between leading players Lloyd Nolan and Lynn Bari that keeps this otherwise ordinary crime film from sinking far below the water off Pier 13.
He’s Danny Dolan, the new cop on the beat in the area, while she’s Sally Kelly, the wise-cracking and gum-chewing waitress whom he meets on his first day on the job. He’s attracted to her at once, there’s no doubt about that, but it takes her a while to show that she’s interested too.
Trouble is, a notorious jewel thief is back in town and he has a hold on Sally’s sister, and he wants her help once again to pull off his next robbery. As I said earlier, there’s not too much to this as a crime story, and of course it all turns out well. It’s only the banter between the two lovers that makes this a movie worth watching. When sparks fly like this, there’s bound to be a fire.
January 24th, 2015 at 8:13 pm
I’ll pretty much watch Lloyd Nolan in anything. He could do straight drama, but he could also make “I love you” sound like a wise crack when he wanted. Even when he plays a psychotic bad guy he’s a charming one.
January 24th, 2015 at 8:44 pm
To tell you the truth, I watched this one largely because Lynn Bary was in it, and I was most definitely not disappointed in that regard.
But I’m with you when it comes to Lloyd Nolan, David. I don’t know how to describe his presence on the screen, but what it seems to boil down to is that he always seems to be enjoying himself, even when he’s one of the bad guys.
He and Lynn Bari made a great pair in this one.
January 24th, 2015 at 9:40 pm
Nolan was hard of hearing and had to memorize everyone’s part, and that attention to the other actors may be part of what gives him such screen presence. It removes him a little and makes him stand out.
Then too he has that quality of seeming to say “Hey, I’m in a movie, isn’t that cool!”
Lynn Bari goes without saying.
January 25th, 2015 at 8:21 am
ME AND MY GAL is without doubt and beyond debate the greatest film ever made in any genre, and it would be fun to see Nolan & Bari in the Spencer Tracy / Joan Bennett parts.
January 25th, 2015 at 4:01 pm
Dan
I’ve not seen ME AND MY GAL, and I know I should. If I could find an inexpensive copy, I’d grab it up in a minute. I have a feeling that ME AND MY GAL is better than PIER 13, but the latter, very much a remake, does have its moments.
January 25th, 2015 at 1:28 pm
“gun-chewing waitress”
Wouldn’t gum taste better?
January 25th, 2015 at 4:02 pm
Thanks, Roger. Spellcheckers are wonderful, but they don’t catch slips like this, Freudian or not. I’ll fix it immediately, if not sooner.
January 25th, 2015 at 5:19 pm
You can’t really compare anything with Tracy and someone like Bennett to any B-movie remake however good. It’s like trying to compare a harvest moon to the sun. Both shine brightly, but …
January 25th, 2015 at 6:04 pm
I never knew this remake Pier 13 existed. So thank you!
Meanwhile, here is a little “Shine On Harvest Moon”, to follow up David’s post:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuxxFG9l1Q8