Everybody in the bayou loves door-to-door peddler Hank Martin (James Cagney). He marries new school teacher Verity Wade (Barbara Hale). Wild sexy jealous swamp girl Flamingo McManamee (Anne Francis) is obsessed with him and tries to feed her to the crocodiles. He rallies the poor against rich cotton trader Castleberry and becomes a political animal.
Hank Martin is a Huey Long type figure. There are some rather simplistic characters like Flamingo. She's too made-up to be a swamp vixen and way too crazy. A little subtlety would help. Cagney is being Cagney. In many ways, his energy and charisma really fit this character. It doesn't make it a realistic portrayal. He just keeps yelling and yelling. It all feels a little artificial like the fake crocodile in that fake swamp.
Hank Martin is a Huey Long type figure. There are some rather simplistic characters like Flamingo. She's too made-up to be a swamp vixen and way too crazy. A little subtlety would help. Cagney is being Cagney. In many ways, his energy and charisma really fit this character. It doesn't make it a realistic portrayal. He just keeps yelling and yelling. It all feels a little artificial like the fake crocodile in that fake swamp.