All Through the Night (1941)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Vincent Sherman

Writers:

Leonard Spigelgass (screenplay) and
Edwin Gilbert (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

2 December 1941 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Drama | Thriller | War

Tagline:

Killer Bogart takes the Gestapo for a ride!

Plot:

Runyonesque Broadway gamblers turn patriotic when they stumble onto a cell of Nazi saboteurs.

Plot Keywords:

Nazi | Gambler | Gloves | Saboteur | Singer

Cast

Humphrey Bogart	...	Gloves Donahue
Conrad Veidt	...	Ebbing
Kaaren Verne	...	Leda Hamilton
Jane Darwell	...	Mrs. Donahue
Frank McHugh	...	Barney
Peter Lorre	...	Pepi
Judith Anderson	...	Madame
William Demarest	...	Sunshine
Jackie Gleason	...	Starchy (as Jackie C. Gleason)
Phil Silvers	...	Waiter
Wallace Ford	...	Spats Hunter (as Wally Ford)
Barton MacLane	...	Marty Callahan
Edward Brophy	...	Joe Denning
Martin Kosleck	...	Steindorff
Jean Ames	...	Annabelle

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Canada:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (PCA #7630)

Filming Locations:

Central Park, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Some cast members in studio records/casting call lists did not appear or were not identifiable in the movie. These were (with their character names, if any): Vera Lewis (Mrs. Fogerty), Creighton Hale (Waiter) and Stuart Holmes.

Goofs:

Continuity: 16 minutes into the movie, Gloves is sitting in an armchair. A glass is on the arm and it is clearly visible when the phone is brought to him. The edge of the glass is visible at the bottom of the screen through the phone call, but when Gloves stands up and the phone is brought away, the glass is no longer there.

Quotes:

[on viewing portrait of Hitler]
Alfred "Gloves" Donahue: I recognize the face, but I don't know where to put it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Worm Eaters (1977)

Soundtrack:

Blues in the Night

"Guys and Dolls" meets "The House on 92nd Street"

Humphrey Bogart and a cast of comedians and character actors make it "All Through the Night," a spy story set in New York City. Bogart plays Gloves Donahue, a bigwig in the sports world - gambler, bookie, and he likes to get tourists involved in rigged card games. His boys include Jackie Gleason, William Demarest, Phil Silvers, and Frank McHugh - a bunch of characters right out of Damon Runyon if there ever were any. When the baker who makes Gloves' favorite cheesecake is murdered, Gloves is determined to find out what happened. The trail leads to a spy ring run by sinister Conrad Veidt with assistance from Judith Anderson, her dachshund Hansel, and Peter Lorre. Lorre doubles as a pianist for a nightclub singer (Kaaren Verne) whose father is in a concentration camp and being used as leverage so she will assist the spies.

This is a fast-paced, funny film made shortly before Pearl Harbor. Its underlying message is that the Nazis aren't going to be content with a few eastern European countries; they want it all. As propaganda, it goes down easily with a terrific cast and some hilarious moments, particularly when Bogart and Demarest attend a secret meeting posing as Nazis.

The plot, of course, is preposterous, and the notes that Bogart finds in Veidt's desk are, for some reason, written in English instead of German, but none of that takes away from the enjoyment of the movie.

The performances are all excellent, but Bogart is a wonder. His no-nonsense, honest delivery and perfect timing work beautifully in comedy as well as drama.

This is a delightful movie - don't miss it.