This is one of my favorite movies from the '40s. It's such a strange film for the time. Clark Gable and some other convicts escape from a Devil's Island-type penal colony. They are joined by a convict (Ian Hunter) none of them seem to know but who has a strange way about him. Gable also brings along a prostitute (Joan Crawford) who turned him in on his last escape attempt. The convicts and Joan embark on a dangerous journey to escape the island. Along the way they begin to suspect there is something almost supernatural about Hunter's character. As a matter of fact, he is heavily implied to be Jesus Christ! This sounds like something prime for mockery but it actually works really well.
Clark Gable is just great in this, from a pure entertainment perspective. He spends the whole movie barking at people and being a tough guy. I especially love all of his scenes with Joan Crawford, saying things like "come here baby" and planting one on her. It's a macho cheesy role for Gable but I loved every minute of it. Crawford turns in an underrated performance and looks absolutely stunning. I don't think Joan would ever look this pretty on screen again. The best thing about it is she looks relatively plain here. No shoulder pads, no Groucho Marx eyebrows, no heavy makeup or matronly hairstyles. She's positively radiant.
The cast is amazing. In addition to Gable and Crawford, there's Ian Hunter's brilliantly enigmatic turn as Cambreau. Paul Lukas and Albert Dekker turn in two of the best performances of their careers. Peter Lorre plays the creepy Pig who has eyes on Joan. John Arledge is nicely sympathetic as Dekker's "friend." There's certainly some room for interpretation with that part of the movie. It's a good-looking film. Director Frank Borzage never made an ugly movie that I'm aware of. He epitomized MGM glamour. Great Franx Waxman score, too. Just a phenomenal movie. Deserves much wider recognition than it has received.
