The Old Pro Cometh- Rhonda Fleming’s Slightly Scarlet

DVD Review

From The Pen Of Frank Jackman  

Slightly Scarlet, starring Rhonda Fleming, John Payne, Arlene Dahl,

Solly Caspar was old school, old school by 1950s new ways, an old school hood strictly from some back street tenement neighborhood fighting and clawing his way out to easy street with fists, guns, knives whatever it took. Took out whoever he needed to take out in order to move up the food chain, move up fast and not wait for guys to retire or anything like that. Yeah, Solly claimed he knew Al, Bugsy, Meyer, Lucky (before they shipped him back to Italy), hell, Don Corleone too, all the old time hoods who were strictly from some back street tenement neighborhoods fighting and clawing their way out to easy street with fists, guns, knives whatever it. So no question Solly had the old methods down pat. Problem was, 1950s problem, that the old ways were passé caused too many waves, were bad for business. And that was the point in the old days to run and hold on to your market share in the rackets, the ones that counted, gambling, drugs, guns, women all you needed was big fists, big guns and long knives. But in the whirlwind American Century 1950s you needed brains, and plenty of them to hold to your end, to hold off the competition. You needed guys like suave all-angles Ben (played by John Payne), college guys, college guys with larceny in their hearts, and huge wanting habits not to be filled by being a rung in some legit operation. So that, centrally, is the dramatic  tension, well, that and some heavy innuendo sex just off to the side in the film under review, Slightly Scarlet, a Technicolor film noir of sorts if that is possible, possible for noirs to be in color.               

Here is the wrap up. Solly is the crime boss of corrupt, crooked, wide open Bay City insured by having the city pols wired to his operations who is faced with a problem. (They always have a Bay City in these things when they want to do a California scene but they really mean L.A. which was corrupt, crooked and wide open for a long time in those days, now too for that matter.) A clean no-nonsense guy who was not from hunger, had his own resources, and did not need the job of mayor to make his fortune. Such a guy was a problem to the sweet setup that Solly had so he went into action. Not against Mr. Clean but the prominent publisher, the do-gooder newspaper publisher who was backing him and making a stink about the then current city administration.

And this was when Solly showed his old school form which if he thought about it for a moment, something he might have been incapable of when he got his dander up, he could have saved himself from the big step-off if had listened to Ben for one minute (although in the end Ben had old Solly figured, had him down pat and was able to walk into the sweet set-up with only a few ruffled feather). Instead of going with the flow and working out some deal with the new guy on the block, that Mr. Clean or one of his underlings, Solly had to prove his old school ways by slapping the sick old publisher around causing him to have a heart attack. Then Solly in true form, which every corner boy in America, or maybe the world could appreciate, had him thrown out the window by a couple of his boys. Nice touch and Al, Bugsy, and Lucky would have been proud but all it got Solly was Mr. Clean elected as the new mayor and a one way trip to Mexico to cool out until things calmed down. Naturally Solly didn’t like the idea of exile, especially as he began to get wise that Ben was making the big move to replace him, maybe permanently. Solly had some old school thoughts about that matter, no question.      

But that is Solly and his small problems which in no way on this good green earth are going to make movie-goers rise up against his fate. No, Solly when the deal went down was just a bit player, a bit player against the love angle that every film noir, in color or otherwise, needs to round out the plot. See that Mr. Clean had a secretary, a girl Friday really, June (played by the luscious, there is no other word for her, buxom red-haired Rhonda Fleming who ignited many a midnight dream in the 1950s Technicolor film world) who was the power behind the throne, who kept his spirits up and whom she admired as the right guy to run the city and maybe run her too. But see that is where things got complicated because she fell for Ben, fell hard for a while, who was clearly no good for her when that deal went down. And had a, well, let’s call her high-spirited, unstable, troubled and bothered younger sister, Dorothy (played by Arlene Dahl who played the vixed, flirty, walk on the wild side just for the hell of it man trap to a tee). See Dorothy just out of stir and tired of looking at women all day wants up and coming Ben too. And what Dotty wants Dotty has got to have whatever the consequences.   

But June really is a girl Friday and an angel of mercy despite the wanting the same man problem with sis. She for her own reasons is committed to keeping Dotty out of the slammer and to keeping Mr. Clean on his task of cleaning up L.A. (oops Bay City). In the end it was  not clear whether she could save Dotty or Ben. Ben, (who when last seen was bleeding like a sieve from old school Solly’s root-a-toot-toot). See Solly, old school or new, didn’t want to be squeezed down the food chain, got tired of exile and tired of Ben’s clever squeeze plays to run his rackets. So against all good judgment Solly came back to settle some scores, the old school way and Ben paid the price. Solly too because he is right now being set up for the big step off. But that is that.