Tokyo Joe (1949)

"I put away the Army when I took off that little brown suit." Joe Barrett

This is one of Bogart’s later efforts, after he split from Warner Bros and went out on his own.

Bogart plays the same international man of mystery that he practically made a career of. Set in post-war Japan, Tokyo Joe’s is a nightclub he owned, pre-war. Now, he’s trying to return to pick up where he left off. Incidentally, this is the first movie that was allowed to film in post-war Japan.

Bogey is an ex-pilot who helped bomb Japan flat prior to her surrender. The early scenes show him going through the red tape to get admitted to the country, dealing with the American Occupation Forces. For those interested in the history of Japan, the scenes showing Tokyo immediately post war (1949) are worth a look.

Thwarted in his attempt to regain his nightclub, now Bogart is trying to establish a legitimate air freight business, but to get the licenses and permits he has to get into bed with a gangster played by Sessue Hayakawa (Bridge on the River Kwai).

Bogey has also found to his mixed surprise and regret that his abandoned wife (Florence Marly), whom he thought dead, was still alive and had a daughter. She had divorced Bogey and remarried another American (Alexander Knox), who is a big wheel with the American government. To make sure Joe plays along fair, the gangster kidnaps Joe’s daughter (Lora Lee Michel). I’ll leave to your viewing pleasure how (or if) all these things get worked out.

The script is quite formulaic and stale and Bogart, despite his charisma does not transcend its mediocrity. Moreover, his supporting cast does not even measure up to his tepid standard, therefore the movie comes out lukewarm. Now, with Bogart, even pretty dang poor is a step above about 80% of Hollywood’s normal fare, but don’t kid yourself, this is not Casablanca by any stretch of the imagination.

The Ilsa character is played by Florence Marly who was unknown to me before I looked her name up. She really does not threaten Ingrid Bergmann with her performance here, and her rendition of the standard Bogart nightclub tune These Foolish Things does not stick in the memory all that well, either.

A minor point of interest shows the 50 year-old Bogart in a Judo match with his former nightclub partner (Teru Shimada). It’s pretty cool watching the two guys flip each other around, even though it was mostly stunt doubles.

The Columbia DVD is presented in Black and White, in 1.33:1 theatrical format, and runs 88 minutes. I wish I could say that this is a worthwhile movie, but I would only recommend it to Bogart completists or those interested in the look of immediate post-war Japan. The rest of you can take the day off.

Thanks for stopping by!

Recommended:
No

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: None of the Above