A great cast stars in "Johnny O'Clock," a 1947 noir written and directed by Robert Rossen. It stars Dick Powell, Evelyn Keyes, Lee J. Cobb, Ellen Drew, Thomas Gomez, and Nina Foch.Not that many years have passed since Dick Powell was a singing juvenile, but here he is as Johnny O'Clock, a somewhat cold tough guy who has a partnership with Guido Marchettis (Gomez) in a gambling casino. Johnny's a hard guy to figure - with the hat check girl Harriet (Nina Foch), he's helpful and kind, and it's hard to decide which is the real Johnny.There's a crooked cop who works for Johnny and Guido named Chuck Blayden (Jim Bannon), who's making trouble for Harriet and there's an Inspector Kotch (Lee J. Cobb) who wants Johnny to answer some questions. Then there's the gorgeous, sexy wife of Marchettis, Nelle (Drew), who's had an affair with Johnny and wants him back. In the midst of all this, Harriet is found dead and it's assumed to be suicide.When Harriet's sister (Evelyn Keyes) comes along, there's an instant spark between her and Johnny. But Johnny is in trouble, thanks to a couple of watches, and the disappearance of Blayden.For some reason, this films ends up being a disappointment. Despite Rossen's wonderful direction, it's not tight enough, nor is the story strong enough. One sort of has the feeling of being dropped into the middle of something. That doesn't mean there aren't interesting elements. One is the tiniest hint of homosexuality in the character of Charlie (John Kellogg), an ex-con who works for Johnny and lives with him.The performances across the board are very good, led by Powell as an attractive, solid tough guy with hints of humanity, and Keyes as a strong but vulnerable woman.Still worth seeing.

"Johnny O'Clock" is a pleasure to watch as it provides a magnificent example of the visual style which is most often associated with the classic film noirs. It uses many of the familiar motifs (e.g. hats, mirrors, clocks, cigarette smoke etc.) in conjunction with some attention grabbing camera-work and inspired use of light and shadow to create the moody environment within which the action takes place.This crime thriller which was written for the screen by first time director Robert Rossen, tells the story of a casino manager, Johnny O'Clock (Dick Powell), who is confident, conceited and shrewd in his business dealings, but who is also surrounded by treachery and consequently has to be sharp witted to navigate his way through the potential pitfalls and dangers that seem to engulf him on all sides. Despite his astute nature, Johnny does keep a great deal of bad company! Chuck Blayden (Jim Bannon) is a corrupt cop whose fiancée is the hat check girl in Johnny's casino. He wants a piece of the action and to do this intends to ingratiate himself with Johnny's senior partner, a gangster called Guido Marchettis (Thomas Gomez), so that he can oust Johnny from his role in the business and pocket Johnny's share of the profits. Chuck has a track record of being quick to use his gun, so when he warns Johnny not to get in his way or he'll kill him, the threat is definitely not an empty one. Chuck dumps the hat check girl and shortly after, she's found dead in her apartment. After Chuck's dead body is also found in a river, Johnny and Guido become the main suspects for having killed both victims.Nancy Hobson (Evelyn Hayes) arrives in New York to find out what happened to her sister Harriet (Nina Foch) who was the hat check girl and Johnny and Nancy enjoy getting to know each other.After Guido discovers that his wife Nelle (Ellen Drew) had given Johnny an identical watch to one that she'd given him, he becomes convinced that she and Johnny are having an affair and so sends some of his henchmen to kill his partner. The plot fails, however, and when Johnny goes to Guido's place to dissolve their partnership and collect his share of the money, there is a confrontation between the two men before their dispute is finally resolved.Dick Powell gives a strong performance as a tough, no nonsense character who has to deal with Chuck's treachery, being betrayed by Charlie (John Kellogg) who was an ex-con that Johnny had been generous to, jealous Guido making two attempts on his life and Nell's vengeance which led her to tell the police that she'd seen him kill a man in cold blood. Fortunately his blossoming romance with Nancy does, at least, provide him with some prospect of better times in the future.Considering the quality of the story, the acting and its stylish look, it's surprising that "Johnny O'Clock" hasn't garnered more acclaim and recognition over the years.

This movie pretends to be a sophisticated drama, but it falls way short. A little too much snappy dialogue. Johnny says: "Come here" The girl says: "I've been there". Johnny says: "Who ordered these drinks? The waiter says: Did you ever eat here? Johnny: No. Waiter: You'll need them." What the hell is all that supposed to mean? Typical 40's fashions. Geez, they were awful. Mostly baggy suits and corny hats for the men, and outrageous spangles and hats for the girls. But most of all there's the title. Johnny O'Clock. Johnny Allegro, Johnny Angel, Johnny Guitar, Johnny Omelet, Johnny Sneakers, etc. A few years later they moved on to the Charlies.There is not much of a story. Dick Powell plays Johnny, a full time gambling club owner. He sets his alarm for 9pm every night, and wanders around the nether world rubbing shoulders with the demi-monde. All the girls fall for him and the tough guys fear him. He plays tag with the cops while trying to solve a mystery that involves a suicide, a pocket watch, and a dead cop. Don't expect me to explain. I've had a tough day, and this one requires more concentration than I can muster. Since Mr O'Clock doesn't get up until Nine O'Clock, everything takes place in the dark. That's pretty much where the movie left me. In the dark. I shouldn't be knocking it too much. Some of the performances are halfway decent, but the writer and dialogue coach should have been fired.

Despite assembling all the staples - nightclub/casino setting, cops, crooks and conmen, low-key dialogue, would-be anti-hero - this entry somehow winds up as less than the sum of its parts. Clearly an admirer of Abe Lincoln (you can fool some of the people all of the time ..) Dick Powell had wisely abandoned his 'singing' career by the mid-forties in favour of thrillers verging on noir and although he did well enough in Murder, My Sweet, here he gives the impression - as do the rest of the cast - that he is acting under water. First-time director Robert Rossen was clearly looking ahead to his follow-up film released that same year which is perhaps why this one seems to boast too much body and not enough soul.