High Sierra

1941 | Film Noir | 100 minutes | English

Info

The aging gangster, Big Mac, is planning to rob a fashionable resort in Tropico Springs California. To help him, he recruits another gangster, Roy Earle, who was recently released from prison. Big Mac rounds up three more men to assist in the heist: Louis Mendoza, who works as clerk at the hotel, Red, and Babe. Babe is accompanied by his dance-hall friend, Marie. Predictably, Marie falls for Roy (after all, he is Bogie), but initially he doesn’t reciprocate. While driving up the mountain, Roy meets the family of Velma, a young woman with a deformed foot. In a display of compassion, Roy pays for Velma’s corrective surgery. He falls in love with Velma, but she tells Roy she is engaged. In a classic rebound, Roy now turns to Marie and they become lovers. Unfortunately, the heist at the hotel goes wrong. Roy and Marie are able to escape but the police set up a dragnet. While Roy is being pursued in the Sierra Mountains, he convinces Marie to separate and save herself. Roy is getting cornered by the police as they refer to him as “Mad Dog Earle.” Roy is not giving up, but what chance does he have with high mountains at his back and surrounded by armed police?

Cast

Humphrey Bogart (Roy Earle) / Ida Lupino (Marie) / Alan Curtis (Babe) / Cornel Wilde (Louis Mendoza) / Arthur Kennedy (Red) / Joan Leslie (Velma)

Why Stream This Film?

It’s an opportunity to see a star in the making. Bogart didn’t get top billing, that went to Ida Lupino. But after viewing the film the consensus of the critics was that Bogart would make film history. He followed this up with a masterful performance in the The Maltese Falcon in 1941 and established his legacy with his memorable role in Casablanca in 1942.