Upon finishing the movie today, I realized something. Movies that are based on books are always prone to create false presentations for viewers. As I read the novel, I could honestly imagine the book on the big screen. But disappointment is unfortunately what followed with the transition of “The Glass Key” from literature to film.
Overall, I would have to say that I really enjoyed the movie; it had its quirks, humor, drama, and a ton of great one-liners. I throughly enjoyed seeing Jeff (William Bendix) in human form. He was truly fun to watch, especially when he and Ed are sitting in a back room talking and he keeps leaning in real close and holding him affectionately. That entire sequence was a bit strange in the book and I believe the movie’s scene probably lived up to Hammett’s standards.
This is just a side note, and I can’t quite figure out this detail that appeared throughout the film. Anyone who can help me understand this issue, please feel free to comment. Why in the world does Ed Beaumont continuously have an evil-looking smirk on his face? He’s keeps pulling out that smirk at the most random and unexpected places. For instance immediately after Matthews’s death.
Paul Madvig (Brian Donlevy) was one of the best characters in the film. He was portrayed as a stronger individual than he was in the book. He was much more socially expressive with the people around him, running his mouth a mile a minute at the dinner party. Readers were able to view the dinner party in the novel, but from what I gathered I felt Paul did not do much talking. I got the impression that he just sat to the side in silence. I can’t truly justify that statement, but for some reason that is the image I’ve created in my head. The scene involving Paul that I loved most was when Ed was trying to leave Matthews’s house and Jeff hits him (yet again), causing Ed to fall against the wall. As Jeff starts to move in on Ed, suddenly Paul comes out of no where and takes out Nick Barnett’s henchmen! It was awesome! He came in saving his friend from anymore harm. I also have to say that taking the ring back was hilarious. He asks for the left hand (not the right hand that she lifted), took the ring off her finger and he asks, “What, do you think I’m crazy?” Then he walks away. Awesome. Paul just seemed to be a little more independent from Ed that he was from Ned in the book.
I’ll end this with a small, but incredibly funny quote from the movie. After Ed accuses Janet of Taylor’s murder, Janet’s father, the Senator, asked District Attorney Farr who’s evidence this was based off of. Ed replied “My evidence, and brother its hot!”