Casbah *** (1948, Yvonne De Carlo, Tony Martin, Peter Lorre, Marta Toren, Hugo Haas) – Classic Movie Review 4,296

The irresistibly daft 1948 musical fantasy adventure film is gaudily cast with Yvonne De Carlo as the lovely siren Inez, Tony Martin as the thief Pépé Le Moko, and, most treasurably, Peter Lorre.

Come viz me to zee Casbah, for director John Berry’s irresistibly daft 1948 musical fantasy adventure, gaudily cast with Yvonne De Carlo as the lovely siren Inez, Tony Martin as the thief Pépé Le Moko, and, most treasurably, Peter Lorre as Inspector Slimane, the dogged Casbah cop on his trail.

Yvonne De Carlo (1922–2007)

Crooner Martin is certainly in good voice, if perhaps not on such good Thespian form as the thief / spy who is willing to risk all for Gaby (Swedish beauty Märta Torén in her Hollywood début), the woman he loves. Quite fortunately, Lorre, De Carlo and Hugo Haas are old and faithful hands at this kind of thing.

Peter Lorre (1904–1964)

A remake of two more famous films, Jean Gabin’s Pépé Le Moko (1937) and Charles Boyer’s Algiers (1938), Casbah still makes its own mark as exotic, entertaining, old-fashioned escapism. It is daft, certainly, but it’s also splendidly escapist and engaging.

Unexpectedly, the Harold Arlen (music) – Leo Robin (lyrics) songs help to raise its appeal – if not its credibility – by several notches. Their pleasant tunes include the Oscar-nominated ‘For Every Man There’s a Woman’ sung by Tony Martin. Also: ‘Hooray for Love’ sung by Tony Martin and Yvonne De Carlo, ‘It Was Written in the Stars’ sung by Tony Martin and ‘What’s Good About Goodbye’ sung by Tony Martin.

Märta Torén (1926–1957)

Also in the cast are Douglas Dick, Katherine Dunham, Herbert Rudley, Gene Walker, Curt Conway, André Pola, Barry Bernard, Virginia Gregg and Will Lee.

Leslie Bush-Fekete [László Bús-Fekete] and Arnold Manoff write the screenplay, adapting the novel by Henri La Barthe (writing as Detective Ashelbé). The musical story is by Erik Charell.

Unlike its predecessors, it was a box office failure, taking $1,092,283 on a budget of $1.3 million. This might have been to do with Tony Martin having been blacklisted in the entertainment industry after being discharged from the US Navy for ‘unfitness’ in 1942. He was charged with buying a US Navy officer a car to facilitate his obtaining a chief specialists rating.

It was the first production from Marston Productions, which Martin owned with his agent, Nat Gould. The Bank of America put up $800,000 and distributors Universal Pictures chipped in too.

Release date: April 1948.

The cast

The cast are Yvonne De Carlo as Inez, Tony Martin as Pépé Le Moko, Peter Lorre as Slimane, Märta Torén as Gaby, Hugo Haas as Omar, Thomas Gomez as Louvain, Douglas Dick as Carlo, Herbert Rudley as Claude, Gene Walker as Roland, Curt Conway as Maurice, Katherine Dunham as Odette, André Pola, Barry Bernard, Virginia Gregg and Will Lee.

Eartha Kitt makes her film debut in an uncredited bit part and an uncredited Kathleen Freeman plays an American Woman.

Tony Martin

Romantic singer / actor Tony Martin died on July 27 2012, aged 98. Martin, married to his second wife the dancer Cyd Charisse for 60 years, appeared in more than 30 films. His first wife, from 1937 until their 1940 divorce, was musical star Alice Faye.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Classic Movie Review 4,296

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