Calcutta *** (1946, Alan Ladd, Gail Russell, William Bendix, June Duprez, Lowell Gilmore, Edith King) – Classic Movie Review 10,098

Director John Farrow’s 1946 film Calcutta is a routinely written but steadfast action adventure crime thriller, with Alan Ladd and William Bendix starring as airmen Neale Gordon and Pedro Lake, commercial pilots tracking down their murdered buddy Bill Cunningham (John Whitney)’s killer in Calcutta’s seedy bars, rooms, alleyways and markets, as they realise they have stumbled onto a smuggling racket.

Although stuck in the Paramount studios back lot, director Farrow fashions some satisfying, atmospheric entertainment, nicely shot in black and white by John F Seitz. Ladd and Bendix are a fine, contrasting double act.

Gail Russell, June Duprez and Edith King make an impression too, playing the women in the case, Virginia Moore, Russian club singer Marina Tanev and Mrs. Smith, with Lowell Gilmore as the Chalgani Club boss Eric Lasser. The plot thickens when Neale learns that Bill was engaged to an alluring American woman, Virginia Moore (Russell), who has $10,000 necklace gifted by Bill.

Unusually, it is an original script, written for the screen by the film’s producer Seton I Miller, prompted apparently by Calcutta being often in the wartime news.

It was shot in June and July 1945 but not released until 23 April 1947. In between Ladd made and released OSS (1946).

Ladd and Bendix had just appeared in Two Years Before the Mast for Miller. Farrow had made two films with Ladd (Two Years Before the Mast and China) Russell had recently made Salty O’Rourke with Ladd. King makes her film debut. About 200 Indian seamen from the British Indian Navy were extras. Four people were hired as technical advisers, including Mrs Madge E Schofield (a former Calcutta resident) and Dr Bhogwan Singh (a resident Hollywood expert on Indian affairs) who were given small roles.

Also in the cast are Paul Singh as Mul Raj Malik, Gavin Muir as Inspector Kendricks, Benson Fong as Young Chinese Clerk, Don Beddoe, Milton Parsons, Leslie Fong, Jimmy Aubrey, Lee Tung Foo, Joey S Ray, Beal Wong, Bruce Wong, Eddie Das, Morton Lowry, Wong Artrane, Frank Baker, Bobby Barber, John Benson, Carmen Beretta, Julio Bonini, George Broughton, Bruce Carruthers, Marilynn Chow, Harry Cording, Peter Cusanelli, Adrienne D’Ambricourt, Aminta Dyne, Dane Ervin, Frederick Gierman, Eddie Hall, Joy Harrington, Len Hendry, Leyland Hodgson, Colin Kenny, Hassan Khayyam, George Kirby, Eddie Lee, Shirley Lew, Lal Chand Mehra, Moy Ming, Bill Nind, Fred Nurney, Albert Polet, Madge E Schofield, Bhogwan Singh, George Sorel, Robert S Stephenson, Charles Stevens, Mahmed Tahir, Ernö Verebes and Barbara Jean Wong.

Calcutta is directed by John Farrow, runs 83 minutes, is made by Paramount, is released by Paramount, is written by Seton I Miller, is shot in black and white by John F Seitz, is produced by Seton I Miller, is scored by Victor Young, with production designs by Hans Dreier and Franz Bachelin.

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 10,098

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