Nobody Lives Forever *** (1946, John Garfield, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Walter Brennan, Faye Emerson, George Coulouris) – Classic Movie Review 12,942

Nobody Lives Forever cinema release poster.

The 1946 American crime film noir Nobody Lives Forever stars John Garfield as a confidence trickster who links up with crooks to cheat a beautiful widow (Geraldine Fitzgerald) out of her wealth.

‘I killed a man for this kiss so you better make it good!’

Nick Blake (John Garfield): ‘I guess his time was up. Nobody lives forever.’

Director Jean Negulesco’s 1946 American crime film noir Nobody Lives Forever stars John Garfield and Geraldine Fitzgerald, along with Walter Brennan, Faye Emerson, George Coulouris and George Tobias. Warner Bros’ original plan was to star Humphrey Bogart and Ann Sheridan.

A confidence trickster, Nick Blake (John Garfield), links up with crooks led by con man Doc Ganson (George Coulouris) to cheat a beautiful widow, Gladys Halvorsen (Geraldine Fitzgerald), out of her wealth, but ends up falling in love with her and tries to pay off Coulouris, who then abducts her.

A robust, busy plot has a lot to recommend it, even if it ends up feeling somewhat obvious and predictable. But that is certainly made up for by Negulesco’s stylish direction, which makes atmospheric use of his mostly Los Angeles locations. And the movie is also hugely enlivened by Garfield’s purposefully uneasy and edgy acting as a man who finds it easier to be on the con than in love.

W R Burnett writes the screenplay from his 1943 novel I Wasn’t Born Yesterday. And thereby hangs a tale.

Warner Bros had commissioned Burnett to write a story for a film to star Humphrey Bogart. Burnett’s contract had a clause with a time limit to make the film, after which the rights reverted to him. No film was made, he got the rights back, and sold the story rights to Collier’s Magazine in 1943 for serialisation, and then to Alfred A Knopf in 1945 as a book. Warner Bros then bought the film rights to the novel and also paid Burnett to write the screenplay, but then Bogart was not available!

Warner Bros’ original plan was to star Humphrey Bogart and Ann Sheridan, who had appeared together in San Quentin (1937), Angels with Dirty Faces (1938) and They Drive by Night (1940).

The cast are John Garfield as Nick Blake, Geraldine Fitzgerald as Gladys Halvorsen, Walter Brennan as Pop Gruber, Faye Emerson as Toni Blackburn, George Coulouris as Doc Ganson, George Tobias as Al Doyle, Robert Shayne as Chet King, Richard Gaines as Charles Manning, Richard Erdman as Bellboy, James Flavin as Shake Thomas, Ralph Peters as Windy Mather, Grady Sutton as Horace, Robert Arthur, Jack Chefe, John Conte, Adrian Droeshout, Ralph Dunn, William Edmunds. William Forrest, Joel Friedkin, Rudy Friml, Alex Havier, Marion Martin, George Meader, Roger Neury, Virginia Patton, Lee Phelps, Paul Power, Allan Ray, Cyril Ring, Wallace Scott, Harry Seymour, Charles Sullivan, Albert Van Antwerp and Jack Wise.

Nobody Lives Forever is directed by Jean Negulesco, runs 100 minutes, is made by Warner Bros, is released by Warner Bros, is written by W R Burnett, is shot in black and white by Arthur Edeson, is produced by Jack L Warner and Robert Buckner, is scored by Adolph Deutsch, Jerome Moross and Leo F Forbstein, and is deigned by Hugh Reticker.

Release date: October 12, 1946.

A radio adaptation with Jane Wyman and Ronald Reagan aired on Lux Radio Theatre on November 17, 1947.

© Derek Winnert 2024 – Classic Movie Review 12,942

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