User Reviews

Not only did "Across the Pacific" add some brightness to Bogart's rising stature as an actor, it more than justified the promise shown by director John Huston after his success with "The Maltese Falcon."

The story begins on November 17, 1941. Lt. Rick Leland (Humphrey Bogart) is being cashiered from the Army at Governor's Island, New York… The reasons are vague, but before five minutes have passed, Bogie is decked out in his familiar trenchcoat… Leland tries to enlist in the Canadian army, but his disgrace is so widespread that they won't have him… Wondering aloud if perhaps the Japanese will take him on, Leland buys a ticket on the 'Genoa Maru' bound for Yokohama via the Panama Canal… On board the freighter, Leland meets Alberta Marlow (Mary Astor), who lies about her past, and Dr. Lorenz (Sydney Greenstreet), a sociologist with an undisguised affinity for all things Japanese…

It's really not spoiling anything to reveal that Leland is engaged in counterespionage because neither Huston nor the screenwriters take the material very seriously… For most of the film, they're more interested in the cutesy shipboard romance between Leland and Alberta—getting seasick, drunk, sunburned…

As a thriller, the film doesn't really get wound up until the third act, when it has a few fine moments, most memorably a long chase scene in a Spanish-language movie theater, and a conventional conclusion…

Sydney Greenstreet was excellent as a jovial yet cunning Japanese sympathizer and Mary Astor played a doubtful role with the same mental adroitness she had displayed in "The Maltese Falcon."

Bogart, of course, carried the story line here and it was a delight to watch his enigmatic character change from one of calculated indifference to that of relentless determination...

Director John Huston, right from the big success of THE MALTESE FALCON, recruits Humphrey Bogart to play ex-Army officer Rick Leland in this World War II propaganda flick. Espionage, treason, a bit of romance in this drama aboard a Japanese steamer. The viewer gradually discovers a few of the passengers are not who they claim to be...including Leland. Bogart woos a small-town girl Alberta Marlow(Mary Astor)...not so innocent. Sydney Greenstreet plays spy Dr. Lorenz, willing to pay for military information. A Japanese-American(Victor Sen Young) making a trip to see the old country may just be the most mysterious passenger aboard. Bogart and Astor trade flirty banter and lighten up some of the drama. Also in the cast: Monte Blue, Charles Halton, Keye Luke and Frank Wilcox.

This general genre -- Americans fighting Nazism (or in this case the Japanese) before or during World War II, is generally not very high on my list of types of film to watch. However, every once in a while one comes along that is pretty decent, often because it's not as predictable.

One thing that makes this particular film a cut above is the cast, much of which was fresh off the success of "The Maltese Falcon". This is a good vehicle for Humphrey Bogart, who plays a GI pretending to be kicked out of the military to act as a sort of spy on some Americans that are up to no good with the Japanese, scheduled right around the bombing of Pearl Harbor, However, in this case the action is taking place centered around the Panama Canal. The primary bad guy here is Sidney Greenstreet, in league with he Japanese. Greenstreet is suitably menacing here. The leading question among the characters is: is Bogart's love interest -- again Mary Astor, a good girl or a bad girl? I actually think Astor is better here than she was in "The Maltese Falcon".

There are also many Asian character actors here that you will recognize, even if you don't remember their names: Victor Sen Yung, Richard Loo, and Keye Luke (among others). Another very good character actor here is Charles Halton.

Of course, as some of our participants have pointed out, there is negative stereotyping of the Japanese in this film. Well, of course! It was made in the middle of World War II.

The degree of suspense here is a little uneven, and there are times when the film moves a little too slowly (particularly in the first half of the film), but overall this film holds your attention.

Sidney Greenstreet's love of Japanese culture is really quite entertaining. I never considered him a very versatile actor, but he was very good at what he did well.

If there are any criticisms due here, there are two. First, the stunt doubling for Humphrey Bogart here is way too obvious. Second, some of the "special effects" here (such as the single airplane near the end of the film) is quite primitive. But, overall, these two things do not detract much from the enjoyment of the film; they may just make you smile.

Recommended if you wish to savor a taste of John Huston's Hollywood version of patriotism. Quite well done for this genre.

Bogey's immediately pre-Casablanca movie re-unites him with his co- stars Astor and Greenstreet and his writer/director of The Maltese Falcon, John Huston. Yes, Huston revised the script as he shot, though he did not receive a credit. This created problems when he was drafted near the end of shooting and Vincent Sherman took over. No join is visible in the film fortunately, due to the polished cinematography of Arthur Edeson (also from The Maltese Falcon) who was to join Bogey on Casablanca. Although the script doesn't measure up to Maltese Falcon standards, it's entertaining enough if not taken too critically and provides some wonderful opportunities for star turns by Bogey, Astor, Greenstreet and a wonderful support cast of delightful oriental off-beats led by Victor Sen Yung as a cheery thug, Chester Gan as the philosophical ship's captain ("It is the Japanese way. If you praise our sons, we say they are unworthy"), Lee Tung Foo as a friendly hotel proprietor and Monte Blue as a silent sot. And, of course, no Oriental-type movie would be complete without Philip Ahn. Here his role is memorable but brief. (That's a curious film we see in the cinema, incidentally. Obviously a Japanese silent movie, though dubbed dialogue on the sound track is designed to give us the impression it's a sound film). Produced on an expansive budget, the film is a marvelous example of Huston's feeling for visual atmosphere. Edeson's low-key film noir lighting is a major asset here, as is Adolph Deutsch's skillful score. The sets are appealingly created too, especially the wharf set with its chugging train and the menacing bulk of the Genoa Maru. In short, Across the Pacific is a very agreeable piece of entertainment indeed. It has quite a lot going for it, especially in the acting, atmospheric and artistic departments. If its entertainment total is less than the sum of its parts, blame the Second World War!

The original theatrical trailer to "Across the Pacific" offers Sydney Greenstreet introducing the story as an even more astonishing tale to tell than "The Maltese Falcon". He should know, he was there for both, reuniting with fellow co-stars Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor in a tale of espionage and intrigue touted with the tag line "behind every smile an invitation to disaster".

The film opens on November 17, 1941, with Bogie's character Rick Leland summarily dismissed from the Army for the indiscretion of borrowing military funds. With a reputation that moves even quicker than he does, Rick is turned down for service in the Royal Canadian Army, or as a wartime recruiting poster advertises - Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry. With time on his hands, Rick boards the freighter Genoa Maru, seemingly to cross paths with a mysterious woman introduced to us as Alberta Marlow (Astor), yet with a larger goal in mind, that of finding a sponsor so he can fight yet again. It's not until he arrives in New York that we learn that Leland is in fact a spy, attempting to get the goods on the saboteur, Dr. B.F.G. Lorenz (Greenstreet), and Japanese plans to blow up the Canal Zone.

Interestingly, the Japanese are depicted on both sides of the American fence. Lorenz describes them as "wonderful little people", as Captain Higoto of the Genoa Maru dispatches an adversary in a New York back alley, and henchman Joe Totsuiko (Victor Sen Yung) demonstrates his judo skills in a couple of scenes. Yet in Panama, Leland's friend and hotel owner Sam Wing On (Lee Tung Foo) demonstrates genuine concern for Rick's well being, and directs him to a theater where he'll get his next set of instructions. With ominous portent, the date on a Panamanian newspaper reads December 6, 1941, Pearl Harbor looming only one day away, even as the headline reads "Hirohito Reply to Roosevelt Will Insure Peace".

Snappy dialog and gritty one liners are a trademark of the film with Astor's character getting off her own fair share of zingers, keeping the romantic angle between her and Rick sufficiently off balance. Apparently, the writers were quite pleased with themselves over a line that's uttered not once, but twice; referencing the difference between their respective firearms, Bogie warns Greenstreet's character - "Remember, mine's bigger than your's".

Bogart fans will no doubt be intrigued by the coincidences between "Across the Pacific" and some of his other movies. For example, the "Fat Man" line is used by Bogie's contact in the Panama Theater, a reference to Greenstreet's character, and a description that followed him from "The Maltese Falcon". The name of "Sam", the hotel owner in Panama, would turn up again almost immediately as that of Rick Blaine's piano player in "Casablanca". And need it be pointed out, Bogart is "Rick" in both films!

As a fan of the Charlie Chan series of films from the 1930's and 40's, I was intrigued by the fact that Number #1 and 2 Sons both appeared in this movie. Although Keye Luke has a throwaway part as a steamship office clerk, Victor Sen Yung enjoys a meatier role as Greenstreet's heavy. Oddly, out of forty two surviving Chan films, they only appeared once as brothers together, in 1948's "The Feathered Serpent".

With both "The Maltese Falcon" and "Across the Pacific" sharing name stars along with director John Huston, the comparison between the two films is inevitable. I find "Falcon" to be the superior film, but don't let that dissuade a would be viewer. However with "Pacific", you'll have to overlook the array of coincidences necessary for the story to unfold, particularly with respect to Rick Leland's roundabout way of getting to the heart of the Canal Zone sabotage plot. You'll also have to overlook the title, the movie never gets that far!

Bogart, fresh from a dishonorable discharge (in which we participate cinematically) is not however disqualified from the world, and is soon on a ship to South America. Along the way he discovers that his shipmates, behind their appearances, are all financed by dubious relations with the Japanese. Bogart himself is on the verge of negotiating a little of the sweet action.

This is the next film after The Maltese Falcon but it is not a classic. Where exactly it falls short is difficult to say but I think the various intrigues lack interest value. I would have to watch it over again at least once to catch the exact details of each.

What it does have is great historical contemporaneity. Pearl Harbor is never mentioned and it is not clear that it has even happened yet in the film. But it really does make the story pop historically.

Also interesting that after Pearl Harbor, Hollywood did not turn to a Mr. Roberts type but continued with the downbeat, variously scrupled Bogie. Of course, Bogart turns out to be an honorable man, on his terms.

So all in all, I think it has lots to offer. Highly recommended.

This is Maltese Falcons' cast w/ a Casablanca-like script but dumbed down a few notches. Bogie is Rick, both of Charlie Chan's most famous Sons are in here-Keye Luke and Victor Sen Young, Mary Astor is around to trade barbs w/ Bogie on board, while you get to see Phillip Ahn sneak into a theatre, say 'Plantation' to Bogie and wind up dead. Plus you get a toy plane at the end, some dead baddies and Mary Astor showing up, right on cue after the last of the lead has flown. 'Don't mind the entrails or the exploding plane-let's kiss!'...urmmm, yeah.

I actually had fun w/ this, but it IS a flag waver rah-rah Bataan like movie, nothing more. Enjoy the cast (Greenstreet is a hoot) and don't think about it too much, you'll be okay.

*** or so outta ****

Directed by John Huston, though finished by Vincent Sherman when Huston was called into war service, with a screenplay by Richard Macaulay that was based on a story by Robert Carson (or Garson, depending upon the source), this war adventure attempted to recapture the magic that director Huston shared with three of its leads in the previous year's The Maltese Falcon (1941).

In this one, Humphrey Bogart plays Rick Leland (in his next film, he would play his most famous Rick; Blaine in Casablanca (1942)), Mary Astor plays Alberta Marlow, and Sydney Greenstreet plays Dr. Lorenz. All three are involved in an intrigue that couldn't have been more timely, a Japanese attempt to blow up the Panama Canal (the original story involved Pearl Harbor, hence the film's incongruent title, which actually was attacked during the production). It captures the style, if not the substance, of the earlier film.

Artilleryman Leland is bucked out the service just before his country would be forced in World War II, a curious time to dishonorably discharged; John Hamilton plays the court-martial president. It's a ruse by the U.S. Military Intelligence intended to draw enemy spies to the ex-soldier, who may be able to provide information they need. Leland goes through the motions of attempting to enlist in the Canadian army before he boards a ship headed to the Orient where he hopes to serve China and Chiang Kai-shek against Japan. He meets, and is curiously attracted to Alberta, but their would-be romance has a rough start (she gets seasick; later, she gets sunburned). Leland also meets, and is befriended by, some other passengers: Dr. Lorenz and Joe Totsuiko (Sen Young). After sharing drinks and pretending to be both intoxicated and willing to part with certain strategic details for a price, Leland learns that Dr. Lorenz is a buyer of just this type of information; he's working for the Japanese.

There's plenty of intrigue, and a lot of it's confusing (intentional or otherwise). Rick's not sure if Alberta has any connection to his dealings with Lorenz, or whether to trust her - at first she wants to help him, but later she disappears. Once the ship from New York reaches Panama, the plot thickens. Charles Halton plays A. V. Smith, Rick's go-between who gives the ex-soldier a schedule of air patrols to reel in Lorenz. Lee Tung Foo plays a friend of Rick's, a Panamanian hotel proprietor, that assists Rick. Plus, the usual suspects in these war pictures, Richard Loo and Keye Luke, also play roles (as does Philip Ahn, though uncredited). Smith is killed, Rick is knocked out, and eventually everything leads to a plantation where it is learned that Dan Morton (Monte Blue) is being held. Alberta is Morton's daughter, and both were being played by Lorenz. Naturally, Rick recovers, saves the day and the Panama Canal.

In going from villain and supporting player to leading man and romantic heartthrob, the unlikely movie star Humphrey Bogart became a box-office favorite, and his films of early World War II show exactly why his stardom was assured. boggart was an anti-hero in every single way, whether being the private detective in "The Maltese Falcon", the race track aficionado tracking down Nazis in "All Through the Night", the nightclub owner in "Casablanca" or the disgraced officer in this, Bogart's struck a nerve with movie audiences searching for something patriotic in the everyman, even one's a little less noble than your next-door neighbor. Both "All Through the Night" and this film deal with enemy sabotage, from the opposite sides of the country.

Having dealt with the Germans in "All Through the Night" (released simultaneously with Pearl harbor), he now takes on Japanese terrorists and other assorted traitors, and a good portion of it takes place just as Pearl Harbor was about to happen as well. Even with a brief stopover in New York on his way to the Panama canal, Bogart's Rick could easily have run into "All Through the Night's" Gloves Donahue, a nice coincidence that shows two different people who look alike dealing with our worst enemies and finding their patriotism in the process.

Instead of Conrad Veidt and Peter Lorre, Bogart has Sydney Greenstreet and Victor Sen Yung, and they are equally formidable enemies, planning a bombing of the Panama Canal which Bogart is assigned to pass on incorrect information. In the process, he meets the alluring Mary Astor who may or may not have a hand in what's going on, but one thing is for sure. She is one of the best leading ladies he ever had. she is especially amusing in a scene that deals with her aboard the ship dealing with seasickness. Greenstreet is a charming villain, getting Bogart drunk (or possibly drugging him) to get the information he needs. Sen Yung plays a character who initially seems to be too enthusiastic and that makes him instantly even more suspicious. But don't take his offer to sock him in the job. You'll pay just like Bogart did. But in the end, you know the villains will pay, and this is brilliantly filmed, edited and acted in every single way.

Across the Pacific is like that aging uncle, a little scruffy in well-tailored but out-of-date clothes, who comes to visit every now and then. He's not quite embarrassing but he spins such interesting stories you're always happy to welcome him back home. However, he has a tendency to stay too long. This aging movie, made right after The Maltese Falcon, was probably seen as a lark by John Huston, Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor and Sydney Greenstreet. Peter Lorre must have had a bad cold not to make it. Unlike The Maltese Falcon, which has not dated in any significant way, Across the Pacific creaks and groans like the Genoa Maru, the old Japanese steamer the gang finds itself on for two-thirds of the movie. The journey is supposed to take them from Halifax to Yokohama, by way of New York, the Panama Canal and Honolulu. The date, however, is just a week or so after November 17, 1941. That's the date Captain Rick Leland (Bogart) was court marshaled and kicked out of the Army. He tries to join the Canadian Army but no dice. On what seems to be a whim he buys passage on the Genoa Maru. Also on board will be Alberta Marlowe (Astor), a young woman who says she's from a small town on her first ocean trip, and Dr. Lorenz (Greenstreet), a professor of sociology at a university in the Philippines. Dr. Lorenz has an affinity for things Japanese. The Genoa Maru finally arrives at the Panama Canal, but is forced by new rules to let its passengers off. It now is December 6, 1941. And we still have half an hour of the movie to go.

For those who either don't know this movie or who can't guess the obvious, don't count on seeing the cast wearing leis in Hawaii or eating sushi in Japan. Remember that Captain Rick will have a mission to perform. This is a wartime propaganda movie put together by some talented pros. It plays the chauvinistic fife and drums for us, but it's also great fun on the steamer watching Huston's work with the camera and the assured and captivating acting by Bogart, Astor and Greenstreet. The dialogue, particularly between Bogart and Astor and Bogart and Greenstreet, is sharp and often sly. Greenstreet does his enjoyable cross between a wheeze and a chortle. The American actors playing Japanese, however, are stuck with the dregs. Judo is explained as being tricky compared to an honest right hook. One actor gets to wear immensely thick eyeglasses. The Nisei are shown to be disloyal, and then there's the pidgin English. The story line at the Canal is B movie material. John Huston manages it well enough except for the conclusion, which is so hokey, with a little toy model airplane and Bogey behind a machine gun, that you'll wince. Supposedly, Huston didn't shoot this part.

Bogart and Greenstreet give the movie energy, and to see Mary Astor, if you have any sense, is to fall in love with her. She's smart, funny and has hidden depths. She was also a first- class actress. In Across the Pacific she's a feisty match for Bogart. Was any woman more sympathetic, warm and understanding, as well as desirable, than Astor as Edith Cortright in Dodsworth, as tragically loyal as Antoinette de Mauban in The Prisoner of Zenda, or as lethally unreliable as Brigid O'Shaughnessy in The Maltese Falcon? Two years after Across the Pacific, at 38, she began playing mothers. I would have helped sell cookies at her PTA fund raisers any time.