Muni overacts, Rains saves the day

Above average tale of heaven and hell shenanigans. I have to say that my rating for this film is somewhat clouded because that is exactly what the film's copy was, very cloudy. I can't believe there is not a restoration in line for this film from 1946, it is barely watchable and the sound mix is nigh on impossible to hear. The film is standard fare as regards the tale of the bad man gets a shot at life again, only here it's with a kicker, and watching this film unfold is never less than interesting without actually pulling up any trees. Paul Muni is fine and plays our main protagonists dual personality with credible verve, and Claude Rains is clearly enjoying himself as the devil of the piece, and I heartily applaud the dark shift the film took for the final reel, yet it is a hard film to recommend unless you can see and hear it properly. I have no hesitation in watching this film again if a restoration comes to pass, but until then I say approach with caution. 6/10

Claude Rains is at his mischievous best in this fantasy drama as the Devil who decides that he can use a recent arrival in his domain - gangster "Eddie" (Paul Muni) to thwart the goody-goody antics of "Judge Parker", a jurist who has aspirations to run for governor. Now "Eddie" is more than happy with his Satanic proposal and relishes the fun he can have as he takes over the body of the judge and has a whale of a time. Thing is, though, his actions actually start to enhance the reputation of the man he was sent to tarnish, and when he meets Anne Baxter ("Barbara") who is now his new-found fiancée, he rapidly starts to look like he might not be such a great choice for Old Nick after all... Both are on good form, the characters are engaging and as the worm turns, I felt a slight degree of satisfaction as his puppet master has to look on, powerless... The ending isn't great, but I suppose desserts were just all round, and I enjoyed the whole thing.

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