Irish Film Institute -Great McGinty, The

Great McGinty, The

Written some six years before it was filmed, Sturges’ first feature as a director is, like his script for The Power and the Gory, a rags-to-riches tale, again told in flashbacks, but this time with the authentic, unshockable Sturges touch – his theme being that blackguards triumph until they are foolish enough to tell the truth. Here a bum (Brian Donlevy) rises to become State Governor by ingratiating himself – voting early and often in a local election – with a political boss (Akim Tamiroff) who then becomes his patron. Aprentice work, but an absolutely assured, spot-on satire which won Sturges an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.

U.S.A., 1940.
Black and white.
81 mins.

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