The Harder They Fall (1956)

Director:

Mark Robson

Writers:

Budd Schulberg (novel)
Philip Yordan (screenplay)

Release Date:

9 May 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Film-Noir | Sport | Thriller

Tagline:

No Punches Pulled! If you thought "On The Waterfront" hit hard... wait till you see this one!

Plot:

Down-on-his-luck ex-sportswriter Eddie Willis is hired by shady fight promoter Nick Benko to promote his latest find, an unknown but easily exploitable phenom from Argentina.

Plot Keywords:

Boxing | Fixed Fight | Bleeding Mouth | Reference To King Kong | Title Bout

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Humphrey Bogart	...	Eddie Willis
Rod Steiger	...	Nick Benko
Jan Sterling	...	Beth Willis
Mike Lane	...	Toro Moreno
Max Baer	...	Buddy Brannen
Jersey Joe Walcott	...	George
Edward Andrews	...	Jim Weyerhause
Harold J. Stone	...	Art Leavitt, TV sportscaster
Carlos Montalbán	...	Luís Agrandi
Nehemiah Persoff	...	Leo
Felice Orlandi	...	Vince Fawcett
Herbie Faye	...	Max
Rusty Lane	...	Danny McKeogh
Jack Albertson	...	Pop

Runtime:

109 min

Country:

USA

Language:

Spanish | English

Colour:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:12 (video re-rating) (2002) (uncut) | UK:A (original rating) (cut) | USA:Approved (certificate #17754) | West Germany:16 (nf)

Filming Locations:

Beverly Hills Hotel & Bungalows - 9641 Sunset Blvd., Beverly Hills, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Primo Carnera unsuccessfully sued the film's makers, claiming it damaged his reputation for implying that he was involved in fixed fights. Carnera's career is one of the biggest mysteries in boxing, as many of the sport's historians believe that, without Carnera's knowledge, his managers paid most of his opponents to throw their fights.

Goofs:

Factual errors: A TV sportscaster's man-on-the-street interview with a punch-drunk fighter filmed on location on Skid Row features multiple camera angles (long shot, middle shot and close-ups) - a technological luxury requiring three consecutively-rolling cameras no TV news station in the mid-Fifties could possibly have afforded.

Quotes:

Eddie Willis: Powderpuff punch and a glass jaw... that's a great combination!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Facing the Past (2005) (V)

A Satisfying Conclusion to Humphrey Bogart's Career

The seamy side of the boxing world is the subject of this interesting film. A third-rate amateur boxer (Mike Lane) is brought from South America to New York and exploited by a corrupt promoter (Rod Steiger).

Steiger hires out-of-work columnist Bogart as a press agent for a big publicity build-up, fixing fights across the country and making a profit for Steiger and his "boxing club." The name of the game is money, and Bogart struggles with his conscience, ethics and the disapproval of his wife (Jan Sterling) as he promotes the young fighter, who is duped into thinking he is invincible.

Eventually, the fighter faces the match that can't be fixed in New York with (real-life) boxing champ Max Baer. Lane is told about the previous fixed fights and knows he'll be decimated, but decides to fight Baer anyway to save face. Out of guilt and in sympathy, Bogart gives Lane his share of the purse (after he finds out that Lane has been fleeced out of his winnings), then puts him on a plane back to South America.

Sadly, Bogart was diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus during filming; reportedly, some of his lines had to be dubbed by others in post-production.

Despite his illness, he gave an impressive performance, together with some wonderful character actors such as Edward Andrews, Nehemiah Persoff and Herbie Faye.

Rod Steiger's versatility is well demonstrated here, as his role as the corrupt promoter sharply contrasts the gentle soul he portrayed in the TV version of "Marty" two years earlier.

The fight scenes with Max Baer are also very well done, and the on-location shots of 1955 Manhattan and downtown Chicago add stark realism.

The Harder They Fall is a film definitely worth viewing.