John Fought for Spain

Following his escape from a Spanish POW camp, John "Kit" McKitrick (John Garfield) has been hospitalized in the US. While there, he discovers his best friend police lieutenant Louis Lepetino has died, allegedly the victim of an accidental fall from the window of a New York City high-rise. Kit is convinced that his possession of a war standard is the cause of Louie's death - and will also bring about his death next.  Our film this week is The Fallen Sparrow (1943). 

John Garfield is perfect as a man teetering on the edge of sanity. Yes, Kit has been hospitalized for what we would now call post-traumatic stress disorder, and has been discharged, but the death of his friend has summoned back all the demons he'd hoped to put behind him. Mr. Garfield brings a vulnerability to the character that does not detract from his strength of purpose. Given that Kit is in nearly every scene in the film, it's important that the audience identify with and support him; Mr. Garfield makes him a character you take to your heart. He wasn't the first choice for the part - RKO originally wanted James Cagney, but he turned it down (he'd been under some scrutiny because of his support for Loyalist Spain); Cary Grant, Randolph Scott, and George Brent also said no. (TCM article). Mr. Garfield, himself a supporter of Loyalist Spain, very much wanted the part and campaigned to get it. (John Garfield: The Illustrated Career in Films and Stage by Patrick J. McGrath).Stage by Patrick J. McGrath). Warner Brothers got the rights to remake Of Human Bondage from RKO in exchange for Mr. Garfield's services in this film (AFI catalog).

Maureen O'Hara (Toni Donne) takes on an unusual role - that of a possible Nazi spy. Toni is rather a cypher - you want to like her, you know that Kit wants to believe her, but in the final analysis, neither the audience nor Kit trusts her.  She's good in the part, because she is able to keep the audience on edge as to her intentions throughout the film; why she is working for the enemy is a question that hovers over the viewer.

While Ms. O'Hara keeps the audience guessing in an atypical role, Walter Slezak (Dr. Skass) does not. You know from the instant you see him that he is the villain. Sure, Mr. Slezak's early career was spent playing villains, but it's more than that. He fairly oozes evil - Dr. Skass' first conversation with Kit is a discussion of the beauty of water torture. We're told that Skass is a researcher - it's pretty apparent that he's the head of the spy ring, and no amount of screen subterfuge will convince you otherwise. If we had one regret in this film, it was that we would have appreciated a little more mystery surrounding the identity of the spy leader. 

We particularly enjoyed Martha O'Driscoll (Whitney Hamilton) as one of Kit's close friends. She is sweet and appealing as the one of the few people in Kit's life who is sincere. We especially enjoyed Kit's nickname for her - Imp. It seemed to happily sum up her personality and their friendship. 

Another character to watch is Inspector Tobin (John Miljan). Unlike too many police roles in movies, this is a character to observe carefully. There is more going on than meets the eye, and Mr. Miljan plays the part with an attention to detail.

The film's score was nominated for an Oscar (It lost to The Song of Bernadette).  While the New York Times review by Theodore Strauss (T.S.), was not keen initially on the film's story, Mr. Strauss' regard for Mr. Garfield's performance won him over: "by virtue of a taut performance by John Garfield in the central role, and the singular skill with which director Richard Wallace has highlighted the significant climaxes, The Fallen Sparrow emerges as one of the uncommon and provocatively handled melodramas of recent months." It would become one of RKO's high grossing films for 1944 (Variety) The story would appear as a Lux Radio Theatre broadcast on 14 Feb 1944, co-starring Robert Young,  Maureen O'Hara, and Walter Slezak. 

This is a movie worth seeing if for no other reason than to watch Mr. Garfield in action, but it has much more than that. We highly recommend it. In the meantime, here is a trailer: