Saigon (1948 film)

Saigon
File:Saigonlakeladd.jpg Theatrical release poeter
Directed by	Leslie Fenton
Produced by	P.J. Wolfson
Written by	Julian Zimet Arthur Sheekman P.J. Wolfson
Starring	Alan Ladd Veronica Lake
Music by	Robert Emmett Dolan
Cinematography	John F. Seitz
Edited by	William Shea
Production company	Paramount Pictures, Inc.
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release dates	March 31, 1948 (1948-03-31) (U.S.)
Running time	93 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Saigon is a 1948 film starring Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake in their fourth and final film together. It was distributed by Paramount Pictures and was one of the last films Veronica Lake made under her contract with the studio. Ladd and Lake made four films together; This Gun for Hire and The Glass Key, both in 1942, The Blue Dahlia in 1946 and Saigon. While the earlier films all proved to be big box office successes, Saigon did not do as well financially. Ladd continued to remain one of Paramount's top male stars, while Lake's career was in decline. By the end of 1948 her contract with Paramount had expired and the studio chose not to renew it.

For Ladd, Saigon was one of a series of globe-trotting adventure tales he made, starting with Two Years Before the Mast (1946) and Calcutta (1947).

Plot

World War II has ended and Major Larry Briggs (Alan Ladd) finds out that his friend Captain Mike Perry (Douglas Dick) has only two months to live due to a head injury. Larry and Sergeant Pete Rocco (Wally Cassell) are determined to show Mike a good time before he dies. For a $10,000 fee, Larry takes a flying job working for Alex Maris (Morris Carnovsky) a profiteer. Everything is set until Maris' secretary Susan Cleaver (Veronica Lake) shows up to board the aircraft. Mike falls for Susan and Larry convinces her to play along but she has fallen in love with Larry.

The first flight is disrupted by Maris arrivind a half hour late with the police right behind. Larry takes off but is forced to make an emergency landing after both engines fail. After checking into a small hotel, the Americans find Police Lieutenant Keon (Luther Adler) shadowing them who he believes are smugglers.

When Larry sees Mike falling for Susan, he wants the romance to end and despite her carrying $500,000 fro Maris, Larry tells her to leave immediately. When Mike longs for Susan, Larry relents and blackmails her into seeing him or he will turn her into Keon. Sailing to Saigon on a boat, Larry tricks Keon by stowing the money away into an envelope he mails to himself, and throws all suspicion off Susan.

In reaching Saigon, Larry knows he has fallen in love with Susan even though Mike has proposed to her. At Susan's hotel, an enraged Maris and his valet Simon (Luis Van Rooten) hold Larry hostage, demanding the money that has been posted. Bursting in, Pete realizes what is happening, and fights with Simon, but both falls off a balcony to their deaths. Susan has secretly arranged to retrieved the money from the post office, returning it to Maris. Mike and Larry confront him but in an exchange of gunfire, Mike and Maris are killed. After Mike's funeral, Larry and Susan start a new life together.

Cast

• Alan Ladd as Major Larry Briggs
• Veronica Lake as Susan Cleaver
• Douglas Dick as Captain Mike Perry
• Wally Cassell as Sergeant Pete Rocco
• Luther Adler as Lieutenant Keon
• Morris Carnovsky as Alex Maris
• Luis Van Rooten as Simon
• Mikhail Rasumny as Hotel clerk
• Eugene Borden as Boat captain
• Griff Barnett as Surgeon
• Frances Chung as Chinese nurse
• Betty Bryant as Singer, waterfront café
• Dorothy Eveleigh ss Portuguese woman
• Harry Wilson as Stevedore
• William Yip as Café proprietor
• Lester Sharpe as Barman at café
• Allan Douglas as American soldier/Vendor
• Kenny O'Morrison as Air Corps lieutenant
• Lee Tung Foo as Chinese farmer
• Leo Abbey as Sinister driver
• Oie Chan as Farmer's wife/flower vendor
• Charles Stevens as Driver of Susan's car
• Thomas Quon Woo as Native
• Rito Punay as Native
• Joe Bautista as Native
• Quon Gong as Native
• Tommy Lee as Oxcart driver
• Eddie Lee as Merchant in tea house
• Billy Louie ss Woman in tea house
• Moy Ming as Tea house proprietor

Production

Filming was meant to start in October 1946 but shooting was pushed back while Ladd had to complete Wild Harvest (1947).

Paramount had previously announced a film called "Saigon" to be made about the Japanese occupation of China but decided not to make it and used it for this story instead. James Henagan and John Leman worked on the script.

Reception

Film critic Philip K. Scheuer in his review of Saigon for the Los Angeles Times, called the film, "... long on atmosphere and short on logic." In a similar vein, Bosley Crowther simply dismissed the "sorry" film as, "... a fine lot of super-silly moonshine, more to be laughed at than esteemed."

See also

Mess jacket (civil)

References

Bibliography

• Pendo, Stephen. Aviation in the Cinema. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 1985. ISBN 0-8-1081-746-2.

External links

• Saigon at the TCM Movie Database
• Saigon at IMDb

• Pendo 1985, p. 24.
• Schallert, Edwin. "Review: 'Saigon', new adventure subject for Alan Ladd." Los Angeles Times, October 24, 1946, p. A2.
• "Special to The New York Times: Paramount names Lake, Ladd to film; Studio will co-star team in 'Saigon,' adventure story, Fenton to be Director." The New York Times, October 29, 1946, p. 42.
• "Special to The New York Times: Nebenzal, film producer, pays $150,000 for world rights to 'Madame Butterfly'." The New York Times, October 24, 1946, p. 44.
• "Special to The New York Times: Annabella named for Fox film lead: she will be seen in 'Night the World Shook', Jeanne Crain to star in 'Party Line'." The New York Times, September 2, 1946, p. 12.
• Scheuer, Philip K. "Review: 'SAIGON' melodramatic fare." Los Angeles Times, March 5, 1948, p. 17.
• Crowther, Bosley. "Movie review: 'Saigon' (1948)." The New York Times, April 1, 1948.