BIG JIM McLAIN

On paper, it sounds good. Big John Wayne and even bigger James Arness as two-fisted government agents smashing a ring of Communist spies in Hawaii. Sure, I'll go for that. Sign me up.

But the execution of this seemingly can't-miss proposition leaves much to be desired as BIG JIM McLAIN (1952), is a DRAGNET style pseudo-documentary boiling over with hyperbolic anti-Communism rhetoric and flag-waving patriotism mixed with a filmed travelogue of our fiftieth state. See John Wayne and lovely co-star Nancy (SUNSET BOULEVARD (1950)) Olson visit scenic vistas and beach front restaurants and bars. You'll get a lump in your throat when Wayne and Arness pay their respects at the Battleship Arizona (before the covered memorial structure was erected).

The story, such as it is, is pretty routine but the trouble is, it took three (count 'em!) three, writers (Richard English, James Edward Grant and Eric Taylor) to concoct this mess. It's never a good sign when there's a screenplay by committee and this one plays like it was financed by the United States government to showcase both Hawaii and the vital work being done by the HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee). But instead of turning Wayne and Arness loose to bust some Red heads, the script meanders with no direction and lots of filler.

The scene between Wayne, Olson and Hans Conried is a good example. Conried just shows up at Wayne's door, delivers a lengthy monolog about his skills and prowess, all the while demonstrating that he's a nut. It's supposed to be funny (it's not) and it's a truly WTF? moment in the film which has absolutely nothing to do with anything else in the movie.

The Communist spy ring is headed by Alan (BATMAN) Napier and he's evil through and through. In fact, all of the Communists depicted in the film are seen as absolutely vile human beings. It's a completely black and white world view in which no consideration is given for people who may have joined the Communist Party for political reasons. Here, every Commie is a subversive and dangerous agent set on doing harm to the United States.

Arness doesn't get a girl to swoon over like Wayne does and he's knocked over the head in one scene only to turn up dead later in the film. Wayne looks uncomfortable in a coat and tie and he doesn't carry a gun. He finally gets to cut loose in the finale, a fist fight between Wayne, the Honolulu police and the Commie spies. Trouble is, after arresting the bad guys, they all plead the fifth at their hearing and get off. But that's okay because the final scene of the film has Wayne and Olson looking lovingly at a bunch of Marines as they board a ship in Pearl Harbor.

Produced by Robert M. Fellows and Wayne, BIG JIM looks like a tax-write off to me, a way to pay for a trip to Hawaii for Wayne and his family. See some sights, enjoy the nightlife and make a hodge-podge of a movie in between. Director Edward Ludwig had worked with Wayne on two previous occasions: THE FIGHTING SEABEES (1944) and THE WAKE OF THE RED WITCH (1948) and would later helm THE BLACK SCORPION (1957, with stop-motion animation by Willis O'Brien). His direction here is nothing spectacular. He gets a boom shadow into one tracking shot multiple times but overall makes good use of the Hawaiian locations.

BIG JIM McLAIN could have been a good little action thriller. Instead, it's a boring movie with as much filler as a can of cheap dog food. Thumbs down.