Stubs - Odds Against Tomorrow

Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) Starring Harry Belafonte, Robert Ryan, Shelley Winters, Ed Begley, Gloria Grahame. Directed by Robert Wise. Screenplay by Abraham Polonsky and Nelson Gidding (credited to John O. Killens, Nelson Gidding) Based on the novel Odds Against Tomorrow by William P. McGivern (New York, 1957). Produced by Robert Wise Run time: 96 minutes. Black and White USA Drama, Film Noir

Harry Belafonte was perhaps best known as a singer aka King of Calypso, but he was more than that. A vocal and visible supporter of civil rights, he was also an actor, and in the case of Odds Against Tomorrow, also a producer, having founded his own production company, HarBel, which was behind the film.

The film is based on the novel by the same name published two years earlier by William P. McGivern. To write the screenplay, Belafonte hired black-listed writer Abraham Polonsky whose adaptation changed parts of the story. Polonsky couldn’t receive screen credit at the time so Black writer John O. Killens agreed to front for him.

Robert Ryan was reluctant to take the part, having been cast as a bigot in several other films, perhaps most notably in Crossfire (1947) and Bad Day at Bad Rock (1955). However, he did agree to appear in the film.

Shot primarily in New York City and Upstate New York, the film went into production on February 24, 1959 and continued until late April. Odds Against Tomorrow was filmed on location in a small town in the Hudson River Valley, New York City, and at the Gold Medal Studios in the Bronx. The film had its New York opening on October 15, 1959.

Earl Slater (Robert Ryan) on his way to meet with David Burke (Ed Begley).

In New York City, David Burke (Ed Begley), a former policeman who once served a prison sentence for stonewalling an investigation, invites twice convicted Southern tough guy Earl Slater (Robert Ryan) to his apartment. We get an early indication that Slater is bigoted when he picks up a Black girl playing with friends and calls her a “pickaninny”. Burke wants Slater to help him rob a bank, promising him $50,000 in small bills if it is successful. Slater is reluctant to accept Burke's proposal.

Slater isn't interested in Burke's plans, at least not at first.

On his way out, he passes Johnny Ingram (Harry Belafonte), a sports car driving nightclub entertainer who can’t stop betting and losing on the horses. He is $7500 in the hole to Italian mobster Bacco (Will Kuluva) and Burke knows he needs the money. Johnny turns him down. He does give Burke a ride downtown, where, unbeknownst to Johnny, Burke meets with Bacco.

Shelly Winters plays Slater's girlfriend, Lorry.

Meanwhile, Slater is a bit of a kept man. His live-in girlfriend, Lorry (Shelley Winters), works in hospitality and obviously has more money that he does. Slater doesn’t like the situation and insists he has to do something to make his own money.

Coco (Richard Bright) is a gay henchman working for Bacco.

Shortly thereafter, Bacco stops by the club where Johnny performs. One of his henchmen, an openly gay Coco (Richard Bright), even comes up to him while he’s performing to let him know Bacco wants to buy him a drink and that Coco wants to buy him a car.

Harry Belafonte plays Johnny Ingram, a musician.

Johnny tries to avoid Bacco and goes to ask the club’s owner, but he can’t afford to lend him the money. Eager for his money, Bacco comes into the office and gives Johnny an ultimatum, pay him or he’ll kill not only the singer, but also his ex-wife Ruth (Kim Hamilton) and daughter Eadie (Lois Thorne).

One of the women in the bar watching Johnny perform is Cicely Tyson (r) in an early film role.

The next day, Johnny takes Eadie to Central Park, and when he realizes that two of Bacco's men are following him, he calls Burke and agrees to help with the robbery.

Johnny with his daughter Eadie (Lois Thorne).

Meanwhile, Earl accompanies Burke to Melton, a small town along the Hudson River. Burke shows Earl the set up in a hotel room overlooking the bank. He explains that because payday is on Friday, the bank is full of cash on Thursday evenings and that those still working that evening will order sandwiches and coffee from a nearby café. They watch as a black waiter brings the order to a side door of the back and watch as the aging guard opens the door to accept the box. Earl refuses the job when he learns that Johnny, a "colored boy," is to take part in it.

Slater and a Soldier in the bar (Wayne Rogers) about to come to blows.

Back home, Lorry assures Earl that money is unimportant to her, but he remains gloomy, ashamed that she supports them both. He is left to run errands for her, including picking up her dress from the cleaners. On the way back to the apartment, Slater stops in for a drink and gets into a fight with a Soldier in the Bar (Wayne Rogers) who is showing off karate moves to a girl to impress her.

Not vital to the plot, Gloria Grahame as Helen is always a pleasure to see on film.

Finally, he decides to meet with Burke, but before he goes, he entertains Helen (Gloria Grahame), an upstairs neighbor. Originally, he had turned down babysitting her baby and there are some bad feelings between them. But she’s mad at her husband and fascinated with Burke because he once killed a man. The two make love before he leaves to meet Burke.

When Johnny's ex-wife comes home, she finds Johnny asleep with Eadie. Johnny kisses her and declares that he still loves her. She seems to love him, too, but complains that his gambling makes him an unfit father. Angry, Johnny replies that by trying to fit into a white world, she is only fooling herself.

Burke is forced to play peacekeeper between Slater and Johnny.

Late that night, the three men meet at Burke's, and when Slater calls Johnny "boy," Burke reminds him that they are equal partners in the venture. The biggest issue they see is getting the guard to remove the chain from the door. Johnny comes up with the solution by getting a bigger box for the coffee and sandwiches.

Even on the day of the heist, Burke still must keep Johnny and Slater from coming to blows.

The next day, each man travels to Melton separately, Johnny by bus and the others in separate cars. They meet up near the river to discuss the details of the crime. Slater continues to insult Johnny, and Burke tries to keep the two from fighting.

While waiting for nightfall, Slater shoots a rabbit, and Johnny worriedly flings stones into the river.

At six o'clock, Burke arrives at the restaurant near the bank. He tries to upset the waiter's tray as he carries the food order to the bank, but some small boys waiting outside for their mother bump the waiter instead, spilling the coffee and food into the street. Disgruntled, the waiter returns to the restaurant, whereupon Johnny, dressed in waiter clothes, knocks on the side door of the bank.

Slater, Johnny and Burke during the heist.

The box won’t fit through the door, so the guard (Robert Jones) removes the chain and the three robbers rush inside. While Johnny and Burke stuff money into bags, Slater needlessly hits several of the frightened employees. Then, ignoring previously discussed plans, Slater gives Burke the car keys, unwilling to trust Johnny with driving the getaway car.

However, the scene changes outside. A postal worker stops a policeman, who sees Burke leaving the bank and knows that’s unusual. When the burglar alarm sounds, shooting begins. Burke is shot, and because he now has the car keys, Slater and Johnny, crouching behind the corner, are unable to get the keys to the car and escape.

Burke calls, "Run, Johnny, I'm sorry," and dies, whereupon Slater remarks that at least the old man will not be able to confess their identity to the police.

Johnny chases Slater up the side of a fuel tank.

Enraged, Johnny begins shooting at Earl, who manages to escape to a nearby oil refinery. Johnny pursues Earl to the top of an oil tank, and when the two fire on each other, the refinery bursts into flame, a la the ending of White Heat (1949).

Later, as officials are viewing the charred bodies, one of them asks, "Which is which?" "Take your pick," replies the other before one body is carried off.

The film appears to have gotten mostly positive reviews. Bosley Crowther of The New York Times seemed to credit director Robert Wise, calling his direction “tight and strong.” According to Crowther, Odds Against Tomorrow was “a sharp, hard, suspenseful melodrama.” While Crowther writes positively about the acting, he seems to highlight the performance from Robert Ryan, “Mr. Ryan is brilliant, cold and rasping, as a drifter from the South whose hatreds are ingrained and vicious, recalling the anti-Semitic killer he played in the melodramatic 'Crossfire' a dozen years ago.”

While not the star of the film, Robert Ryan does give a memorable performance as Earl Slater. A complex character, he is partly a victim of circumstance as a former convict who can’t seem to find employment, and partly a bigot in a slowly changing world in which such behavior is no longer tolerated by the public at large. Don’t let the character’s constant use of the “N word” and other bigoted remarks deter you from the strength of Ryan’s performance.

I haven’t seen Harry Belafonte act in many films, but he does give a strong performance as Johnny. Crowther writes, “Mr. Belafonte is firm and sure, a thoroughly credible Harlem musician forced by his passion for playing the horses into a desperate crime.” Johnny is man changed by circumstances. He tries to be a good man, but he has an addiction that will ultimately doom him. He can’t be there for his wife and daughter because of it and he ultimately dies because of it. Even though Belafonte might best known as a musician, it’s interesting to note that his big hit, “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)", came after his film career had already taken off.

His first two films were Bright Road (1953) and Carmen Jones (1954), both co-starring Dorothy Dandridge. Ironically, Belafonte's singing in the film was dubbed by an opera singer, as was Dandridge's, both voices being deemed unsuitable for their roles. Belafonte would famously use his celebrity to promote civil rights and other causes throughout his life.

Ed Begley began his career on stage and on radio while he was still a teenager. His first film was Body and Soul (1947). He would also appear in Sorry, Wrong Number (1948), Backfire (1950), Deadline – USA (1952), and 12 Angry Men (1957) before appearing in Odds Against Tomorrow. Like his co-stars, Begley seems well cast in the role of the ex-cop trying to get back at the system that ruined him. He would go on to win an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Dave Burke in Sweet Bird of Youth (1962). After that, much of his work would be on TV.

Prior to this film, Shelly Winters, who broke into films as a blonde bombshell, had recently starred in The Diary of Anne Frank (1959), for which she would win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Ironically, there isn’t much required from her in this film.

Gloria Grahame was supposedly going through a hard time career-wise when director Robert Wise had the screenwriter add a part for her. While Helen had really nothing to do with the story, it is always a pleasure to see her on film.

Robert Wise brings a certain realism to the film, with a lot of it shot on location. Wise gets the best out of his actors and the story is intriguing. Wise would win the Academy Award for Best Director for the musical films West Side Story (1961) and The Sound of Music (1965). Wise’s career showed that he could direct a variety of film genres. His films included The Body Snatcher (1945), Born to Kill (1947), The Set-Up (1949), The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), Destination Gobi (1953), This Could Be the Night (1957), Run Silent, Run Deep (1958), I Want to Live! (1958), The Haunting (1963), The Andromeda Strain (1971), The Hindenburg (1975) and Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979).

I wasn’t sure what I was expecting when I watched Odds Against Tomorrow, but I came away enjoying the film. A heist film with a message, the latter doesn’t get in the way of the story and adds an interesting complexity to the characters. If you like film noir, you should like the film.