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Any Number Can Play

1949, Movie, NR, 102 mins

Any Number Can Play: Review

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Gable is a big-shot gambler running an honest casino, a noble dice-roller who, in the words of one of his employees, "is a nut for human dignity." Ethical and decent (not your average crap-shooter), Gable is innocently perplexed at the disdain shown for his chosen career by his estranged wife, Smith, and disaffected son, Hickman. One evening Gable stakes venerable MGM character actor Stone, a down-and-out gambler, to $500, which he promptly loses at Gable's tables. Stone then tries to commit suicide, but is prevented from blowing away his gray head by Gable. Meanwhile Gable's spineless brother-in-law, Corey, has been blackmailed into allowing two crooks to shoot loaded dice at the casino. At the same time Gable hears that his son is in jail, charged with starting a fight. He bails his son out, but the youth refuses to leave with him, going with his mother, who later takes the boy to Gable's gambling den to witness the above-the-board operation, particularly a showdown between Gable and wealthy Frank Morgan, who has been winning all night. Morgan taunts Gable, saying that he intends to get even after years of losing, and asks if there is any limit. Gable wagers his entire fortune on a head-to-head roll of the dice and wins. When the two crooked dice shooters, Rober and Conrad--both marvelous villains--attempt to rob the casino, Gable disarms them and sends them on their way. This bravado convinces Hickman that his father is a courageous and noble soul, and he comes around to showing some affection, as does the icy Alexis Smith. Gable realizes that he can have his family back, but only at the loss of his casino. He plays his employees for the premises in a game he knows he will lose, then departs with his family to build a new career. Stilted and unrealistic, this Gable vehicle is still arresting because of LeRoy's terse, professional direction and the star's commanding performance, although Corey and Smith give anemic efforts. More interesting are Gable's colorful patrons--Morgan, Stone, Mary Astor, and Marjorie Rambeau--along with his staff members Sullivan, Buchanan, Knox, and Peterson. leave a comment
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