The amazing thing is, this movie once passed me by, and I discovered it for myself only now. Ben Bolt completed the work of Harold Becker, having completed the 1987 film The Big Town (Big City), which we called The Big Town. The movie is about an ambitious gambler from the small town of Evansville, Indiana. You can’t earn a living by throwing dice there. Another thing is the seedy Chicago with its great opportunities. The year is about 1956-1957. The script is based on the novel The Arm (1967) by Howard Clark. Matt Dillon, in his youth, constantly played handsome men from the 50s, not that bad, but not good guys either. He has a role to play ambiguous guys. His type was gladly exploited in the 80s.
Variations of the name of the film in other languages: Veliki Grad in Polish, Braccio Vincente (Winning Hand) in Italian, Mano De Oro (Golden Hand) in Spanish, and in the German box office it was also called Chicago Blues. So, The Big Town is a gambling movie with noir elements. Jake Cullen (J.C. Cullen), nicknamed Callie – cheeky, cheeky, easy-going, loves music – when he comes home, he turns on the record. Callie lost his father early, but he has a senior patron, Carl Hooker, who noticed his talent and strongly encourages him to engage in gambling. Every time Carl looks at Callie, his eyes light up, he probably sees himself as a young man in him, and through Jake he wants to realize his missed opportunities.
A boy from the hinterland, the future metropolitan dandy
And so Callie is loaded into a greyhound and goes to conquer the big world. And there are many temptations waiting for him – a big game, nightclubs with booze, drugs and available women. On the recommendation of Hooker, he gets a job with a certain Mr. Ferguson. This job is like a trader or a money manager – you have to play with other people’s money and get a percentage of the winnings. But does the person decide in the game? Or is it all about luck and chance? And what exactly makes Callie an excellent player?
At the music store, he meets Aggie (Susie Amis), a good, understanding girl who sympathizes with him. In parallel, Lorrie (Diane Lane), a femme fatale, appears in his field of vision. A dancer at Gem, a strip club run by former criminal George (Tommy Lee Jones). The good thing about this club is that behind the scenes, tied up by a gambling contract, Callie can play with his own money.
Aggie is a beautiful girl and a good person
But Callie is not seduced by success and wealth, but by Lorrie, a girl with a dubious present and an ambiguous past. He looks at her with a special suffering look, and everyone around him is saying nasty things about her. No, she’s not like that! And that, in turn, draws the guy into a web of intrigues and dirty deeds. And our hero is pure and simple, he is not greedy, he is not addicted to alcohol and substances, but still he has one weakness – the opposite sex. Hence all his troubles.
The main protagonist George calls Cully “country boy”, the translator interprets it as “farm boy”. Although “country” is not a village at all, and he does not mean that JC is a redneck, and farm children are usually different, but we have a real dandy in front of us. He rather says “a boy from the outback.”
Oh my, this little country boy could play!
“The movie is really about growing up. The guy has already outgrown his small hometown. He’s a midnight gambler, rolling dice all night, but there’s some innocence in him. He’s naive. He is not a dark character, although he lives surrounded by darkness. He is honest, although his lifestyle is not. There is purity in it.”
– that’s how Matt Dillon commented on his hero.
The hunk gets his own
The film has a gorgeous soundtrack, it was even released on a record. In the light of The Big Town Blues, the song Shake Rattle Roll opened up to me from a different side. It’s a song about dice! Shake, Knock and Throw. “Roll on the dice!” the players shout. And a movie that starts with Johnny Cash’s Home Of The Blues definitely can’t be bad!
OST Big Town (1987)
02 The Drifters – Ruby Baby
03 Ray Charles – Drown In My Own Tears
04 Johnny Cash – Home Of The Blues
05 Bobby Darin – Mack The Knife
06 Ivory Joe Hunter – Since I Met You Baby
07 Big Joe Turner – Shake, Rattle And Roll
08 Jesse Belvin – Goodnight My Love (Pleasant Dreams)
09 La Vern Baker – Jim Dandy
10 Ronnie Self – Big Town
Download or listen to the full soundtrack to The Big Town’s movie, the movie.
It’s nice to look at the actors, the work of the director of photography is on top, you can’t find fault with the direction. The Matt Dillon – Diane Lane tandem was opened by F. F. Coppola, having shot actors who were still beginning at that time in Outcasts and Fighting Fish. Here they work together again, but for the last time. Dillon is no longer a boy, but a man, he has a memorable cool role. And although the film has not become a cult, it is definitely recommended for viewing. Great movie!
Interesting fact: Cherry Jones, who plays country singer Ginger in the film, will later play the role of Hank Williams’ mother in I Saw The Light. https://thistown.rocks/i-saw-the-light/