This is apparently a seminal classic, but I’ve only just come across it.
It has surprisingly good pacing, acting, and writing for the time. Interestingly, it was directed by John Huston, who I personally knew from voicing Gandalf in the 1977 Ralph Bakshi animated Lord of The Rings movie, so that was a fun surprise!
The direction this one goes surprised me a few times, and I’m glad I saw it. Would recommend.
Yea, Bogie could be a bit everyman, a bit hard-bitten, a bit suave, a bit hustler, depending on the role. Even in Casablanca he’s just trying to get by, make a buck, and not get shot as a collaborator. He’s not “the man”, he’s a man. And as I think about it, the characters would’ve lived through WWI - that would make you tough enough whether you served or not.
He did a lot of stuff like this such as “To Have and Have Not”.
And Huston was an important/influential director from the era.