All Night Long (1963)

Such a frustrating disappointment

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

The acting in this movie is really good.

I kind of looked forward to this -- Patrick McGoohan, Charlie Mingus, Dave Brubeck, Billy Shakespeare. How could it go wrong?But it's pretty slow and ultimately unbelievable. When I see a band manager being taunted by a drummer, McGoohan, and becoming enraged while stoned, instead of flinging himself on the couch with three bags of Doritos, there's something wrong. With dialog like, "Do you agree with Margolis that jazz is nothing more than regressive narcissism?", I shiver all over. I couldn't even get hep to the music. It's noisy and represents the most banal form of West Coast jazz. And while the saxophonist could keep up, the trumpeter had no idea of what the hell Dave Brubeck was up to at the piano with his fancy 5/4 time.Brubeck can't act either, though he's not pressed too hard in that regard -- one or two lines. McGoohan CAN act but he's playing a fast-talking hustler and con man here and that's not his strong suit -- not his FORTE, so to speak. He's best at slow, sly, deliberate lines delivered in a clipped voice with odd hesitations as if there are all kinds of wheels turning behind that utterance. Richard Attenborough can act too, but he doesn't put much effort into his role here. There is, after all, nothing to put much effort into.One notable property of this film. If it had been made in the USA, it would have been all about the happy marriage of a black man and a white woman. Racial epithets would have been hurled around. Charlie Mingus, author of "Beneath the Underdog," would have torn off his clothes on the bandstand and run around naked, shouting, "Oogoo Boogoo MAU MAU." But in this British movie, nothing is made of the mixed marriage. Nothing is made of race at all. Refreshing in a 1962 movie. It's not bad, in the sense that it's not insulting. It doesn't treat the audience as a horde of unkempt morons. It's just that it's so much less than engrossing.

For lovers of jazz and racial harmony, this groovy British movie has it all. Some of the best jazz musicians of the era. Blacks and whites getting along just fine. And a fascinating performance by Patrick McGoohan -- who plays a scheming drummer hell-bent on splitting up an inter-racial marriage in order to form his own band.The movie is set in the docklands area of London with a plot loosely based on Shakespeare's "Othello". The acting and direction are generally good with noirish cinematography. But the main attraction is the jazz -- with such luminaries as Dave Brubeck, Johnny Dankworth, Tubby Hayes, and Charlie Mingus happily jamming throughout the movie. Paul Harris delivers an impressive performance as an African-American band leader with a stage presence similar to Morgan Freeman. The rest of the cast are natural and convincing, especially the lovely Maria Velasco, who is in another inter-racial relationship. But the movie belongs to McGoohan, whose deeply flawed character, insanely brilliant drumming (not dubbed!), and maniacal scheming are a wonder to behold.This minor classic is available as a high-quality German all-region DVD (Die Heisse Nacht) with an English sound track.

Inter-racial marriage, dope smoking...that's the sex and drugs. No rock-n-roll I'm afraid, just Elvis Costello's grandpappy playing some cool jazz tunes on the old joanna. Richard Atenborough sheds no tears while ex-Rank glamour boys Keith Michel and Patrick McGoohan get together one more time to play the good and the bad.McGoohan plays the scheming drummer trying to start his own band. He has become squeezed by his potential backers who insist he must get Marti Stevens as his singer. Unfortunately for him Marti has fallen for the hulking Paul Harris. This white chick / black guy relationship proceeds with absolutely no comment from anyone, a refreshing change from the Hollywood routine of forcing Poitier to have to justify such things! To be truthful it is difficult to see what Marti sees in the guy, who is a real chauvinist, but such is love! He is the leader of a popular band but he has insisted his wife ended her singing career when they married.McGoohan's plan then is to split the couple up. His main weapon in this regard is Keith Michel playing a reformed dope fiend who, as an old friend, Harris has kept on as his manager. McGoohan passes Michel a bizarre-looking spliff in a quiet moment to try and get him hooked-up again. This forms part of McG's scheme to create the illusion to Harris that his wife is 'playing away' with Michel.The plotting becomes quite complex, with the inclusion of some incredible tape-to-tape equipment owned by the rich, upper-crust, but groovy cat: Richard Attenborough. McGoohan performs some sound engineering work worthy of a Danger Man episode to set up his final proof to Harris that Marti is unfaithful.Throughout all this Dave Brubeck and the dudes flesh out some jazz while everyone clicks fingers as they get hep! The film has become mainly famous because of the capture of these guys on celluloid.Aside from McGoohan, my favourite aspect of the movie is the fact that it was 1961, Mississippi was yet to start burning, yet the movie is impressively colour blind. The portrayal of the marriage of Marti and Paul and the sub-plot involving Michel fretting over whether to marry his black songstress girlfriend all proceed without skin colour even being mentioned.The final scene is the best of the whole film. Betsy Blair and McGoohan play out a powerfully cruel dismemberment of their life together while McGoohan makes your hair prickle as he rips his own personality to shreds and then stamps on it. While you are still shuddering at his dysfunctional alienation the movie fades out with him slaying his drum-kit, alone in the emptied warehouse-apartment.

Just imagine: That Shakespearian bigger-than-life plot line, a sixties touch of psychoanalysis, a movie set entirely inside a party of swingers, great interludes featuring amazing jazz performances from some great artists such as Charlie Mingus(music scenes that also explain story line and characters), a slight bit of over-acting in colorful black and white, good filmmaking, interracial couples and drug taking in a 1961 movie, love, hate and, of course, jealousy. Who could possible miss out on these ingredients?Just beautiful.