Film Review: Boomerang! (1947)

The dark realities of the Second World War affected Hollywood, most notably in the new ways its films covered crime. Apart from the style that would later become known as "film noir", another was a striving for realism and authenticity. Such works were called "semi-documentary", and one of the best known among them was Boomerang!, a 1947 film directed by Elia Kazan.

The script by Richard Murphy is based on real events that took place in Bridgeport, Connecticut, in 1924. The plot is, however, switched to contemporary Stamford, Connecticut, which is in narration by Reed Hadley described as an "ordinary American town". The seemingly idyllic community is rattled by the fatal shooting of Father Lambert (played by Wirley Birch), a popular Episcopalian priest who was one of the pillars of the community. Despite the event being witnessed by a number of people who even tried to chase the killer, the investigation led by Police Chief Harold F. "Robby" Robinson (played by Lee J. Cobb) fails to get a credible suspect. This creates a lot of political pressure on the town’s leadership, further increased by the local newspaper and a cynical reporter, Dave Woods (played by Sam Levene). After a few weeks, the search for a suspect ends when Ohio authorities arrest John Waldron (played by Arthur Kennedy), an unemployed war veteran and drifter who fits the physical description by witnesses and whose gun matches the murder weapon. After being put through a long and relentless interrogation, Waldron confesses to the crime. He is to be prosecuted by Henry L. Harvey (played by Dana Andrews), the State Attorney who is told that he could be elected governor if he secures a conviction. Although this seems to be a "perfect case", Harvey begins to have second thoughts and wonders if the man in custody is indeed the killer. His doubts begin to affect his relations with friends and political allies.

Boomerang! was made by 20th Century Fox and produced by famed studio executive Daryl F. Zanuck and Louis de Rochemont, creator of March of Time newsreels. The latter had pioneered "semi-documentary" crime films with his 1945 FBI propaganda piece House on the 92nd Street. The same style is applied here, with the script trying to match the actual historical record as much as possible and Elia Kazan trying to shoot at locations instead of studios. Authorities in Bridgeport, however, refused to give permission for shooting, so Kazan made his film in neighbouring Stamford. Kazan, who was, like many film makers of his generation, left-wing, apparently found the end of the Second World War the perfect opportunity for America, after defeating foreign foes, to try dealing with some of its internal problems.

Boomerang! allows some dark truths about American society to slip through the censorship of the Hays Code, most notably in the scenes when Chief Robinson, portrayed as a world-weary and cynical but ultimately professional policeman, rescues Waldron from a lynching and disregards a suggestion from his subordinate to extract a confession through "more direct" means. But the issue that is even more critical is political corruption – Stamford is described as a town under a new reform-minded administration, and the media crusade against the seemingly incompetent police is motivated less by public interest and more by the vendetta of its political opponents. However, even the reformists have some rotten apples in their ranks, and they are represented by the character of Paul Harris (played by Ed Begley), a businessman who fears that he would be ruined if the administration isn’t re-elected and even threatens Harvey if he doesn’t secure it by doing what is expected of him. This subplot enters the film relatively late and is a bit too melodramatic for what would otherwise be a surprisingly authentic crime story for 1940s Hollywood standards.

Kazan’s orientation towards authenticity can be seen in trying to stick to the basic details of the story, although some details were changed. The real victim, Reverend Hubert Dahme, was Catholic instead of Episcopalian, while the suspect, Harold Israel, was a First World War veteran. The nominal protagonist Henry L. Harvey is based on Homer Cummings, a highly respected lawyer and politician who served as US Attorney General during the first six years of Franklin Roosevelt’s administration; this is actually stated by the narrator at the very end of the film. The narration also states that the murder case was never solved, which allowed Kazan to circumvent the Hays Code and its rules about crime always being punished. Instead, Kazan even speculated about the real killer and his motives during scenes in which Father Lambert talks with a seemingly respectable but clearly disturbed citizen, Jim Crossman (played by Philip Coolidge).

Boomerang! has a good cast, with Karl Malden, one of the most recognisable character actors of mid-20th century Hollywood, in one of his early roles as a detective. Dana Andrews, who was at the zenith of his stardom, however, looks a little bit too Hollywood-like for the protagonist of this gritty crime story. Despite these shortcomings, Boomerang! is a well-made film that should be recommended, despite working better as a history lesson than as a crime film.

RATING: 6/10 (++)

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