Smashing The Rackets

Smashing The Rackets was the first of several exploitation quickies produced by RKO's B-picture specialist Lee Marcus, The low budget filler was inspired by the career of colourful New York district attorney Thomas E. Dewey and the script based on a series of Saturday Evening Post articles by Forrest Davis.

Lew Landers directs with relentless efficiency the cartoon-like story that has B movie regular Chester Morris (whose film career began in the silent era and ended in 1970 and who looks like an early edition of George Reeves's Clark Kent) playing the Dewey character, now named Jim "Socker" Conway, whose no-holds barred approach to busting villain's asses not only gets the job done with breathless efficiency but wins him the love of the tabloid public and, of course, the girl (Frances Mercer) whose sister (Rita Johnson) is girlfriend to a mob mouthpiece (Bruce Cabot). There are no surprises here but aficionadi of such fare will enjoy it just for that.

 

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