WillSushyMedia This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

BeSummers Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

Lollivan It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Matylda Swan It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

AaronCapenBanner William Keighley directed this exciting police vs. gangsters tale that sees Edward G. Robinson star as Johnny Blake, who goes undercover to crack open the numbers racket run by old friend Al Kruger(played by Barton Maclane). Al believes Johnny's cover story about a falling out with the new police commissioner, but Al's chief henchman Bugs Fenner(played by Humphrey Bogart) does not, but can't convince the boss of this, leading to conflict, and the inevitable showdown. Well-acted and compelling look at the numbers racket of this era has aged reasonably well, with Robinson being just as convincing playing good as he does evil, though his fate ends up the same...

Bill Slocum A solid, non-formulaic Warners gangster flick, "Bullets Or Ballots" showcases Edward G. Robinson in one of his most tough-nosed performances, as a cop-turned-gangster who won't be outmuscled, not even by Humphrey Bogart in one of HIS most tough-nosed roles."Finally got wise to you," Bogart's Bugs Fenner tells Robinson's Johnny Blake at one point. "You're through.""Oh no, I'm just starting," is Blake's cool reply. And he is."Bullets Or Ballots" has some problems, starting with that title. A reform-minded journalist makes a point early that "They rule by the fear of their bullets - they must be smashed by the power of your ballots." One might expect a movie where Robinson plays an honest alderman up against a crooked mayor, a la Jimmy Walker (the movie is set in New York City).It's not like that at all. Instead, the journalist is gunned down seven minutes in, and the rest of the film is set up when Blake is thrown off the force for "inefficiency". If he can't beat the mugs, he might as well join them. Rico he's not."Bullets Or Ballots" is a different kind of mob movie that way, and in other ways, too. Director William Keighley de-emphasizes gunplay in favor of sit-down confrontations. The script, by veteran Hollywood scripter Seton I. Miller and former crime reporter Martin Mooney, spends much time going over how criminal enterprises actually operate, with numbers games, pinball rackets, and money counters behind hidden walls. It even suggests a reality where the true mob masterminds are disguised as capitalist plutocrats. "The pillars of the community are the pillagers" is how Dana Polan puts it in his useful DVD commentary.Bugs is not the leader of the mob Blake winds up in; rather he's a hard-charging number-two to Barton MacLane's more civil-minded Al Kruger. The difference between Fenner and Kruger reflects a different take on gangster life, that bad guys aren't necessarily nasty men and in fact can be more dangerous and larcenous by eschewing obvious thuggery. Bogart does a great job playing against this as what Kruger calls "a strong-arm gangster" determined to prove Blake is still a cop working undercover. His scenes with both Robinson and MacLane are among the best in the movie.Robinson is the man, though, his Blake a character of total sureness and cool under pressure. Even when you think he may be less than on the level, you can't help admiring and rooting for Blake. "You don't miss much," Kruger asks him, and he doesn't.I wouldn't have missed the weak female-friendly subplot with Joan Blondell or lame comic relief bits with Frank McHugh as a character who can't remember names or add numbers. Joe King plays the new police boss who throws Blake off the force about as stiff as a pair of cement overshoes.But like Polan says, this film moves like lightning and asks some interesting questions about law enforcement in a free society. More important, it offers Robinson plenty of chances to throw his weight around. Nobody threw their weight around like him.

Rindiana Due to the Hays Code restrictions, some gangster pics offered muddled character portraits, with a blurred line between good and bad guy that too often felt forced.This time, it's Edward G.'s turn and he's doing a solid job without being too enthusiastic about his part. No wonder, since the plot's rather lame and simple-minded.Bogie seems rather disinterested, too.Still, there's always a mild pleasure to be had from old school stuff like this.5 out of 10 hot lottery games

ccthemovieman-1 This turned out to be a decent '30s gangster movie, not a lot different from a few others I've seen where Humphrey Bogart plays the bad guy and is the main adversary of the hero. Several films had James Cagney up against him; here it was Edward G Robinson.Robinson plays policeman "Det. Johnny Blake," who goes underground, so to speak, by posing as a gang member to get the goods on them. (It's based on a real-life character.) Robinson, as usual, is very interesting to watch and is a tough guy BUT with a soft heart. In fact, he even feels bad about betraying the head crook because he has such principles of being a "straight shooter" that he doesn't feel right lying to anybody, even the gang leader "Al Krueger" (Barton MacLane). Bogart plays "Nick Fenner," Al's number-one guy and is more of the villain than his boss. Joan Blondell gets second billing but that's not right because she's at least fourth in the amount of screen time and lines. There really is no real love interest in this movie; it's strictly a crime story.When I first saw this movie, a little over a decade ago on VHS, I wasn't that impressed but last week, watching this on DVD, not only was the story better than I remembered but the picture was excellent. The blacks, whites and grays in here are beautiful. This was part of the "Tough Guys" DVD package and they did a wonderful job on the transfer.