Cubussoli Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Connianatu How wonderful it is to see this fine actress carry a film and carry it so beautifully.

ThrillMessage There are better movies of two hours length. I loved the actress'performance.

AnhartLinkin This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

seymourblack-1 Screen legend Edward G Robinson is on top form in this low-budget crime drama about a highly successful L.A. District Attorney whose life goes into a downward spiral that continues relentlessly until he gets an opportunity to redeem himself. Robinson's ability to convey toughness and emotions with equal ease is remarkable and one of the reasons why his character in this movie becomes more sympathetic than he might otherwise have been.Victor Scott (Edward G Robinson) is a politically ambitious prosecutor whose regular successes in court have earned him a great deal of respect. The attention he pays to the selection of jurors and the skill with which he delivers his closing speeches, consistently produce the guilty verdicts he seeks and then celebrates with his legal assistant Ellen (Nina Foch) and his Chief Investigator Ray Borden (Hugh Marlowe). One of these successes turns sour after evidence of the convicted man's innocence suddenly emerges and Victor's unable to intervene in time to prevent the execution from going ahead.Horrified, ashamed and consumed with guilt about his role in this spectacular miscarriage of justice, Victor resigns from his job, starts drinking heavily and soon finds himself behind bars accused of drunkenness and assault. Following his release, he defends one of the men who was incarcerated with him and stands accused of manslaughter. After winning this case, he then embarks on a new career as a defence attorney and although he prospers in this endeavour, his success is achieved through being unscrupulous and using some outrageous courtroom stunts.Ellen is the daughter of Victor's mentor who had passed away some years earlier. Since that time, Victor had assumed the role of her guardian and adviser but had also been determined that that their deep affection for each other should never grow into anything other than a father/daughter type relationship. In the circumstances, Ellen, with Victor's encouragement, decides to marry Ray.Victor's work brings him into contact with local crime boss Frank Garland (Albert Dekker) whose expensive apartment is adorned by his high-value art collection and his sultry blonde mistress, Angel O'Hara (Jayne Mansfield). Since his appointment, the new District Attorney, Ralph Ford (Edward Platt) had been frustrated in his efforts to bring any criminal charges against Garland and becomes convinced that this is because someone in his office is regularly passing information on to the mobster. After Ellen shoots Ray in their apartment, Ford concludes that because of her relationship with Victor, Ellen must've been "the leak" and that she killed Ray because he'd discovered what she was doing. When Ellen's charged with first-degree murder, Victor naturally steps in to defend her in what turns out to be a very dramatic trial.Remarkably, "Illegal" was the third movie adaptation of Frank J Collins' 1929 play "The Mouthpiece" and its lively pace, sharply-written screenplay and moments of off-the-cuff humour, add enormously to the enjoyment of watching the action unfold. A number of good performances ensure that the movie remains entertaining throughout but it's Edward G Robinson's contribution that ultimately proves to be the most critical factor in the movie's success.

gordonl56 ILLEGAL - 1955Illegal is the second remake of the 1932 film, THE MOUTHPIECE. Here, Warner's lets W.R. Burnett (The Asphalt Jungle)punch up the story and move it up to the 50's.Edward G. Robinson plays a slick D.A. who wins far more cases than he loses. He wins a big one and decides it is time to run for higher office. This idea goes south when the man he sent to the chair, turns out to be innocent. Robinson resigns and takes to the bottle in a big way.One day, after spending a night in the drunk tank, Robinson helps a man, Jay Adler, beat a murder beef. He decides to dry out and open up a civil practice. He is soon in demand with all the wrong people. Mobster, Albert Dekker hires him to get various mob types off.Nina Foch, a friend from his D.A. days is not amused with Robinson's working for the "dark side". The new D.A. Edward Platt, is sure that Robinson must have a source inside the D.A.s office. Platt is sure that the source is Miss Foch. Actually, it is Foch's husband, Hugh Marlowe. Marlowe got in deep with the mob over a large gambling debt. He is paying the debt off by feeding Dekker info on cases.This arrangement soon ends when wife Foch learns the truth. She ends up shooting hubby Marlowe when he tries to silence her. D.A. Platt, believes that Foch had murdered Marlowe to stop "him" from informing on Foch. She is charged with murder.Robinson quickly steps up and takes her case. Needless to say no one believes a word that Foch says. Robinson digs around and comes up with a witness to Dekker and Marlowe being in cahoots. Dekker is not the least bit amused with this, and sends a hit-man to deep six Robinson. Robinson survives the attack and presents his witness, Jayne Mansfield. Mansfield coughs up more than enough evidence to get Foch off and mobster Dekker in deep trouble.A quite watchable film noir with Robinson as usual, giving a reliable performance. Foch, Marlowe and Dekker are also good. The hourglass figured Mansfield, in her first billed role, seems to spend all her limited screen time leaning her upper-works into the camera.The director here, Lewis Allen is in good form as well. His other film noir include, SUDDENLY, DESERT FURY, A BULLET FOR JOEY, APPOINTMENT WITH DANGER and CHICAGO DEADLINE. The sharp looking film was shot by veteran cinematographer, Pev Marley. The two time, Oscar nominated Marley's work, includes, THE TWO MRS. CARROLLS, LIFE WITH FATHER, PRIDE OF THE MARINES, DRUMBEAT and KISS TOMORROW GOODBYE.

secondtake Illegal (1955)If a little creaky on the edges, the core of this minor movie is solid as it gets: Edward G. Robinson as a troubled lawyer. It starts fast, gets faster, has some spectacular twists (in the courtroom, apparently based on real legal cases), and ends up being redemptive.The support cast is the biggest problem here (and probably the direction that is trying to get the most out of them). The story is slightly sensational, and has some clichéd parts (the bad mobster, the crooked D.A., the woman caught in the middle) but it's a lot of fun at the same time. Director Lewis Allen is obscure, and possibly over his head in a fairly complicated movie. The only big name behind the scenes is the impeccable Max Steiner, so the score is terrific. And Robinson shows how much he can act, again. It's worth it just for him.

JLRMovieReviews Edward G. Robinson stars in this remake of "The Mouthpiece," with Warren William. Edward is a d.a. who has a way with his juries and is very showy in a courtroom and dramatic in his closing arguments, making him very effective in getting his point across and "getting his man" behind bars. But, he finds out he has sent an innocent man to the death penalty, a minute too late. When he discovers this, he quits, only to use his tactics in being a defense lawyer. He always seems to find a loophole in the system that would allow him to get his man off.Enter Albert Dekker, who needs his help, but Albert is a rich bad guy and Edward tries to convince him he's not for sale. Nina Foch is very good as an assistant in the d.a.'s office who has always loved Edward, but when he tells her it's no soap and tells her to marry good friend Hugh Marlowe, she does.All these plots come together in this tight, well-acted, engrossing crime drama and courtroom drama. Watch this and you'll see why Edward G. Robinson isn't just remembered for "Rico" in "Little Caesar," but as one of Hollywood's versatile actors. If you've never heard of Edward G. Robinson, you're in for a treat, see.