Donald Seymour
This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.
Mandeep Tyson
The acting in this movie is really good.
Cheryl
A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.
littlechum-27506
As I watched this movie, the comparison to the movie Johnny Dangerously started when the two brothers get to mom's home and she is doing the laundry, a fine Irish woman, just like Johnny's mom...and when Dion ask mom to quit doing laundry, well there ya have the first thought... meanwhile his brother the lawyer is trying to make a name for himself while his brother is the gangster. Dion meets his girl (just like Lil in JD) and at first she fights him, then falls in love, Later his brother the lawyer will have to face his brother in court....Then there is the obvious similarities in the way both Michael Keaton and Dion carry themselves, even their eyebrows are sculptured similarly. Keaton must have watched this movie to get tips on how to pull it off.... Coincidence?....Maybe. Still it made me wonder. Rick in Indy.
zardoz-13
Political machinations abound in "Jesse James" director Henry King's historical tale "In Old Chicago." This portrait of urban corruption in the Windy City during the 1870s culminates with the devastating Chicago fire that destroyed a large part of the city. The clan O'Leary family ends up in the middle of all the mayhem. Special effects director H. Bruce Humberstone and his crew conjured up the fabulous images of Chicago ablaze with buildings collapsing. Clocking in at a trim 94 minutes, this flavorful yarn never wears out its welcome. Strapping young Tyrone Power heads a sturdy cast as the notorious Dion O'Leary, while Don Ameche co-stars as his straight-up, on the level, brother Jack. "In Old Chicago" received Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Writing by Niven Busch, Best Music, and Best Sound Recording. Initially, the clan O'Leary traveled to Illinois aboard a wagon with their mother and younger brother Bob. With Chicago looming on the horizon, the O'Leary family decides to challenge a locomotive to see who can outrun whom. Tragically, O'Leary patriarch, Patrick O'Leary (J. Anthony Hughes), whips his two horse team for more speed to beat the train. Sadly, the horses break free of the wagon and drag the father to his death. When the O'Leary clan trundles into the muddy streets of Chicago, Molly O'Leary (Oscar winner Alice Brady who won the statuette for Best Supporting Actress) discovers she can reap a fortune by washing clothes, so she sets up her French laundry. Meantime, Dion falls in with the wrong crowd heading by none other than Brian Donlevy as the villainous Gil Warren. Warren owns the most prosperous saloon in the city. Warren imports a vocalist from New York City named Belle Fawcett (Alice Faye) to warble her sweet tunes in the Hub. Not surprisingly, Dion falls madly in love with Belle the first time he lays eyes on this gorgeous gal. Mind you, Belle doesn't reciprocate similar sentiments. Indeed, she plays hard-to-get. As it turns out, the O'Leary clan learns about Gil Warren's secret plans to re-route a trolley car system from a sketch on a tablecloth from the Hub. Before long, Dion steals Belle away from Gil, and the two go in as partners in their grander establishment known as The Senate. Gil decides to run for mayor, while the upright townspeople implore Jack to run against Warren on the Reform ticket. Actually, the scheming Dion has sent the delegation to persuade Jack to run for mayor. At the same time, Dio engineers a way to ensure that Gil won't win the mayor's race. He invites Warren and all his cronies from a section of Chicago known as 'the Patch' to a political banquet. Dion's men goad these fellows into a fight, and the Chicago Police Department show up in force with paddy wagons galore. The cops arrest Warren and all of his political bosses, and Jack wins the race. No sooner has Jack triumphed in the mayor's re-election than he goes after his brother and the anarchic element thriving in the Patch. At first, Jack wants to expose Dion's evil by persuading Jack's partner Belle to testify against him in court. Crafty Dion exchanges marital vows with Belle, and this transition rules out the wife testifying against her husband. Meantime, Mrs. O'Leary's cow kicks over a milk bucket and all hell broke loose. This empire building that collapses is tremendous stuff.
wes-connors
Irish-American prairie traveler Alice Brady (as Molly O'Leary) suffers tragically before arriving to settle in the somewhat hellish city of Chicago. Starting a successful laundry business, Ms. Brady raises three handsome sons to adulthood. In 1867, they are: rascally star Tyrone Power (as Dion), politically-minded Don Ameche (as jack) and boyish Tom Brown (as Bob). Gambling and dallying with pretty saloon singer Alice Faye (as Belle Fawcett), Mr. Power tests his mother's nerves..."In Old Chicago", Power sets out to put business rival Brian Donlevy (as Gil Warren) out of business, with help from high-pitched pal Andy Devine (as Pickle Bixby). The legendary cow owned by "Mrs. O'Leary" puts her kick into this dramatization. The silliness sets in after some pleasant opening scenes, with the romance and rivalry becoming increasingly tiresome. But do stay tuned for the Twentieth Century-Fox production team to fire up the screen during the apocalyptic ending.******* In Old Chicago (12/31/37) Henry King ~ Tyrone Power, Alice Faye, Alice Brady, Don Ameche
Spikeopath
This is the fictional story of the O'Leary family and the birth of the Great Fire of Chicago.Big budget, big stars and a completely big production, In Old Chicago may be deemed as a Zanuck cash in on the previous years MGM eye opener, San Francisco, it is however a wonderful picture that features two differing halves of worth. Casting aside historical accuracy (lets really not go down that road in cinema history), this Henry King directed piece firstly engages us as a jaunty family character piece, only to then pull the rug from underneath us to let in political intrigue, deception, down right ugliness and a near $2 million fire besieged Chicago!Tyrone Power, Don Ameche, Alice Faye, Alice Brady (Best Supporting Actress Academy Award) and Brian Donlevy all line up to entertain the viewers, all possibly aware that they are merely the starter course for the extravagant main course that will be the 20 minute final reel of panic and burning disaster. Yet to focus merely on the fire itself, and the effects that some 70 years later still impact smartly, is to do the first half a disservice, characters are formed and the story is fully fleshed to make the wait for the fire completely worth our time. It's no history lesson for sure but the devilment of some characters, and the ineptitude of some others, more than make this an essential watch for fans of 30s cinema. 7.5/10
