THE LAST HURRAH (1958)

Frank Skeffington (Spencer Tracy), long-time mayor of a New England city very much like Boston, is running for a fifth term despite being at an age when most people think about retiring. He's a controversial figure (for reasons that are not made crystal clear, except that it's rich folks and the clergy who tend not to like him), but he seems to truly care about his constituents and is energized by campaigning and by his old cronies who rally around for what is presumed to be his final go. Skeffington gets his nephew, sports reporter Adam Caulfield (Jeffrey Hunter) to cover his campaign. That pretty much summarizes this late-era John Ford movie, which is more driven by character than plot, but the characters are interesting and are played by a wonderful array of classic-era supporting players. Among them: Pat O'Brien (Skeffington's campaign manager), John Carradine (a newspaper publisher bitterly opposed to Skeffington), Donald Crisp (a cardinal), Edward Brophy (a comic relief pal called 'Ditto'), James Gleason, Ricardo Cortez, Anna Lee (in a highlight scene at a wake for an unpopular man), Frank McHugh and Jane Darwell. Some have substantial roles, some are just walk-ons, but it's fun to see them all. Adam is clearly a son figure for Skeffington, as his own son, a flighty gadabout, is a disappointment, although there is a core of family love between them. Adam's father-in-law (Willis Bouchey) despises Skeffington, and Adam's wife (Dianne Foster) is barely sketched out at all. Skeffington's opponents are also vaguely presented, with one becoming the butt for some mild satire of campaign advertising. The biggest problem for me is that even Skeffington remains allusive, which is a problem in a character-driven drama; it's also a problem in a movie about politics when we're not sure what people's politics are. Tracy is good in the role, but I think he would have been even better with more background to work with, though his last scene is a little gem. Despite a flat visual style (the abovementioned wake scene is the most dynamic in the movie) and a gauzy narrative, this is worthwhile viewing for classic movie fans. Pictured are Tracy and Hunter. [TCM]