Not even bad in a good way

I like Black Panther, but I didn't like this movie.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

This film has some really great actors in it - Sydney Greenstreet, Spencer Tracey, Lionel Barrymore, James Stewart, Gilbert Roland, John Hodiak, Richard Loo, etc. And it's got an exotic location (Malaya) and a war-time plot (getting rubber to outfit the US war machine in WW2). But it never manages to get going, maybe because Spencer Tracey was never really an "action" star, or maybe because the director Richard Thorpe, while prolific, wasn't particularly skilled in this genre (he's best known for Ivanhoe, Knights of the Round Table, The Great Caruso, The Student Prince).It's worth a look, and Barrymore and Greenstreet do their usual wonderful jobs.

WW2-set story about a plot to smuggle rubber out of Japanese-occupied Malaya. Reporter Jimmy Stewart, whose brother was killed by the Japanese, enlists in the war and is tasked with the smuggling operation, a nearly impossible mission he boasts he can do easily with the help of an old friend. That friend being Spencer Tracy, currently serving time at Alcatraz.Watchable time-killer that's a bit of a disappointment given the cast. Notable for being the final film of Sydney Greenstreet. Despite his failing health at this time, Greenstreet is still the most lively actor in the bunch. Tracy and Stewart are just going through the motions, not that the dull script or pedestrian direction do much to help them. Also the last film Stewart made with Lionel Barrymore, whose part is unfortunately small.

Malaya (1949)It would be nice to love this movie—with a strong theme of wartime ingenuity and bravery, and with three stellar actors—but by the end I was thinking everyone involved was just going through the motions. That's probably enough in many ways with people this naturally gifted on screen, and the movie is enjoyable, no question. With all the borrowings or references to earlier classics (Sydney Greenstreet even has a big bird as a pet, as in "Casablanca"), it makes for a fun time.The premise starts with some very compact storytelling—a somewhat disreputable man (James Stewart) is overheard saying he could smuggle rubber out of British Malaya (now Malaysia). It's WWII and the Army likes the idea enough to send him off with an ex-con (Spencer Tracy) who knows the area well. (This is all arranged with the help of Lionel Barrymore in a small role.)Then the adventure begins as they penetrate with surprising ease the rubber plantations and arrange with the generally friendly locals and ex-pats to get their hidden stockpiles. The Japanese do eventually catch on and there is fun there, but not before a couple of torch songs and some humorous excess as usual from the likable Greenstreet.Frankly, things never get exciting or even suspenseful, though interesting all along. One huge problem (for me) was a complete lack of details. The two men would say, okay, let's go get this rubber here, and they meet the plantation owner and there is some talk and then suddenly they are going down the river with some little barges. The Japanese have no suspicions, and the local smugglers are all these cheerful Resistance Fighter types who really like to help a lot.It would be fun to know if a young viewer finds this exotic and fun or laughable. It's somewhere between in all. And what honestly holds it together for anyone who likes the actors is just watching familiar faces in new roles. That is one of the endless interests of the movies.See it? Sure, if you already like older films or WWII films. It's not bad. The director Richard Thorpe is quite unknown these days, but the cinematographer is a standard bearer of he period, George Folsey, and that makes every scenes look terrific. Yeah, it's not at all bad. But it ain't great, either.

Malaya (1949) *** (out of 4) Washed-up reporter John Royer (James Stewart) is picked up by a government man who forces him into telling them how to sneak rubber out of Malaya. Royer agrees to help the government and he enlists the help of an old friend (Spencer Tracy) and soon the two are questioning their motives as they try and help the war cause. I've read quite a few reviews for this title and it seems that the majority of people were disappointed and I can certainly understand where they're coming from. After all, with such a terrific cast you really could argue that MGM should have spent more time coming up with a better story as there's no question it's quite standard WWII fair. With that said, it's the terrific cast that makes this worth viewing and I think seeing all the big names together makes the film worth sitting through. Not only do you have Tracy and Stewart but we've also got Lionel Barrymore and Sydney Greenstreet in his final film appearance. I thought watching the four of these men together was a lot of fun and especially the banter between Stewart and Tracy. I was a little surprised to see Stewart taking a supporting role but he's certainly very good in it and manages to bring that charm of his across without a problem. His character is also a patriotic one and I thought the actor did a great job at getting this across. Tracy is also exceptionally good here even though the character certainly wasn't going to stretch the legend any. Greenstreet is terrific as always and it's really amazing to see how good he could be with what appeared to be very little effort. It's a real shame that this turned out to be his final film. Barrymore plays the type of character he was typically doing during this point of his career but it was fun seeing him and Stewart together a couple years after IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE. The film also offers up some exciting action scenes and especially at the end, which I won't ruin but the effects of the battle were extremely realistic and they put you right there in the middle of the action. Again, I can see why some might be disappointed that the film is so light in areas but seeing the four stars together makes it very much worth seeing.