Purely Joyful Movie!

Am I Missing Something?

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

I'm starting to think Mervyn LeRoy wasn't a very good director. Sinatra and Tracy give their worst performances I've ever seen, and I've seen countless films by both men. Everybody else is an amateur-hour ham barely competent by TV standards. The special effects are shamefully bad. The plot? Well, it's basically a disaster flick before that term was applied to star-bloated films in the 70s and beyond. When the enormous styrofoam bridge post got dislodged and crushed one of the characters - though not so quickly that Tracy wasn't able to speechify about the guy's bravery - I just burst out laughing. This is a career low for Tracy and Sinatra. Their careers were lucky to survive this garbage.

THE DEVIL AT 4 O'CLOCK is a disaster film about inhabitants of a remote Caribbean island struggling to escape from the volcano which has begun to erupt on the island. Although I'm a fan of the disaster film genre, I'd never heard of this film before watching, so perhaps it sank without trace. In any case it's a solid enough piece of entertainment with much in common with the likes of KRAKATOA - EAST OF JAVA and WHEN TIME RAN OUT.One of the most interesting things about DEVIL is the cast. Frank Sinatra headlines as another likable rogue of the kind he did so well. Old-timer Spencer Tracy is a delight as the hard-headed priest who essentially runs the island while the French bores in charge look on. Sinbad star Kerwin Mathews is here too as the young priest sent to replace a retiring Tracy. The supporting cast includes Barbara Luna, a truly exotic-looking beauty, and Bernie Hamilton as one of Sinatra's fellow cons. Hamilton would later go on to TV stardom in STARSKY & HUTCH.I think it's fair to say that THE DEVIL AT 4 O'CLOCK is a dated film and the special effects haven't held up particularly well, the back projection being a stand out. The first hour is a little slow too. However, once the disaster scenario kicks in, it becomes exciting and often gripping entertainment, and the ending is unexpectedly emotional. Solid Hollywood entertainment, in other words.

this is an excellent movie: the characters are multi-dimensional, and particularly Spencer Tracy reveals a rare depth in character development. overall, many of the personal developments throughout the movie remind me of graham Greene's "the burnt out case", not because of the leprosy association, but because of the definition of "terminal". warmly recommended for fans of Sinatra, Spencer Tracy, and graham Greene.generally, a good movie. somehow, it gets a bit sentimental, but the overall idea does not disappear until 2/3 of the movie.

I have watched The Devil at 4 O'Clock several times on Turner Classic Movies, the BEST channel on television. It is a spiritual movie without being syrupy or preachy. The acting is superb, especially Spencer Tracy and Frank Sinatra. It is not the type of movie that would be produced today... no violence, filthy language, or sex. What is does have is the redemption of the main characters and their rediscovered or newly acquired faith.The music complements the movie's theme. I am going to purchase this film because it has a timeless story and is entertaining at the same time. Spencer Tracy was able to convey so much with facial expressions and gestures that seem completely realistic unlike the stilted Method Acting technique ( which seems to me so patently artificial). I rate this film an eight out of ten.