Notes on The Big Heat

Gloria Grahame gives one of the most enthusiastic peformances in The Big Heat that I've ever seen. She gets almost all the good lines and visibly/audibly savors every one. Hollywood has produced its share of possibly unintelligent beauties who try to play smart by keeping quiet, but Grahame seems a clever sort playing this hilariously self-aware ditz with great relish. Her death scene, like the whole role, is touching because it's just slightly different from what you'd expect, yet perfectly fitting. She's a perfect foil for both the sadistic Vince Stone (Lee Marvin) and the almost comically determined (Glenn Ford). Ford (The Asphalt Jungle, Superman) seemed to me the absolute worst part of the picture, delivering almost all of his lines as growling threats.