A hurricane swells outside, but it's nothing compared to the storm within the hotel at Key Largo. There, sadistic mobster Johnny Rocco holes up - and holds at gunpoint hotel owner James Temple, his widowed daughter-in-law Nora, and ex-GI Frank McCloud.
Acting
Robinson's Rocco — petty tyrant perfection.
Direction
Huston squeezes dread from every humid frame.
Production
Fake hurricane, real anxiety on soundstage sets.
Director
John Huston
Humphrey Bogart
Frank McCloud
Edward G. Robinson
Johnny Rocco
Lauren Bacall
Nora Temple
Thomas Gomez
Richard 'Curly' Hoff
Lionel Barrymore
James Temple
Harry Lewis
Edward 'Toots' Bass
William Haade
Ralph Feeney
Claire Trevor
Gaye Dawn
John Rodney
Deputy Clyde Sawyer
Marc Lawrence
Ziggy
Monte Blue
Sheriff Ben Wade
Rodd Redwing
John Osceola (uncredited)
Jay Silverheels
Tom Osceola (uncredited)
Alberto Morin
Skipper of Rocco's Boat (uncredited)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The hurricane was staged on Warner Bros. soundstages with airplane propellers and 900 gallons of water per minute — Claire Trevor won a Supporting Oscar for playing Rocco's washed-up moll.
Released in 1948, the film channels post-WWII anxieties about masculine failure — Frank's war hero status feels hollow against Rocco's brand of homegrown fascist bullying.
US
