Review of A Hatful of Rain (1957) by Walter M — 24 Mar 2015

"A Hatful of Rain" starts with John Pope(Lloyd Nolan) paying a visit to his son Johnny(Don Murray) and pregnant daughter-in-law Celia(Eva Marie Saint) in New York City. However, this is not a purely social call, as he is inquiring about the $2,500 that his other son Polo(Anthony Franciosa), a bouncer, promised him that he needs for a nightclub he is planning on opening back in Florida. But Polo no longer has the money. And neither does Johnny what with his being in debt to a shady customer like Mother(Henry Silva) and just recently being secretly unemployed.

To its credit, "A Hatful of Rain" seeks to be an early serious look at drug addiction, while also being very much ahead of the curve in dramatizing the life of a soldier who came back from the war an addict. And as much as the movie makes great use of location shooting on the Lower East Side, it ends up clashing with the story's stage roots, very much in evidence.

At the same time, "A Hatful of Rain" suffers from a clear lack of focus. That is quite a dubious achievement when you notice that there are only four principal characters in the movie and it's supposed to be about Johnny's addiction. Instead there are tons of daddy issues...which are Polo's. That's not to mention a rather shaky love triangle going on at the same time.