I gave it a 7.5 out of 10

Crappy film

A different way of telling a story

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Edward G. Robinson gives a winning performance in this excellent comedy, in which he flawlessly plays dual roles. I loved his portrayal of Arthur Ferguson Jones, a meek and gentle law abiding office clerk, who has a crush on his beautiful co-worker, the always delightful actress Jean Arthur. Problem is, kind-hearted Jones is an identical dead ringer in looks to a ruthless gangster, " Killer Mannion, " and one day big trouble begins for Jonesy as he is mistaken for the callous mobster. I have always enjoyed this well scripted film, finely performed by all the players involved in the comical antics. But all isn't funny for Arthur Jones when the gangster takes advantage of his identical twin, putting poor Jonesy in some tense situations. Edward G. Robinson's sweet character Jonesy is so adorable, I could bring him home to mother. If you are a fan of Jean Arthur and Edward G. Robinson and comedies 1930s style, you will find this most entertaining and amusing film, a very superb choice.

Edward G. Robinson stars in "The Whole Town's Talking" along with Jean Arthur, Wallace Ford, and Donald Meek.Edward G. Robinson was such a wonderful actor, a little guy with a towering talent. Here he has a dual role - that of an escaped criminal, Mad Dog Mannion and that of Arthur Jones, clerical worker, a shy man with a crush on a coworker (Arthur). When Mannion escapes from prison, his face is on the front page, and he looks so much like Jones that someone who sees him in a restaurant turns him into the police. When fingerprint ID verifies that he is not Mannion, he's given a letter by the police chief stating that he's not Mannion and should be left alone and even gets a job writing for the local newspaper about his experiences being mistaken for Mannion.Unfortunately for poor Arthur, Mannion shows up and wants to use the pass, which he does, raising complete havoc. He also starts giving Arthur info for the news stories - and the police wonder how it is Arthur knows so much.One of the funniest parts of the film for me was the newspaper description of Mannion - a cruel mouth, a Neandrathal face, etc., and poor Jones looking at himself in the restaurant mirror trying to look evil.Robinson is fabulous - so sweet, so gentle, such a hard worker as Arthur and a ruthless killer as Mannion. Jean Arthur, as the outspoken Miss Clark is great - when she's questioned by the police, they assume she's Mannion's accomplice, so they keep asking her questions - who did this, who robbed that, and she keeps saying, using a tough, gun moll voice, "MANNION!" Then they find out it's not Mannion they caught after all.I thought the movie went on just a tad too long, but otherwise, it was quite good, with fun performances, well directed by a man known for his westerns and bigger films, John Ford.

Three major male figures emerged as stars from the Warner Brothers factory of the 1930s -- Bogart, Cagney, and Robinson. Of the three, Edgar G. Robinson is probably the most underrated. He was adept at tough roles ("Little Caesar," "Key Largo"), mousy characters ("Scarlet Street," "The Woman In The Window") and thoughtful men of principle ("The Stranger").Here he plays both ends of the spectrum of virtue. He's Arthur Ferguson Jones, a frightened and self-effacing clerk at a jewelry firm. He's also the scowling, murdering gangster on the lame named Manion, a more subtle version of Caesar Enrico Bandello.Since the two look almost identical, when Manion breaks out of the slams, the police are on the lookout for him and arrest Jones instead. It takes a long time to iron out the mistake, which reduces the terrified Jones to a neural shambles. "I tell you, my name isn't Jones, it's Manion. I mean, it isn't Janion, it's Mones!" The police finally give him a "free pass" identifying him as Jones and asking he not be molested by the authorities. But then Manion shows up, threatens to kill Jones, and confiscates the free pass every night to continue his scurrilous activities. After that, it really gets complicated.Excellent support is provided by the professional cast, including Jean Arthur in the role of the sassy blond who eventually realizes she, who has been scoffing at Jones' tentative advances, is really his princesse lointaine and he is the guy she truly admires and cares for.It's a little long. And it seems every possible permutation of the mixed identity plot has been explored. The idea itself is hardly fresh. It was the subject of Shakespeare's first play and goes back to the Masques of Ancient Greece.But Robinson is so good in both roles that it's an enjoyable and often funny story. You wouldn't know it was directed by John Ford if you hadn't already known it. (There is only one comic drunk scene.) Robinson enjoyed working with Ford and, in his memoirs, he writes that his friendly working relationship continued with "Cheyenne Autumn."

It's just amazing...if he'd wanted to, Ford could've given Sturges or Hawks a run for their money. He throws himself into the timing, the riffs. And it's got that whole 30's look: fantastic back-lot town, millions of extras, Vorkapich-y montage sequence. Arthur is hysterical in her "Mannion" sequence. Both she and Robinson are brilliantly directed. And this film makes Woman in the Window and Scarlet Street possible. Who was Robinson to evoke this kind of split character so often? Tough guy, art collector...I'm not one to spend as much time with the stories of actors as the stories of directors. But it's interesting - he puts the apron on here and "feminizes" himself just like in Scarlet Street. The economy and understatement of the scene where Slugs Martin is killed is perhaps the most "Fordian" moment of the film. The chilling quality of what is not shown looks forward to films like The Searchers. By the way, I find it funny that the gangster character uses possessive pronouns before his gerunds. I guess they were better educated then...